Kazemi's son turns up pressure on Ottawa

The son of a Canadian photographer who died in Iran says Ottawa isn't doing enough to bring her killers to justice.

Zarah Kazemi's son, Stephan Hachemi, spoke out in Toronto Saturday.

• PROFILE: Shirin Ebadi

He and his lawyer were joined by Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi. The Iranian human rights activist is representing the Kazemi family in Iran.

Hachemi says only the Canadian government can ensure the trial is fair. He says he's making two demands: the return of his mother's body to Canada and a transparent trial of the interrogators blamed for Kazemi's death.

"I'm not going to go away. I'm going to be there and I'm going to do what I do," he said.

Kazemi died after being beaten in custody last July by interrogators in Iran.

An Iranian security agent has been charged with involuntary homicide. The trial is supposed to begin in July.

Hachemi says he wants help from Ottawa beyond the involvement of Canada's ambassador.

"We've asked them to have experienced jurists and monitors," said Marlys Edwardh, Hachemi's Canadian lawyer.

"We understand that Ambassador [Philip] McKinnon is going to be there. But that, in our view, is not the same as having experienced jurors look at the process to decide whether in fact it's transparent, whether in fact there is a real trial that is going to go on."

Hachemi also wants the government to support a claim for compensation if justice fails. Ottawa hasn't responded yet.