AP Interview: Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi says Iran opposition still strong despite clampdown
By Ian Macdougall, APSunday, February 14, 2010
Nobel laureate Ebadi says Iran opposition strong
OSLO — Iranian Nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi says she rejects suggestions that Iran’s opposition movement is faltering after a debilitating government clampdown last week.
Ebadi said in an interview Sunday with The Associated Press that the opposition won “a great victory” simply by taking to the streets on the Feb. 11 anniversary of the Islamic Revolution that established clerical rule in Iran.
Government militiamen turned out in force and foiled plans for mass demonstrations, violently breaking up gatherings.
The blitz left opposition protesters reeling, and some say they are now reassessing their tactics.
Ebadi, who won the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize, says the vast deployment of government resources shows that Tehran is nearing the end of its rope.
