Iranian Nobel Laureate Demands End To Solitary Confinement

Shirin Ebadi (file photo) 17 January 2005 -- Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi today demanded Iranian authorities ban the use of solitary confinement, which she says amounts to torture.
Ebadi, a human rights lawyer, made her remarks at a press conference today in Iran's capital Tehran. She described the use of solitary confinement as a tool used by an unpopular government. She said the practice is widespread in Iran, particularly for political dissidents.

Ebadi's remarks come after she recently said she is willing to face arrest after refusing a summons to appear before the Islamic Republic's Revolutionary Court.

She refused the summons on the grounds that she was not informed of the charges she is facing.

(Reuters/dpa)