UANI Calls on Terex to End Its Business in Iran in New Cranes Campaign

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 16, 2011 Contact: Nathan Carleton, press@uani.com Phone: (212) 554-3296 UANI Calls on Terex to End Its Business in Iran in New Cranes Campaign New York, NY - United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) on Tuesday called on Terex to end its business dealings in Iran and keep the Iranian regime from using Terex cranes for public executions. The Terex Corporation, an American construction equipment manufacturer based in Westport, Connecticut, does business with Iran through foreign subsidiaries. Terex is also a major contractor with the U.S. Department of Defense, benefiting from close to $300 million in defense-related contracts over the past ten years. As part of its newly launched "Cranes Campaign," UANI is highlighting the Iranian regime's abhorrent execution method of public hanging from construction cranes, and the disturbing reality that these cranes are coming from Western and Asian companies. In 2009, the SEC's Office of Global Security Risk initiated correspondence over concerns regarding Terex's sales to Iran, Syria, and Sudan. In a letter to Terex Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ronald M. DeFeo, UANI President, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace wrote: As part of its newly launched "Cranes Campaign," UANI is urging all crane manufacturers, including Terex, to end their business operations in Iran until the current regime in Tehran ends this grisly practice and stops threatening the world through the pursuit of an illegal nuclear weapons program. Sadly, this issue has taken on greater salience in the last several months. Iran has set a blistering pace of executions in the first months of 2011, with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran proclaiming that the regime is on an "execution binge." According to Freedom House, Iran has executed at least 132 people since the New Year, setting the regime on pace to far exceed the 179 reportedly executed in 2010. The disturbing reality is that the Iranian regime's preferred method of execution is hanging from a construction crane, gruesomely leaving the bodies on public display. UANI is calling upon all crane suppliers, including Terex, to end their business dealings in Iran. *** Even putting aside the clear misuse of these cranes for public executions, the possibility of Terex's name being even remotely associated with the thugocratic regime in Tehran should be reason enough to end Terex's business in Iran. UANI Advisory Board Member Irwin Cotler, a Member of Canada's Parliament and a prominent human rights lawyer, also stated, "Iranian assaults on human rights executions have escalated dramatically in 2011. Indeed, the rate of executions has been unprecedented, even by wanton Iranian standards. We are witnessing in Ahmadinejad's Iran the toxic convergence of four distinct yet interrelated threats: the nuclear threat; the genocidal incitement threat; the threat of state-sponsored terrorism; and the systematic and widespread violations of the rights of the Iranian people." Responsible corporations, notably construction companies Caterpillar and Komatsu, have already pulled out of Iran. In addition to Terex, as part of the Cranes Campaign UANI is also calling on Manitowoc, a U.S. cranes company, and foreign equipment manufacturers such as Tadano (Japan), UNIC (Japan), Liebherr (Germany), Cargotec (Finland), Konecranes (Finland), XCMG (China), Kobelco (Japan), Zoomlion (China) and Gottwald (Germany) to account for their business in Iran and the likelihood (and in some cases direct photographic evidence) that their cranes are being used for public executions. Andrew Apostolou of Freedom House added, "Companies need to be aware that doing business with Iran can mean assisting in gross human rights violations. The use of the death penalty in Iran is highly abusive and unfair. Navi Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, has called for a moratorium on executions-responsible companies can do their part by ending their dealings with the Iranian regime." Click here to send a message to Terex. Click here to read the letter to Terex. Click here to learn more about the UANI Cranes Campaign. ### United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a program of the American Coalition Against Nuclear Iran, Inc., a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran should concern every American and be unacceptable to the community of nations. Since 1979 the Iranian regime, most recently under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's leadership, has demonstrated increasingly threatening behavior and rhetoric toward the US and the West. Iran continues to defy the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations in their attempts to monitor its nuclear activities. A number of Arab states have warned that Iran's development of nuclear weapons poses a threat to Middle East stability and could provoke a regional nuclear arms race. In short, the prospect of a nuclear armed Iran is a danger to world peace. United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a non-partisan, broad-based coalition that is united in a commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons. UANI is an issue-based coalition in which each coalition member will have its own interests as well as the collective goal of advancing an Iran free of nuclear weapons. The Objectives of United Against a Nuclear Iran Inform the public about the nature of the Iranian regime, including its desire and intent to possess nuclear weapons, as well as Iran's role as a state sponsor of global terrorism, and a major violator of human rights at home and abroad; Heighten awareness nationally and internationally about the danger that a nuclear armed Iran poses to the region and the world; Mobilize public support, utilize media outreach, and persuade our elected leaders to voice a robust and united American opposition to a nuclear Iran; Lay the groundwork for effective US policies in coordination with European and other allies; Persuade the regime in Tehran to desist from its quest for nuclear weapons, while striving not to punish the Iranian people, and; Promote efforts that focus on vigorous national and international, social, economic, political and diplomatic measures. UANI is led by an advisory board of outstanding national figures representing all sectors of our country.

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