Statement on behalf of friends and supporters of Abas Amini

31 May 2003

This has been a very difficult time for all of us.

Abbas needs time to recover both physically and mentally in a way that’s right for him.

We, his friends and supporters, have been working day and night to help him during his hunger strike. We also need time to recover physically and mentally.

We have all been through a traumatic event. None of us have been trained to deal with this kind of thing and we have not yet received any counselling.

We have decided therefore that those of us who were closely involved during this time will not be available to speak to anyone from the media for at least the next seven days.

We are asking you to respect our wish to grant Abbas some privacy and time alone with his friends, and to grant us some time to recover from this ordeal.

31 May 2003

Please address any enquiries to:

International Federation for Iranian Refugees, Executive Director: Maryam Namazie, tel.: +44 (0)7719166731.