Rival cellphone company Turkcell has also accused MTN of using bribery to obtain an operating licence for Iran. The case has been brought before a court in the US.
According to court papers quoted by DA spokesman David Maynier, MTN "offered the advantage" to Iranian state-owned defence company Sairan to provide access by the Iranian Ministry of Defence to MTN's devices once the company started running a private cellular network in Iran.
"The access would facilitate installation of eavesdropping technology on MTN devices," Maynier said.
SAHRC spokesman Vincent Moaga confirmed receiving the DA's request.
Moaga said the first stage of the investigation would be to establish whether there were prima facie violations of human rights and whether MTN had a case to answer.
The commission would also seek to establish whether it was the right body to deal with the matter, he said.
MTN said on its website that its role in widening access to mobile technology was a liberating force for Iranians, regardless of political allegiances.
"On human rights, the group takes direction from and adheres to the policies of both the South African government and the UN ... MTN seeks to ensure that our corporate values of respect for human rights are reflected in the way we do business and we expect all our partners to adhere to these fundamental principles," it said. - Sapa
Source: The Times
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