Public Affairs
Below you will find news stories and commentary relevant to JACL members. A link to the Pacific Citizen website is in the navigation pane to the left.
Roxana Watch
Iranian American Journalist: Roxana Saberi
By Mai Suzuki, JACL Intern
April 28, 2009
Roxana Saberi, who was born in the United States to an Iranian father and a Japanese mother, was first arrested in Iran in late January 2009. On Saturday, April 25, her father Reza Saberi claimed that she has been on a hunger strike for over seven days in Evin jail in Tehran, even though she was frail and weak, to protest her sentence and demand to be released.
Roxana moved to Iran as a freelance journalist six years ago. She had stayed to finish a book on Iran and to study after her press credentials had expired in 2006. She was jailed on a charge of spying for the U.S., and then she was sentenced on April 18 to eight years in prison, as reported by National Public Radio. The U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that she was deeply concerned and called for the speedy release of Roxana. President Barack Obama also said he was confident that she was not involved in spying.
According to Asia Times Online, Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad has responded positively to Obama’s offer of direct dialogue and called for a fair and speedy appeal process for her. The Washington based Council on American Islamic Relations called on the government of Iran to release her. The Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura commented that Japan was paying attention to this issue and considering the need to play a mediator role, given that Japan has a warm relationship with Iran. Moreover, many organizations, including the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), and Roxana’s friends have urged the Iranian government to free her.
Roxana’s parents Reza and Akiko Saberi traveled to Iran from their home in Fargo, North Dakota, this month in an effort to secure their daughter’s release. They are allowed to visit her in jail every week. His father said she was supposed to see her lawyer on Thursday April 23, but the lawyer could not get permission from the courts to see her. According to Reuters, Iran’s judiciary said on Tuesday, April 28, that she was in good condition and not hunger striking.
On Sunday, April 26, 2009, Roxana turned 32. Her friends, journalists, colleagues, and well-wishers all over the world sent email birthday greetings to a special account established by her friends as happybirthdayroxana@gmail.com. A website has been set up (http://freeroxana.net/) which expresses desires for her to return home and encourages a fair appeals process for her. The website states that emails in her support may be sent to the Ambassador of Iran in New York City at iran@un.int.