Iran judges slam Owen

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tary and world crusader for "human rights", David Owen, were any better than careerist hypocrite he would have died, or at least resigned, in shame last week.

In the southern Iranian town of Afwaz a group of lawyers, reflecting the feelings of the oppressed masses of Iran, risked persecution by issuing a statement condemning Owen's total political support for the murdering Shah expressed last week in an ITV interview.

"Can you take their money" asked Owen "and then just back off? That is the kind of political leadership for which I have total contempt."

Owen's kind of political leadership evidently involves the systematic denial of all democratic rights and the mass murder of protestors.

Fiendish dictator

Owen, Mulley, Callaghan and the rest of the Labour traitors have the blood of Iranian workers and peasants on their hands as well as the fiendish dictator they furnish with arms Owen and political support.

Of course, as Owen said, it is all to protect "British and Western interests"-the same interests that led the Wilson government to support in Vietnam some of the worst atrocities ever committed.

These are not the interests of any workers but those of the exploiters and the arms dealers.

Anger against Owen's arrogant reaction has grown rapidly in the labour movement.

Last week, even the National Executive of the Labour Party was moved to condemn Owen's latest support of the Shah and sent a delegation to see him.

And "left" MP Russell Kerr came back from a delegation to Iran accusing Owen of "public school rubbish"

But none of these protestors showed the remotest signs of making a serious stand on the question of taking the elementary step of demanding Owen's dismissal from the government.

The serious life-and-death struggle, however, has gone on all week in Iran and the Shah's position looks less secure than ever.

Further anti-Shah demonstrations by workers and, in Tehran especially, by students have occurred in every major city on virtually every day of last week.

There were also reports that the disturbances were spreading increasingly through the small towns and villages-indicating that the peasants are taking a more active part in the campaign to overthrow the reactionary tyrant that British Labour ministers are trying to keep in power.

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•PHOTO: Andrew Wiard, Report Wiard