Written question asked by Mike Hancock (Liberal Democrat) on Monday, 12 July 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 19 July 2004. It was answered by Bill Rammell (Labour) on Monday, 19 July 2004 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations the Government has made to the Government of Iran on the imprisonment of Ebrahim Khodabandeh and Jamil Bassam who had previously been granted asylum in the UK.

Answer: Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the Government of Iran on the imprisonment of Ebrahim Khodabandeh and Jamil Bassam who had previously been granted asylum in the UK. [184316] Mr. Rammell: We have raised the imprisonment of Ebrahim Khodabandeh and Jamil Bassam with the Iranian Government many times, on human rights grounds. We have urged the Iranian authorities to ensure that the men are well treated and, if charged, given a fair and open trial with recourse to proper legal representation. We have no right of consular access to the two men, who are not British nationals. But we have encouraged the Iranian authorities to allow international monitoring visits.

Secondary information