"Stoning, the amputation of limbs must be abolished," she told the French newspaper Le Monde in response to a question about what reforms she would like to see introduced in Iran.

"The age of majority, which at the moment is 13 for girls, 15 for boys should be modified.

It is essential because "it touches the freedom, life and safety of the population."

Ebadi, 56, a human rights lawyer is the first Muslim woman to be awarded a Nobel peace prize and the first Iranian to receive any Nobel award.

She is due to return to Tehran, where her award has aroused a mixed reaction, on Tuesday, according to a human rights organisation in Paris, where she is staying at present and giving a round of interviews.

She told Le Monde that the Iranian Islamic Republic could not continue if it did not evolve and called for a change to the electoral law.

"The most important thing now is that the government proposal for change to the law on elections be adopted. Let people be able to elect freely their representatives in Parliament."

If the proposals were blocked by the (conservative) Revolutionary Guards' Council "the Iranian people will boycott the elections due to take place in March, as they did last year with municipal elections.".

Ebadi said she supported the separation of the state and religion.

"The position I take is not against Islam. There are grand ayatollahs who want the separation of the state and religion."

As for the absence of democracy in Islamic countries, she said: "It is not the fault of Islam but of corrupt regimes in all Muslim countries which unfortunately use this pretext to justify their illegitimate government."

But she opposed the use of violence to change the type of government in Iran as well as any outside intervention.

"The time of revolutions is over. We are for reform, both in the field of civil and political rights and the domain of economic and social rights."

She said the Iranian people were deeply disappointed by the Islamic revolution and said President Mohammad Khatami had been elected because he talked of reforms and thought they could be brought about.

"I hope that even after Khatami goes, the struggle for reform will continue, that the people continue to put forward their claims.

"As a militant for human rights I think the world has understood that the road to peace lies through human rights. If war is to end, they must be respected."

All rights reserved. Copyright 2003 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.

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