Dissident PJAK ends Iranian hunger strike

BAGHDAD, Oct. 9 (UPI) -- The Party for a Free Life in Kurdistan Thursday called for an end to the hunger strike waged by its members detained in Iran, calling the campaign a success.

The party, also known as PJAK, called for an end to a 45-day hunger strike waged in Iran, noting the Iranian government had relaxed its positions on the prisoners through indirect negotiations.

PJAK is allied with a number of Kurdish separatist organizations, including the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, seeking an autonomous state in the region.

In a statement released by its coordinating committee, PJAK noted that despite the end to the hunger strike, Tehran has embarked on a "new phase" of targeting political dissent, including the public execution of juveniles.

Tehran, the statement said, had softened its stance on the rights afforded to political prisoners, however. PJAK in a letter to the United Nations also accused Iran of torturing prisoners and denying their right to representation.

PJAK called on Tehran to consider the effects of non-violent protest and move to embrace democratic reform.

"Once again we urge the Iranian regime to learn a lesson from this experiment and to take serious measures to bring about democratic changes in accordance with international norm and to improve the conditions of the prisons," it said.