Torture in the Age of Fear
In Co-operation with the Canadian Centre for Victims
of Torture
Author: Ezat Mossallanejed
Ezat Mossallanejed is a poet
who has suffered and who has devoted his life to the suffering.
In very readable prose, this book gives a thorough and precise
study of the global, local and very personal issues concerning
human rights and torture. The discussions of various national
and international statutes and the revelations of personal
testimony are all presented in context, with deep sensitivity
and insight into the human condition. Each new page provides
invaluable information that is well documented. However
this is not a book for the squeamish. Several years of experience
with survivors of torture and the passion of the author
have combined to produce a text that is authoritative in
the field and that will serve those interested in the fundamental
ethical questions associated with torture.
~ Professor Frederick Case, Department
of French Studies University of Toronto
That a contemporary look at
the practice of torture is needed at the beginning of the
21st century is a regrettable commentary on the state of
humankind. Ezat Mossallanejed responds to this need with
a thoughtful examination of torture: why it persists in
our time, the men, women and children who are being affected
and what we can do about it. He incorporates personal voices,
political and legal analyses, and philosophical commentaries
to help us understand this savage act and the fears that
sustain it. Mossallanejed writes with passion and insight
drawing on his extensive personal experiences as a survivor
of torture and activist for change. This book is an act
of courage and hope – a much needed shedding of light
on the dark and hidden side of our humanity and our world.
~ Dr. Susan McGrath, Director, Centre
for Refugee Studies
York University
Torture
in the Age of Fear by Ezat Mossallanejed is the best-documented
history of human suffering under torture in print. The writer,
a victim of torture himself, has stepped into torture chambers
of all corners of the world, under all establishments, both
past and present, to write a condemning testimony on human
misery. Written with great erudition on history, culture
and literature, the book is the best guideline on how to
combat against the scourge of global torture.
~ Reza Baraheni, President of PEN Canada
(2001-3); a past victim of torture of both the Shah and
The Islamic Republic of Iran, writer of The Crowned Cannibals
(Vintage, U.S. A.) and God’s Shadow: Prison Poems
(Indiana University Press)
Ezat Mossallanejed has written
a powerful book that reminds us that the vicious scourge
of torture continues to plague every corner of the world.
Through compelling personal stories and a sweeping global
overview, he reminds us all that much more must be done
to curtail this age-old horror. The current international
security agenda has led some governments and commentators
to question whether torture might sometimes be justified.
Ezat's book clearly and unequivocally underscores the debilitating
human cost of ever allowing torture. There is no excuse
for torture; and never can be.
~ Alex Neve, Secretary General, Amnesty
International Canada
