NCRI, September 30 – Marking twentieth anniversary of foundation of center for tortured refugees in Sweden, a seminar was organized by the Swedish Red Cross in Stockholm on September 28. The psychological and mental scars resulted by torture and the problems facing political refugees were the issues discussed in the seminar.

On the invitation of the Swedish branch of the Red Cross Mr. Behzad Naziri, member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the NCRI and Mr. Mostafa Naderi both victims of torture in Iran attended the seminar and gave detailed information on what they experienced in torture chambers of the ruling regime in Iran.

Mr. Naderi who had spent 12 years in various prisons in Iran described different forms of tortures practiced in Iranian prisons and explained his ordeal which deeply shocked the audience.

Mr. Parviz Khazai, NCRI representative in Nordic countries who was also invited to the seminar provided information on the persecution of refugees in exile and the assassination of defectors including two representatives of the NCRI in Switzerland and Italy by the Iranian regime. He called on the participants in the seminar to urge governments hosting Iranian refugees to provide them with appropriate protection and care.

A human rights exhibition organized by supporters of the NCRI on the fringe of the seminar displayed the truth of human rights situation in Iran.

In solidarity with the victims of torture, Dr. Hamidreza Taherzadeh, a renowned Iranian musician and a member of the NCRI played a piece of Persian music.