Tehran Justifying Capital Punishment
The official count on “criminals” executed in Iran last year is 529. The number has gone up since Rouhani, not down.
Some of these “criminals” were hanged after being charged with murder, drug trafficking, rape etc… But the list of charges against them include also vague crimes such as Moharebeh (“corruptor on earth” or “enmity with God” or “acting against national security”) or simply “unknown”.
And while some might find the executions of hardened criminals justified – that still depends on the belief that they received fair trials. No-one, but the Iranian mullahs, can justify the execution of Hashem Shaabani, an Iranian activist and poet who was hanged last January, after spending three years in prison.
The Sha’aria laws that fuel these flagrant abuses of basic human rights are easily manipulated to silence any criticism against the mullahs and their leaders and what makes matters worse is that public floggings and hangings have become regular gruesome spectacles for hundreds of thousands of Iranians a year.
Rouhani Smiles On Despite Human Wrongs
So while this may seem like business as usual for Iran, it seems to be getting worse: Uzra Zeya, acting assistant secretary of State for democracy, human rights and labor, released a report on Thursday, saying there has been “little meaningful improvement in human rights in Iran” under President Rouhani.
So while Rouhani is basking in the success of his smile diplomacy that has resulted in a definite thaw in relations with Western countries and an economic boom, the state of affairs within Iran is nothing to smile about, with approximately 66 executions per month (19% more than the average over two years before he took office).
And while Rouhani repeatedly digs his heels against concessions to the West regarding Tehran’s suspect nuclear program citing the “pride of the Iranian people”, he hasn’t dealt even once with the state of human rights/wrongs in Iran which are definitely tarnishing the pride of the regime in Tehran.
Some believe that Rouhani is not tackling the human wrongs in Iran because he is not strong enough to battle the extremists or the IRGC leaders on this issue. They may be right. But his inability to wage battle over human rights should ring loads of warning bells to Western negotiators and businessmen as to his ability to battle these same people regarding the nuclear program.
IRAN 24/07 