Iran's moderate former president, Mohammad Khatami, has denounced the trial of more than 100 opposition activists and protesters as a violation of the constitution that will further damage public trust in the Islamic republic.
"The trial on Saturday was a show and the confessions are invalid ... What was called a trial was a violation of the constitution ... Such show trials will directly harm the system and will further damage public trust," he said in a posting on his website .
Khatami, who was president from 1997 to 2005, criticised the court for not allowing defendants' lawyers access to the courtroom or the case files. Instead of a show trial, Khatami said the public expected the government to "confront the problems and tragedies that happened in some detention centres and apparently led to murder".
Khatami's outspoken remarks dashed any hopes the regime may have harboured that a show of legal strength would initimidate its critics into silence.