savethesheikh.com

Sydney, June 7: Nobel peace laureate Bishop Desmond Tutu has joined an international human rights campaign condemning Australia’s decision to deport a leading Iranian cleric later this month.

Sheikh Mansour Leghaei, a moderate Shia cleric, has been living peacefully with his family in Australia for 16 years. He has never been granted permanent residency due to two adverse security assessments made against him by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) several years ago.

Contrary to the right to a fair hearing in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Australia is a signatory, Australia has never informed Dr Leghaei of the nature of the allegations against him. A leading proponent of interfaith dialogue and religious tolerance in Sydney, Dr Leghaei strenuously denies he is a threat to Australia’s national security.

“In South Africa we used to have detention without trial. In Australia you have deportation without trial,” said Bishop Tutu.

In April the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) formally requested Australia not to deport Dr Leghaei while it considered whether his human rights had been breached. On May 17 the Australian Immigration Minister, Senator Chris Evans, ignored the UN’s request and announced that Dr Leghaei had six weeks to leave.

“The impending deportation of Sheikh Mansour Leghaei is a travesty of justice. There is no doubt at all that his human rights have been violated,” said Dr Chandra Muzaffar, a leading Malaysian political scientist, Islamic reformist and activist.

A week after Amnesty International criticized the Australian Government for putting political self-interest ahead of human rights in its treatment of asylum seekers from Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, international human rights advocates have rallied behind Dr Leghaei, including:

Bishop Riah Abu El-Assal, retired Bishop of Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.
Máiread Corrigan-Maguire, Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
Dr Chandra Muzaffar
Professor Hans Köchler, president of the International Progress Organization.
Dr Norman Finkelstein, American political scientist.
Bishop Desmond Tutu

Helen Signy +61 425 202 654
Father Dave Smith +61 409 620 009
Ben Saul +61 424 365 146

Bishop Riah	“I am really shocked to hear what awaits Sheikh Dr. Mansour. This is rather absurd. Only during emergency times one hears about such actions. I really hope that he be given the opportunity to defend himself.” Bishop Riah Abu El-Assal was the 13th Episcopal Bishop of Jerusalem (an episcopate covering Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon). Riah is a world leader in human-rights activism and a staunch campaigner for peace in the Middle East.
Mairead Maguire	“I would like to appeal to the Minister forImmigration, Mr. Chris Evans, and the Australian Government not to deport Sheikh Mansour Leghaei from Australia. I understand that he and his family have lived peacefully in Australia for 16 years and he is deeply respected by the Islamic Community which he serves as a Muslic Cleric. Dr. Leghael is not only not a threat to Australian National Security but indeed through his peaceful presence and work both within the muslim community and with other religious leaders and people, makes a great contribution to Australian society. It is also important he is not deported as he has not been given a right to a fair hearing and his deportation would therefore be in breach of his human rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to which Australia is a Party.” Máiread Corrigan-Maguire was the co-founder of the Community of Peace People, an organization which attempts to encourage a peaceful resolution of the troubles in Northern Ireland. Along with co-founder, Betty Williams, she received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976.
Dr Chandra Muzaffar	“The impending deportation of Sheikh Mansour Leghaei is a travesty of justice. There is no doubt at all that his human rights have been violated. Since the Australian government often champions human rights, it should not hesitate to provide the Sheikh with all the opportunities to defend himself. If the government deports him, it will only be tranishing its own image internationally.” Dr Chandra Muzaffar is a leading Malaysian Muslim political scientist, Islamic reformist and activist. He has written extensively on civilisational dialogue, human rights, Malaysian politics and international relations. Dr Muzaffar is President of the International Movement for a Just World .
Professor Hans Kochler	“The International Progress Organization considers the deportation order as a serious violation of Australia’s obligations under international human rights treaties which it has ratified. There can be no fair hearing of the case if the authrotities refuse to disclose the allegations against Sheikh Mansour. We appeal to the government of Australia to revoke this decision.” Hans Köchler is a professor of philosophy at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, and president of the International Progress Organization, a non-governmental organization in consultative status with the United Nations
Dr Norman Finkelstein	“The U.N. Human Rights Committee (not to be confused with the U.N. Human Rights Council) is composed of human rights experts from around the world. Its request that Sheikh Mansour not be deported until the HRC has investigated the case should be respected by the Australian government. Otherwise, it will appear that the government wants to dispose of Sheikh Mansour before light might be cast on the veracity of the allegations against him.” Dr Norman Finkelstein is an American political scientist and author, whose primary fields of research are the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the politics of the Holocaust.
Bishop Desmond Tutu	“In South Africa we used to have detention without trial. In Australia you have deportation without trial!” Bishop Desmond Tutu was the Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town in South African and one of the leading opponents of apartheid in the 1980’s. In 1984 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and he continues to be one of the world’s leading human-rights activists and peace campaigners.

is a professor of philosophy at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, and president of the International Progress Organization, a non-governmental organization in consultative status with the United Nations
Dr Norman Finkelstein

Nobel laureates criticize Australia over planned deportation of Iranian cleric

International Human-Rights Activists speak out about the deportation of Sheikh Mansour

About the Site:

Links

Pages

Categories:

Search:

Monthly:

RSS Feeds:

Meta