International attention to these developments increased substantially during the 1970s as global concern regarding human rights expanded. Reports published by foreign newspapers, international legal organizations, and human rights groups began highlighting alleged violations within Iran’s judicial system. One notable example appeared on 25 August 1977, when the Financial Times reported that forty Iranian lawyers had submitted a letter to Nosratollah Moinian, head of the Shah’s Special Office. The lawyers accused the government of effectively taking control of the judiciary for political purposes. According to the report, they argued that judicial institutions had ceased functioning independently and instead operated to implement executive policies.
The publication of this letter was particularly significant because it represented criticism from members of the legal profession itself rather than solely from political activists. Lawyers who ordinarily worked within the judicial system publicly expressed concern that constitutional guarantees and legal safeguards were being systematically undermined. Their protest reflected growing dissatisfaction among professionals who believed that the rule of law had been compromised by political interference.
