Group: Iran reins in lawyers

TEHRAN, July 16 (UPI) -- Changes to Iranian law on the legal profession would give the government control over who can practice law, Human Rights Watch said Thursday.

The changes give the judiciary veto power over applications for licenses to practice law, the group said. The head of the judiciary is appointed by the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The Iranian Bar Association has been a self-governing professional group since 1955.

"This so-called reform would allow the government to hand-pick the lawyers who are allowed to practice," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "What we see here is a naked effort to intimidate Iranian defense lawyers at a time when the government is detaining hundreds of people without charge."

The head of the judiciary approved the change June 17, Human Rights Watch said.