TEHRAN The representative of the Judiciary on the constitutional Article 10 Commission said here yesterday that the request of the Iran Freedom Movement (IFM) for a license to authorize their activities has been officially rejected by the commission.

Lotfollah Atabaki added that the claim made recently by IFM members that they have not been informed that they are not authorized to conduct party activities is a sheer lie.

Speaking to the Central News Bureau (CNB), he said, "The commission discussed the IFM's request for a license, and I was assigned to investigate the record of the movement."

"Following the investigations into the record, statements and positions of the movement, especially the positions of IFM Secretary Ebrahim Yazdi, I presented a report to the commission," Atabaki said. He added that, based on the report as well as Imam Khomeini's letter to the then interior minister Mohtashami about the movement, the members of the commission voted to reject the IFM request.

The IFM then lodged a complaint against the commission and the court announced the case is beyond its jurisdiction.

When denied authorization for its activities, the IFM said that the commission is not qualified to deal with such issues and there is no need for the issuance of a license. However, it is surprising that when they asked for a license they considered the commission Atabaki said.