On the Death Penalty in Iran CAHIERS DE L’ABOLITION #2 Acknowledgments This edition of the Cahiers de l’Abolition on the death penalty in Iran would not have been possible without a major collective effort. Many people participated, to varying degrees, in the design, in contacting contributors, in reviewing the various editions, including the final one. We hereby express our deepest gratitude. On the death penalty in Iran Ensemble Ensemble contre la peine de mort contre 69, rue Michelet la peine 93100 Montreuil - France de mort www.abolition.fr ISSN : 2-9525533-9-4 ISBN : 978-2-95255-339-1 © ECPM 2014 TABLE OF CONTENTS The Persian words in italics in the document are defined and presented in the appendix. Foreword ............................................................................................................................................ 9 By Shirin Ebadi Lawyer and human rights activist, Nobel Peace Prize 2003. Introduction Origin and objectives of the Cahiers de l’abolition on the death penalty in Iran ............................................................................................... 11 By Raphaël Chenuil-Hazan Director-General of Together against the Death Penalty (Ensemble contre la peine de mort - ECPM), vice President of the World Coalition against the Death Penalty. PART I Legal perspectives................................................................................ 15 The Death Penalty in the Judicial System ............................................................... 16 By Nasrin Sotoudeh Lawyer, Sakharov Prize 2012. Capital punishment in Criminal Policy Founded on the Trivialisation of Extreme Measures .............................................................. 22 By Pejman Pourzand Doctor of law, Associate Professor at the College de France, Chair for comparative legal studies and the internationalisation of law Lawyers in Death Penalty Cases ..................................................................................... 29 By Hossein Raeesi Defence lawyer for persons sentenced to death. International Legal Standards and Capital Punishment in the Islamic Republic of Iran ......................................................................................... 35 By Ahmed Shaheed UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran Lecturer, Human Rights Centre, School of Law, University of Essex And Rose Parris Richter Special Assistant to the Rapporteur. 4 ECPM • Les Cahiers de l’abolition #2 On the Death Penalty in Iran 5 PART II PART III Specificities in the application The role of civil society of the death penalty ........................................................................... 43 and the impact of national and international public opinion The International Community’s Withdrawal regarding the death penalty ....................................... 83 from Iran’s Drug War ................................................................................................................ 44 By Patrick Gallahue Public Executions in Iran: A Practice Unfit Former head of the «death penalty» project, for a Modern Society ............................................................................................................... 84 International Harm Reduction Association (IHRA) By Tabassom Fanaian Professor and research psychologist, member of Iran Human Rights (IHR) Ethnic Minorities and the Death Penalty in Iran – And Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam the case of the Kurds.............................................................................................................. 52 President and founder of IHR By Taimoor Aliassi UN representative of the Association for Human Rights in Kurdistan of Iran - The Media and the Death Penalty .................................................................................. 91 Geneva (KMMK-G) Interview with Reza Moini in charge of the NGO Reporters Without Borders (RWB) for Iran, Tajikistan and Afghanistan. Religious Minorities and the Death Penalty in Iran – the Case of the Bahá’í Religious Minority ................................................................ 58 Public Opinion on the Death Penalty ........................................................................... 95 By Diane Ala’i By Emadeddin Baghi Representative of the Bahà’i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva Theologian, journalist and writer, founder of the association «For the Right to Life», Human Rights Prize of the French Republic 2005, Martin Ennals award 2009. Women and the Death Penalty in Iran ......................................................................... 64 By Sanaz Alasti The Abolitionist Movement in Iran ............................................................................. 104 Director of the Centre for Death Penalty Studies at the University of Lamar (Texas State University) By Ali Shirzadi And Éric Bronson Iranian journalist and filmmaker Co-director of the same Centre The International Abolitionist Movement ............................................................. 109 The Issue of Minors and the Death Penalty By Mani Mostofi under Iran’s Criminal Code ................................................................................................. 72 Lawyer, Director of Impact Iran By Leila Alikarami Lawyer, Executive Director of the Centre for Supporters of Human Rights (CSHR) in London, ANNEXES Anna Politkovskaya award 2009 • Terms in Persian ................................................................................................................. 118 • Latin expressions ................................................................................................................ 119 The Death Penalty for the “Sexual Crime of Homosexuality” .................... 78 • Acronyms and abbreviations ..................................................................................... 119 By Hossein Alizadeh • Glossary .................................................................................................................................... 121 Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa • Chronology of the contemporary history of Iran ......................................... 130 International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) • The Iranian political system ....................................................................................... 132 • International treaties signed and conventions ratified by Iran ........ 133 • Fundamental instruments not adhered to by Iran ....................................... 133 • Author biographies ............................................................................................................. 134 ABOUT ECPM................................................................................................................................ 140 6 ECPM • Les Cahiers de l’abolition #2 On the Death Penalty in Iran 7 FOREWORD By Shirin Ebadi Lawyer and human rights activist, Nobel Peace Prize 2003. The death penalty violates the right to life, and all countries must abolish this dreadful punishment. Human rights demands this. A large number of countries, especially in Europe, have removed the death penalty from their penal arsenal. Unfortunately, despite public pressure and the application of a mor- atorium in several countries, this punishment is still in force elsewhere. This sentence, the severest of all, is sometimes applied for minor offenses or acts which by themselves are not crimes. Thus, in the Islamic Republic of Iran, sexual acts between men are pun- ishable by death, even though it is well known that some states recognise gay marriage by law. The goal of punishment is to reform the offender. Death eliminates this possibility. Moreover practice has proven that the death penalty has no effect on crime rates but only contributes to the spread of violence in society. Finally, the most serious issue that the death penalty raises is that it is impossible to repair a judicial error. For it to be abolished worldwide, the lawyers of all countries who are opposed to this practice must come together to speak out: “No to the death penalty!” Given the statistics of executions in some countries, especially in China, Iran and Sudan, many people argue that the universal abolition of the death penalty is an impossible dream. We nonetheless strive to keep this dream in mind, while acting pragmatically. Let us not forget that many of mankind’s achievements started this way. Two hundred years ago, the abolition of slavery and the independence of a country like India were dreams. But the dreams of yesterday have become reality today. The greater the efforts of those who believe in abolition, the earlier the dream will come true. There is no time to waste: each day people are sentenced to death and lose their right to life. Hand in hand, let us break the chain of death and make this dream a reality. 8 ECPM • Les Cahiers de l’abolition #2 On the Death Penalty in Iran 9 INTRODUCTION Origin and Objectives of the Cahiers de l’abolition on the Death Penalty in Iran By Raphaël Chenuil-Hazan Director-General of Together against the Death Penalty (ECPM), Vice President of the World Coalition against the Death Penalty. “My hope is that on the day of retribution, with all due respect to the adversary, the effusion of His forgiveness will spare my shoulders the burden of fault.” Ghazal 332,5, Divân, Hâfez de Chiraz I. Why dedicate a Cahier de l’abolition to Iran? Iran is the country with the highest rate of executions