Farzad Kamangar: Iranian teacher in death row

On 25 February 2008, the Tehran Revolutionary Court sentenced Farzad Kamangar to death on charges of "endangering national security" and "enmity against God" (moharebe). The death penalty was confirmed by the Supreme Court on 11 July.

Farzad Kamangar, Iranian teacher, member of teacher union and human rights activist was arrested in July 2006 and under severe torture by the prison authorities on different occasions during his detention, they forced him to confess to charges against himself. For several months he was kept in solitary confinement and was not allowed any contact with his family or lawyer. The police also arrested Farzad's girlfriend, as well as members of his family.

Kamangar, who worked as a teacher in rural areas and was a human rights activist, is accused of being a terrorist through his alleged affiliation to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, PKK. According to his lawyer who was not permitted to defend him, Khalil Bahramian “Nothing in Kamangar’s judicial files and records demonstrates any links to the charges brought against him”. He described the trial as “lasting no more than five minutes, with the judge issuing his sentence without any explanation and then promptly leaving the room.” According to Bahramian, the closed-door trial violated the Iranian legal requirements that such cases must be tried publicly and in the presence of a jury.

Farzad’s lawyer appealed the death sentence given the complete lack of evidence. According to him, the prosecution and death sentence are an indication of “discrimination against Kurds” within the judicial system. On 11 July 2008, the Supreme Court upheld Farzad Kamangar’s death sentence. He could be executed any day.

Please help to publicize this campaign. For more information on how to help and use of badge on your blog please go to Save Farzad


Hat tips: Education International

Secret Execution of Delara Darabi

I am used to hear and touched by atrocities and everyday violation of human rights in Iran, I know I shouldn’t be but in past 30 years hearing bad news after another bad news, almost never ending bad news, kinda make you expect to hear worse news but I was so shocked about Delara’s execution that I couldn’t write anything since Friday, May 01.

Friday is weekend in Iran and they don’t execute people on weekends but seems they arranged lots of exceptions for Delara’s case like they didn’t inform her lawyer and her family and executed her while Iranian head of judiciary suspended her execution for about 2 months.

Authorities intentionally executed her with this secrecy and manner to avoid protests for saving her life. Her trial was unfair and Iranian judiciary refused to review her case despite of new evidences that brought forward by her lawyer later on:

• According to Iranian police evidences, crime committed by a right-hand person but she was left-hand person.
• Even Iranian police didn’t provide fingerprints from the knife that she supposedly used to kill.
• She actually took blame for the crime to protect her boyfriend, believing that as a juvenile she would not face hanging. Later on, she insisted that she didn’t kill anyone but authorities have ignored her during past 6 years.

That was very sad ending when she called home at 7 am and said “Oh, mom, they are going to hang me. I see the hangman's rope. Please save me mom. I want to speak to dad. I want to see you dad. for god sake, save me" Moments later a prison official snatched the handset away and yelled "we will easily execute your daughter and you can’t do anything about it”. Even they didn’t give her right to meet her family for the last time.

And I have been sad, upset, angry, angry, angry...

She is a second juvenile offender executed so far this year and at least 130 juvenile offenders sentenced to death are awaiting execution in Iran.

Stop Execution of Delara Darabi

She doesn't have much time, only two days, please help to stop her execution before it's too late.

Delara Darabi, aged 20, is an Iranian girl at the risk of execution for a murder which took place when she was 17 years old. She denies committing the crime. Iran is a state party to international treaties that expressly prohibit the use of the death penalty for crimes committed by those under the age of 18. According to Delara the murder of her father's cousin was committed by the 19 year old boyfriend that she was in love with. Delara Darabi initially confessed to the murder, but soon retracted her confession. She claims that Amir Hossein asked her to admit responsibility for the murder to protect him from execution, believing that since she was under the age of 18, she could not be sentenced to death.

Delara Darabi was sentenced to death by a lower court in the northern city of Rasht. The sentence has been upheld by the Iran's Suprerior Court. At this stage the Head of the Judiciary has the power to order a stay of execution and a review of the case. Amir Hossein has reportedly received a prison sentence of 10 years for his involvement in the crime. Amnesty International has made several public statements about Delara. Delara is a talented artist and has used paintings to express her feelings.

Please sign this petition to save her life.

A similar petition was made for another Iranian minor, Nazanin Fatehi who also was facing execution. However After more than 350,000 signatures and worldwide attention she was found innocent and freed from prison in January 31, 2007.

Stop Child Executions has been asking people to send email or fax to head of judiciary and following contacts:

Head of Judiciary of Islamic Republic of Iran
Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi
Phone: [00 98 21] 391 1109
Fax: [00 98 21] 3390 4986
Email: Shahroudi@Dadgostary-tehran.ir

Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations:
Mohammad Khazaee, Ambassador and Permanent Representative
Tel: (212) 687-2020 / Fax: (212) 867-7086
E-mail: iran@un.int

New additional contact information from Iran judiciary:
E-mail: info@dadiran.ir
[00 98 21 66491152 ]

and here is a sample letter:

Your Excellency Ayatollah Shahroudi,

Delara Darabi, the young artist who has been in Rasht prison for the last 6 years in Iran, is at risk of execution. I understand that her lawyer Abdolsamad Khoramshai has been informed that her execution is scheduled in the next few days. He is convinced that if she were to be given a new trial whereby they could re-enact the scene of thecrime, it would be easily proven that Delara is innocent of the alleged murder she was convicted of.

Khoramshahi has said many times that he has new evidence including the crime being committed by a right handed person whereas Delara is left-handed. Many attempts have been made by human rights groups and celebrities to try and get a pardon from the victim's family, however they have said that they want her execution to be carried out.

Please keep in mind that Iran is a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which prohibit the use of the death penalty against people convicted of crimes committed when they were under 18.

In the indicated circumstances, I'd request that she not be executed and be granted a new trial.

Thank you,
(Your name)

Hat tips: Stop child Executions

Iran torture prisoners

If you ask Iranian judiciary they deny torturing prisoners, in fact not only they deny practicing torture in Iran also they condemn torture and speak against of other countries that practice torture. So what do they practice really?! Nothing really, they torture but they don’t call it torture. They use an Arabic-Islamic word called “Tazir” which refers to punishment instead of “torture”. So simply they don’t torture but they do punish, lash, beat, kick, cut, rape and etc. all happens under definition of “Tazir”.

Bahman Aghai Diba, Ph.D. International Law wrote:

When an interrogator wants to torture a person, especially the political ones, he goes to Mullah Judge (called Hakem-e Shariah) and asks him to give permission for let say inflicting 50 lashes to get confession from the suspects. If that works, it is the mission accomplished. If not, he can go back and get permission from the Mullah Judge for as many and as hard lashings that he likes.

While there is a great difference between a gentle stroke of the lash and the sever strike that gushes blood out of the body of the miserable subjects of torture, there is no criteria or system to administer or observe how the permission of the "Tazir" is implemented. The interrogators implement them as they wish. Sometimes the lashing, especially against women and young prisoners lead to sever injuries, damaging the internal organs and permanent loss of the physical functions.

Hat tips: Rotten Gods: Islamic Iran Tortures Activists, Tazir: the Islamic Torture in Iran

Torture in Iran; Ahmad Batebi’s story

Preview of the interview

Ahmad Batebi who gained international fame for appearing on the cover of The Economist magazine July 17, 1999 holding a bloody T-shirt of a fellow student demonstrator – over that image Batebi arrested and sentenced to death. After international and domestic outcry, his sentence reduced to 15 years prison term.

Now that he is safe in the U.S. let’s hear this story from himself on 60 Minutes program on Sunday.



Update: Check out the full interview in Iran torture prisoners