The Road to Democracy in Iran

Akbar Ganji, called by some "Iran's most famous dissident," wasa member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. But, troubled by the regime'srepressive nature, he became an investigative journalist in the 1990s, writing forIran's pro-democracy newspapers. Most notably, he traced the murders of dissidentintellectuals to Iran's secret service. In 2000 Ganji was a

Akbar Ganji, called by some "Iran's most famous dissident," wasa member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. But, troubled by the regime'srepressive nature, he became an investigative journalist in the 1990s, writing forIran's pro-democracy newspapers. Most notably, he traced the murders of dissidentintellectuals to Iran's secret service. In 2000 Ganji was arrested, sentenced to sixyears in prison, and banned from working as a journalist. His eighty-day hungerstrike during his last year in prison mobilized the international human rightscommunity. The Road to Democracy in Iran, Ganji's first book in English, demonstrates his lifelong commitment to human rights and democracy. A passionatecall for universal human rights and the right to democracy from a Muslimperspective, it lays out the goals and means of Iran's democracy movement, whywomen's rights trump some interpretations of Islamic law, and how the West can helppromote democracy in Iran (he strongly opposes U.S. intervention) and other Islamiccountries. Throughout the book Ganji argues consistently for universal rights basedon our common humanity (and he believes the world's religions support that idea).But his arguments never veer into abstraction; they are rooted deeply in therealities of life in Islamic countries, and offer a clear picture of thepossibilities for and obstacles to improving human rights and promoting democracy inthe Muslim world. Since his release from prison in March 2006, Akbar Ganji has beentraveling outside Iran, meeting with intellectuals and activists in theinternational human rights community. He is currently living in the UnitedStates."Ganji goes beyond religion, ethnicity, or nationality in recognizinguniversality of concepts such as democracy and human rights. Thus he brings Iranback to the world, allying himself with democratic elements in his country no matterwhat their creed, and drawing freely upon the writings of democratic thinkers in theWest."--Azar Nafisi, author of Reading Lolita in Tehran