{"id":3905713,"date":"2008-09-19T22:20:36","date_gmt":"2008-09-19T12:20:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/?p=3905713"},"modified":"2023-04-13T05:14:56","modified_gmt":"2023-04-13T05:14:56","slug":"un-hold-ahmadinejad-accountable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stopchildexecutions.com\/scenewsarchive\/2008\/09\/19\/un-hold-ahmadinejad-accountable\/","title":{"rendered":"UN: Hold Ahmadinejad Accountable"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Executions Increase Almost 300 Percent, Persecution of Rights Defenders Intensifies<\/h2>\n
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(New York, September 18, 2008) \u2013 Under the administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, basic human rights protection in Iran has deteriorated to new lows, Human Rights Watch and the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said in a briefing paper released today.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\" Iran\u2019s determination to execute juvenile offenders in such large numbers is cruel, barbaric, and earns it a medal of shame…it is time to abolish the death penalty for children in Iran. \"<\/div>\n
Hadi Ghaemi, coordinator of the International Campaign for Human Rights<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n
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The new paper, \u201cIran Rights crisis Escalates: Faces and Cases from Ahmadinejad\u2019s Crackdown,\u201d (http:\/\/hrw.org\/backgrounder\/2008\/iran0908\/iran0908web.pdf<\/a> ) 
\ndocuments the dire situation for human rights defenders and key dimensions of the human rights crisis in Iran today. Released ahead of Ahmadinejad\u2019s arrival at the opening ceremonies of the UN General Assembly, the paper highlights Iran\u2019s status as the world leader in juvenile executions. Iran is known to have executed six juvenile offenders so far in 2008, and more than 130 other juvenile offenders have been sentenced to death and are awaiting execution<\/a>.  
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\n\u201cIran\u2019s determination to execute juvenile offenders in such large numbers is cruel, barbaric, and earns it a medal of shame,\u201d said Hadi Ghaemi, coordinator of the International Campaign for Human Rights. \u201cIt is time to abolish the death penalty for children in Iran.\u201d  
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\nThe report also notes the skyrocketing number of total executions under Ahmadinejad. In July 2008, 29 men were hanged on a single day, but the authorities announced the names of only 10 of them. The number of executions has nearly quadrupled under Ahmadinejad\u2019s presidency, rising from 86 cases in 2005 to 317 cases in 2007 \u2013 almost a 300-percent increase.  
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\nProsecution of dissidents for their peaceful beliefs and opinions has also intensified in recent years. Human rights defenders are routinely harassed and imprisoned for reporting and documenting rights violations.  
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\n\u201cIran should release all political prisoners and end its suppression of dissent,\u201d said Akbar Ganji, an Iranian journalist and former political prisoner.  
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\nIranian authorities have systematically thwarted peaceful and legal civil society efforts to advocate for women\u2019s rights. Women\u2019s rights advocates have been beaten, harassed, persecuted, and prosecuted.  
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\n\u201cDespite harsh government repression, Iranian women are increasingly demanding their rights,\u201d said Mehrangiz Kar, a prominent Iranian lawyer and women\u2019s rights scholar.  
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\nAhmadinejad\u2019s Intelligence Ministry has targeted Iranians who have active professional ties abroad, accusing them of being agents of Western efforts to instigate a \u201cvelvet revolution\u201d in Iran. Three Iranians with academic ties to US institutions are currently being held and interrogated. Arash and Kamiar Alei are world-renowned AIDS physicians<\/a> who have been in arbitrary detention since June 22, 2008. Mehdi Zakerian, a legal scholar who was scheduled to teach at the University of Pennsylvania this semester, was detained by security agents three weeks ago. The authorities have not provided any information about his situation.  
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\n\u201cArbitrary detentions of scholars harm Iran\u2019s cultural and educational ties with the outside world,\u201d said Sarah Leah Whitson, director of Human Rights Watch\u2019s Middle East and North Africa division. \u201cAhmadinejad should end the persecution of Iranian academics and intellectuals.\u201d  
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\nThe paper concludes that the human cost of Ahmadinejad\u2019s policies is registering a heavy toll on Iran\u2019s most vital nongovernmental sectors. It is imperative for the international community to take up the opportunity of Ahmadinejad\u2019s presence at the United Nations to voice its concerns about the increasingly grave human rights violations in Iran.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Executions Increase Almost 300 Percent, Persecution of Rights Defenders Intensifies<\/h2>\n
\n

(New York, September 18, 2008) \u2013 Under the administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, basic human rights protection in Iran has deteriorated to new lows, Human Rights Watch and the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said in a briefing paper released today.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
\n
\" Iran\u2019s determination to execute juvenile offenders in such large numbers is cruel, barbaric, and earns it a medal of shame…it is time to abolish the death penalty for children in Iran. \"<\/div>\n
Hadi Ghaemi, coordinator of the International Campaign for Human Rights<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n
  <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The new paper, \u201cIran Rights crisis Escalates: Faces and Cases from Ahmadinejad\u2019s Crackdown,\u201d (http:\/\/hrw.org\/backgrounder\/2008\/iran0908\/iran0908web.pdf<\/a> ) 
\ndocuments the dire situation for human rights defenders and key dimensions of the human rights crisis in Iran today. Released ahead of Ahmadinejad\u2019s arrival at the opening ceremonies of the UN General Assembly, the paper highlights Iran\u2019s status as the world leader in juvenile executions. Iran is known to have executed six juvenile offenders so far in 2008, and more than 130 other juvenile offenders have been sentenced to death and are awaiting execution<\/a>.  
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