Swiss ambassador to visit Iraq to discuss situation in Ashraf

NCRI, 20 March 2011 – Several members of the Swiss Parliament have demanded answers from the federal government about the main Iranian opposition and Camp Ashraf, calling on the government to play a role in guaranteeing the protection of Ashraf’s residents.
Camp Ashraf, Iraq, is home to more than 3,400 members of the main Iranian opposition People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).
 
According to the government, the Swiss ambassador in Damascus will visit Iraq in April and the situation in Camp Ashraf will be one of the priorities of his talks with various Iraqi officials.
Five members of the Swiss Parliament pressed the government in a session about the protection of Ashraf residents in Iraq and their families in Iran, the Iraqi government’s prevention of the inflow of medicine into the camp, and the Iranian regime’s threats, harassment and psychological torture of the residents using more than 240 loudspeakers.
The lawmakers called for international intervention and urged their government to play a role in protecting the camp’s residents and to put an end to the violation of the human rights of the residents by the Iraqi government.
They also pressed the Swiss government to intervene and urge the US administration to remove the PMOI from the list of terrorist organizations in line with Britain and the European Union.
The parliamentarians pointed out that Switzerland is a party to international human rights conventions, which oblige it to intervene to secure the protection of Camp Ashraf.
A representative of the Swiss government told the lawmakers that Bern is aware of the situation in Camp Ashraf, stressing that its residents are protected by international laws.
The government also said it will closely follow developments in Ashraf through its embassy in Syria and that it will urge the Iraqi government to respect international laws.