Important Update:Nation Article

[Free the Hikers]

Dear Friends and Supporters of Shane, Sarah and Josh,

Today The Nation published an article which cites witnesses who say
that Shane, Sarah and Josh never actually crossed the Iranian border.
We have no way to verify if this is true or not and had no part in the
article, but it corresponds with what we’ve been saying for 11 months
now; SSJ had no intention of entering Iran. They are extremely
seasoned and responsible travelers. The article raises very troubling
concerns, not least about the lack of due process in the treatment of
their case in violation of Iranian and international law.

THE NATION ARTICLE: http://www.thenation.com/article/36562/us-hikers-were-seized-iraq

Now more than ever, we ask that your raise your voice with indignation
about the way SSJ are being treated, about how nearly a year of their
life has been taken away from them for absolutely no legitimate
reason, about how Iran is using them in a cynical attempt to exert
leverage with the United States (which flagrantly defies all codes of
the conduct of nations), about how Iran is denying them access to
their lawyer and any semblance of due process.

·Write an op-ed or a blog post (on our blog or yours)
http://www.blog.freethehikers.org/
·Recruit more people for the Facebook page
·Alert your friends overseas to this injustice and let them know the
type of committed GLOBAL citizens SSJ are.

We want to highlight the great work that Safe World for Women is doing
on pretty much all of these points. Many, many thanks to Andrew and
Chris, a tremendous support and greatly appreciated.

SAFE WORLD FOR WOMEN http://www.asafeworldforwomen.org/freemesub.html

Our press release about the article at The Nation is pasted below.
Thanks for keeping SSJ in your thoughts and prayers and for your
efforts to make sure their plight is not forgotten and soon resolved.

In Gratitude,

The Bauer, Shourd and Fattal Families

PS – Please be on the look out for information about activities to
commemorate the one-year mark of Shane, Sarah and Josh’s capture. We
hope that it is not necessary, but sadly we need to prepare for the
possibility.

From: www.freethehikers.org

June 24, 2010

The families of Shane Bauer, Sarah Shourd and Josh Fattal released the
following statement today in response to a report in The Nation
regarding the circumstances of their arrest by Iranian forces on July
31, 2009:

“We thank the Nation and the Investigative Fund at the Nation
Institute for their independent efforts to investigate the
circumstances in which Shane, Sarah and Josh were arrested almost 11
months ago.  While we obviously cannot corroborate the accounts of the
witnesses quoted in the article, we know that Shane, Sarah and Josh
have consistently told investigators that they had absolutely no
intention of entering Iran.  This report appears to confirm that and
raises deeply troubling questions, not only about our children’s
arrest but also about why they remain held without due process in
violation of Iranian and international law.  Consistent with due
process, the Iranian judiciary must act urgently and either release
Shane, Sarah and Josh or allow them to answer any allegations against
them in a public courtroom.”