DATE=10/30/1999 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT TITLE=IRAN / TRIAL (L ONLY) NUMBER=2-255642 BYLINE=RICHARD ENGEL DATELINE=CAIRO CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: The trial of one of Iran's leading reformers opened Saturday in Tehran. Richard Engel reports from our Middle East bureau in Cairo that Iran's former interior minister, Abdullah Nouri, is accused of using his newspaper to promote ties with Iran's archenemy, the United States. TEXT: The prosecutor for the special court trying Mr. Nouri is accusing the former cabinet minister and newspaper manager of trying to undermine the Iranian revolution. The charges were filed in response to pro-reform articles published in Khordad, a newspaper Mr. Nouri managed last year after Iran's conservative parliament forced him to resign as interior minister. The 44-page indictment accuses Mr. Nouri of using Khordad to slander the Iranian government, publish irreligious articles and distort the ideals of the Islamic republic as laid out by the late Ayatollah Khomeini. The prosecutor told a crowded courtroom that Mr. Nouri hoped to cause public dissent for personal gain. Mr. Nouri is a strong supporter of Iran's moderate president, Mohammed Khatami, and analysts say his trial is part of an ongoing struggle between reformists and hard-liners in Iran for control over the nation. Mr. Nouri says the charges against him are an attempt by hard-liners to silence moderate voices. A conviction would disqualify Mr. Nouri from taking part in parliamentary elections in February. Many reformists had hoped to make him their choice for parliamentary speaker. A recent report by the group, Human Rights Watch, says press freedom and government attempts to control the press have become key issues in the struggle for power between reformists and hard-liners. Human Rights Watch also condemns Iran for limiting freedom of expression by using special tribunals instead of regular courts to try writers and journalists. Two other trials in Iran involve confrontations between supporters and opponents of President Khatami. Four university students are on trial for producing a satirical play that conservatives found insulting to Islam. And Tehran's former reformist mayor, Gholamhossein Karbachi, is appealing a conviction on corruption charges. (signed) NEB/RHE/DW/JP 30-Oct-1999 09:30 AM EDT (30-Oct-1999 1330 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .
