Abdorrahman Boroumand Center

for Human Rights in Iran

https://www.iranrights.org
Omid, a memorial in defense of human rights in Iran
One Person’s Story

Mohammad Pejman

About

Nationality: Iran
Religion: Presumed Muslim
Civil Status: Unknown

Case

Date of Killing: May 29, 2007
Location of Killing: Bushehr, Bushehr Province, Iran
Mode of Killing: Hanging
Charges: Rape
Age at time of alleged offense: Under 18

About this Case

News of the conviction and execution of Mr. Mohammad Pejman was published on the websites of the Peigham weekly magazine on September 16, 17, 2006, May 27, 28, 29, 2007, and IRNA (Islamic Republic News Agency) on May 29, 2007.

Arrest and Detention

According to Peigham, following a complaint made by a female student in Bushehr in July of 2006, who claimed to be kidnapped by three youths in the forest near Chahkuh and later raped by seven youths, police went to the area and arrested all defendants except one, who had become a fugitive.

Trial

This trial took place in the Punitive Court of Bushehr province.

Charges

The charge against Mr. Pejman was announced as rape.

The validity of the criminal charges brought against this defendant cannot be ascertained in the absence of the basic guarantees of a fair trial. International human rights organizations have drawn attention to reports indicating that Islamic Republic authorities have brought trumped-up charges against their political opponents and executed them for alleged drug trafficking, sexual, and other criminal offences. Each year Iranian authorities sentence to death hundreds of alleged common criminals, following judicial processes that fail to meet international standards. The exact number of people convicted based on trumped-up charges is unknown.

Evidence of Guilt

The evidence provided against the defendant was his “confession.”

International human rights organizations have repeatedly condemned the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran for its systematic use of severe torture and solitary confinement to obtain confessions from detainees and have questioned the authenticity of confessions obtained under duress. In the case of political detainees, these confessions are, at times, televised. The National Television broadcasts confessions during which prisoners plead guilty to vague and false charges, repent and renounce their political beliefs, and/or implicate others. Human rights organizations have also pointed to the pattern of retracted confessions by those prisoners who are freed.

Defense

No information is available on the defense. According to Peigham, the families of the defendants gathered in front of Bushehr Court House after the ruling were issued. In this gathering, which was tense due to the emotional reactions of the mothers and sisters of the defendants, the families objected to the process and demanded to stop the rulings being carried out. They also gathered in front of the Highway Patrol of Bushehr and shut the road for a while. The mother of one defendant who was very upset told the reporter that her son and most of the other defendants were under 18 and claimed that the kidnapping charge was baseless since the girl went with the defendants voluntarily. She also objected to the public attorney’s role and the rulings. The families believed that they were going to lose their children because they were unable to defend them properly. They also distributed the pardon text of the victim’s family among the people, judiciary officials, and the media.

International laws have strictly prohibited capital punishment against those who were under the age of 18 at the time of committing the crime. As a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Iran has the obligation to avoid capital punishment for an offence committed before the age of eighteen.

Judgment

The court condemned Mr. Mohammad Pejman to death and the ruling was confirmed by the Supreme Court. According to the media reports, the execution of this defendant, along with five others in this case, was postponed three times when the defendants’ families objected. During the second investigation, the Appeals Court and the Head of the Judiciary finally confirmed the rulings. According to Peigham, due to the gatherings by the defendants’ families in front of the Court House and the Government Building, the Provincial Security Council decided to carry out the executions separately and in a different time frame. Mr. Mohammad Pejman was hanged in Borj prison in Bushehr on May 29, 2007.

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