{"id":3529604,"date":"2008-08-15T02:34:20","date_gmt":"2008-08-14T18:34:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/?p=3529604"},"modified":"2023-04-13T05:16:12","modified_gmt":"2023-04-13T05:16:12","slug":"amnesty-international-urgent-call-kamal-17-facing-execution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/2008\/08\/15\/amnesty-international-urgent-call-kamal-17-facing-execution\/","title":{"rendered":"Amnesty International URGENT CALL: Kamal 17 facing execution"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL         PUBLIC<\/strong>                  
\nAI Index: MDE 13\/115\/2008
\n14 August 2008<\/font><\/p>\n

UA 228\/08                                
\nDeath Penalty<\/strong><\/font>
\n  <\/strong>
\nIRAN <\/strong>
\nKamal (m), aged 17, barber’s assistant<\/strong><\/font><\/b><\/p>\n

Seventeen-year-old barber’s assistant Kamal was sentenced to death for murder on 12 April. His death sentence was approved by the Supreme Court at the beginning of August, and his file has since been sent to the Head of the Judiciary for final approval. He is in imminent danger of execution.<\/font><\/p>\n

According to local press, in the evening of 10 April 2007 Kamal was standing in front of the barber\u2019s shop where he worked with two friends, including the barber\u2019s son, Mehdi. They noticed a man named Shahin verbally harassing a young girl. A fight broke out between Mehdi and Shahin. When Mehdi\u2019s father arrived Shahin pushed him, and Mehdi asked Kamal to get a knife from the shop, which he did. Shahin then attacked Kamal and they both fell to the floor: Shahin was stabbed in the back. The blade hit his heart, and he died in hospital.<\/font><\/p>\n

Under Article 206 (b) of Iran\u2019s Criminal Code, any killing is classed as “premeditated murder,” and thus attracts a death sentence, “in cases where the murderer intentionally makes an action which is inherently lethal, even if [the murderer] does not intend to kill the person.”<\/font><\/p>\n

BACKGROUND INFORMATION<\/font><\/strong>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/font><\/strong>Since 1990 Iran has executed at least 35 juvenile offenders, eight of them in 2007 and four in 2008.<\/font> <\/p>\n

<\/font><\/p>\n

The family of a murder victim have the right either to insist on execution, or to pardon the killer and receive financial compensation. A convicted murderer has no right to seek pardon or commutation from the state, in violation of Article 6(4) of the ICCPR.<\/font><\/p>\n

The execution of juvenile offenders is prohibited under international law. Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases, and supports the global trend away from the use of the death penalty, powerfully expressed in the UN General Assembly\u2019s resolution calling for a worldwide moratorium on executions on 18 December 2007.<\/font><\/p>\n

On 8 July 2008, during a press conference in Geneva, Switzerland, Amnesty International issued a joint statement with over 20 other international and regional human rights organizations calling on Iranian authorities to stop imposing the death penalty for crimes committed by juvenile offenders, and to uphold their international obligation to enforce the absolute prohibition on the death penalty in such cases. See Iran: Spare four youths from execution, immediately enforce international prohibition on death penalty for juvenile offenders, available at:<\/font> http:\/\/www.amnesty.org\/en\/for-media\/press-releases\/iran-spare-four-youths-execution-immediately-enforce-international-prohi<\/font><\/a>
\n 
\nRECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals in your own words to arrive as quickly as possible, in Persian, Arabic, English or your own language:<\/strong><\/font><\/p>\n

– expressing concern that Kamal is at risk of execution for a crime committed when he was under 18;
\n– calling on the authorities to commute his death sentence;
\n– reminding them that Iran is a state party to both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which prohibit the use of the death penalty against those under the age of 18 at the time of offence, and that to execute Kamal would therefore be a violation of international law;
\n– urging the authorities to pass legislation to abolish the death penalty for offences committed by people under the age of 18, so bringing Iran\u2019s domestic law in line with its obligations under international law;
\n– stating that Amnesty International acknowledges the right and responsibility of governments to bring to justice those suspected of criminal offences, but unconditionally opposes the death penalty.<\/font><\/p>\n

APPEALS TO:<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n

Head of the Judiciary<\/font><\/strong>
<\/b>His Excellency Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi
\nMinistry of Justice, Panzdah Khordad (Ark) Square
\nTehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
\nEmail:  <\/strong><\/font> info@dadgostary-tehran.ir<\/font><\/strong><\/a> (In the subject line: FAO Ayatollah Shahroudi)<\/font><\/strong>
\nFax: 011 98 21 3390 4986 (may be difficult. If a voice answers, say, “Fax please”)<\/strong>
\nSalutation:  Your Excellency<\/strong><\/font><\/b><\/p>\n

Leader of the Islamic Republic<\/strong>
\nHis Excellency Ayatollah Sayed \u2018Ali Khamenei, The Office of the Supreme Leader
\nIslamic Republic Street – Shahid Keshvar Doust Street
\nTehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
\nEmail: <\/strong><\/font>info@leader.ir<\/font><\/strong><\/a>
\nSalutation:  Your Excellency<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n

COPIES TO:<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n

President<\/strong>
\nHis Excellency Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
\nThe Presidency
\nPalestine Avenue, Azerbaijan Intersection
\nTehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
\nFax:  011 98 21 6 649 5880<\/strong><\/font>
\nEmail:   <\/font><\/strong><\/b> dr-ahmadinejad@president.ir<\/font><\/strong><\/a> (via website)<\/font><\/strong> http:\/\/www.president.ir\/email\/<\/font><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Director, Human Rights Headquarters of Iran
\nHis Excellency Mohammad Javad Larijani
\nC\/o Office of the Deputy for International Affairs
\nMinistry of Justice,
\nMinistry of Justice Building, Panzdah-Khordad (Ark) Square
\nTehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
\nFax:  011 98 21 5 537 8827 (may be difficult)<\/strong><\/font><\/p>\n

Mr Seyed Mahdi Mohebi
\nCharg\u00e9 d\u2019Affaires, Embassy for the Islamic Republic of Iran
\n245 Metcalfe Street
\nOttawa, Ontario K2P 2K2
\nFax: (613) 232-5712<\/strong><\/font><\/p>\n

Please send appeals immediately.  Thank you.
<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL         PUBLIC<\/strong>                  
\nAI Index: MDE 13\/115\/2008
\n14 August 2008<\/font><\/p>\n

UA 228\/08                                
\nDeath Penalty<\/strong><\/font>
\n  <\/strong>
\nIRAN <\/strong>
\nKamal (m), aged 17, barber’s assistant<\/strong><\/font><\/b><\/p>\n

Seventeen-year-old barber’s assistant Kamal was sentenced to death for murder on 12 April. His death sentence was approved by the Supreme Court at the beginning of August, and his file has since been sent to the Head of the Judiciary for final approval. He is in imminent danger of execution.<\/font><\/p>\n

According to local press, in the evening of 10 April 2007 Kamal was standing in front of the barber\u2019s shop where he worked with two friends, including the barber\u2019s son, Mehdi. They noticed a man named Shahin verbally harassing a young girl. A fight broke out between Mehdi and Shahin. When Mehdi\u2019s father arrived Shahin pushed him, and Mehdi asked Kamal to get a knife from the shop, which he did. Shahin then attacked Kamal and they both fell to the floor: Shahin was stabbed in the back. The blade hit his heart, and he died in hospital.<\/font><\/p>\n

Under Article 206 (b) of Iran\u2019s Criminal Code, any killing is classed as “premeditated murder,” and thus attracts a death sentence, “in cases where the murderer intentionally makes an action which is inherently lethal, even if [the murderer] does not intend to kill the person.”<\/font><\/p>\n

BACKGROUND INFORMATION<\/font><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[9,71,13,10],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3529604"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3529604"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3529604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5195795,"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3529604\/revisions\/5195795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3529604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3529604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3529604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}