We received a request from a friend to compose a letter that anyone could send to Japan’s government, with a copy sent also to the UN, to key international human rights organizations, and to the media.

Such a sample letter appears below, along with contact information for the above-mentioned entities. We hope you find it useful. Thank you to @GreatPersiaMap for the timely suggestion.

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To send your message to the Prime Minister of Japan, you may submit the below letter into a post form at: (http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/forms/comment.html)

Next, send a copy of your letter to the following entitities:

1) United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon: inquiries@un.org

2) UN High Commissioner on Human Rights: (letter form) http://www.unhcr.org/pages/4a324fcc6.html

3) Human Rights Watch: hrwnyc@hrw.org

4) Amnesty International Urgent Action Network: uan@aiusa.org

5) The Associated Press: info@ap.org

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Dear Prime Minister Hatoyama,

I have learned that Japan plans to deport Iranian human rights activist Jamal Saberi. At a time when the Islamic regime brutally represses peaceful protesters, journalists, students, and human rights activists within its borders, I am appalled that Japan supports the regime’s efforts to silence dissidents abroad.

Japan’s effort to forcibly return Saberi violates of the principle of non-refoulement: “no refugee should be returned in any manner whatsoever to any country where he or she would be at risk of persecution.” Japan has signed the Convention and Protocol on the Status of Refugees, where this principle in enshrined.

A vocal critic of the Islamic Republic, Mr. Saberi legitimately fears persecution. The world knows the atrocities the Islamic Republic inflicts on its citizens: Neda Soltan was shot dead in the street, simply for walking among peaceful protesters last June. Mohammad Valian, a 20-year old boy whose only “crime” was calling for freedom and throwing a rock, was sentenced to death. We know what this regime will do to a man who has spent much of his life condemning this murderous regime.

Saberi warrants refugee status and protection under UN conventions. Japan must uphold these principles or be complicit in the bloody work of the Islamic Republic. Japan must recognize the implications of its act in the Saberi case: violating the principle of non-refoulement will have dire consequences for refugees worldwide. I am especially concerned for thousands of Iranian refugees surviving precariously in Turkey. The world does not want Turkey to follow a poor example set by Japan. The world will not forget, nor forgive, any nation that is complicit with the depraved Islamic regime.

Japan must reconsider its position and set appropriate precedent by freeing Jamal Saberi, halting deportation, establishing his refugee status, and implementing appropriate protections to preserve his life.

Sincerely,
Concerned Citizen