Abdorrahman Boroumand Center

for Human Rights in Iran

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Flogging

Flogging Before Execution, Hossein Dolatkhai Ghamsar, Hamid Reza Khoshnevis, Hamid Haghighatkhah, Tehran, Hamshahri, December 1, 1998

Hamshahri
December 1, 1998
Newspaper article

Hamshahri Newspaper

December 1, 1998

Incidents Page

Two Revolutionary Court Convicts Executed

On Monday (November 30, 1998), Hossein Dolatkhahan, on the charge of embezzling public funds, and Hamid Reza Khoshnevis, main perpetrator of acid throwing against two schoolgirls, were executed according to the verdict of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran.

The Public Relations Department of the Islamic Revolutionary Court issued an announcement: Hossein Dolatkahi Ghamsar (Dolatkhahan), son of Azizollah, on charges of forming and leading a fraud network and embezzling public funds by collecting large sums in the form of accepting deposits from truthful individuals under pretense of speculation, was sentenced to death by one of the branches of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran and the issued sentence was implemented after confirmation by the Supreme Court. 

The Islamic Revolutionary Court also sentenced Mahmud Badi'ei Jafari, son of Nematollah, to 25 years imprisonment and Hamid Haghighatkhah, son of Hasan, to 11 years imprisonment. 

.....

According to Hamshahri Newspaper of June 21, 1997, Hossein Dolatkhah, director of the Dolatkhah speculation company, who had defrauded 7,000 depositors and stolen their capital, was sentenced to death in Branch 11 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court on Wednesday. According to the decision of the Islamic Revolutionary Court, he was sentenced to imprisonment, flogging, and payment of a fine for the crimes of embezzlement, corruption, prostitution, and organizing parties for fun and games. 

According to Hamshahri Newspaper of August 6, 1997, three young men who last late February/early March had severely burned the faces of two innocent minor young girls in east Tehran by pouring acid were sentenced to retribution (Qesas), imprisonment, payment of a fine, and flogging according to the decision of the Public Court. Mohammad Jafari, first-row defendant in the case, was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment and 70 lashes at the scene of the crime in addition to retribution. According to the court's decision, Hamid Khoshnevis and Hamid Haghighatkhah (second and third row defendants of the case), accomplices of the crime, were each sentenced to three years imprisonment, and 70 lashes in public at the scene of the crime. The second row defendant was also sentenced to ten years of forced exile in the county of Iranshahr. 

ABF Note

 

Findings of guilt in the Islamic Republic of Iran's Judicial Proceedings

The Islamic Republic of Iran's criminal justice system regularly falls short of the standards for due process necessary for impartiality, fairness, and efficacy. Suspects are often held incommunicado and not told of the reason for their detainment. Defendants are frequently prohibited from examining the evidence used against them. Defendants are sometimes prohibited from having their lawyers present in court. Additionally, confessions, made under duress or torture, are commonly admitted as proof of guilt. Because Iran's courts regularly disregard principles essential to the proper administration of justice, findings of guilt may not be evaluated with certainty.

Corporal Punishment: the Legal context in the Islamic Republic of Iran

The Islamic Republic's criminal code recognizes corporal punishment for a wide range of offenses: consumption of alcohol, theft, adultery, "flouting" of public morals, and mixing of the sexes in public. Judges have the latitude to mete out corporal punishment for those sentenced to death. In such cases, the flogging is carried out before death to maximize the suffering of defendant. Aside from flogging, the Islamic Republic also employs amputations as a punishment for theft. In such cases, the defendant is taken to a hospital and put under anesthesia as his hand or foot is amputated. In some cases the left foot and right hand are cut off, making it difficult for the condemned to walk, even with the assistance of a cane or crutches.

The Islamic Republic's Systematic Violation of its International Obligations under International Law

The use of corporal punishment is contrary to international law and is addressed in several international agreements. Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Iran has ratified, states that, "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment." Identical language is also used in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Iran is also a party to. The strongest expression of international disapproval is contained in the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). This treaty defines torture as, "any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person for such purposes as ... punishing him for an act he or a third person has committed or is suspected of having committed." Although the Islamic Republic of Iran has yet to sign the CAT, the prohibition on torture is now considered jus cogens and, therefore, part of customary international law. Furthermore, even though the norm against corporal punishment is not yet a jus cogens, there is increasing evidence that it is illegal under international human rights law.[1] In Osbourne v. Jamaica, the Committee Against Torture (a body of experts responsible for monitoring compliance with the Convention) held that "corporal punishment constitutes cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment contrary to Article 7 of the Convention." The Islamic Republic of Iran's systematic violations of its obligations under international law have been addressed by the UN General Assembly multiple times, most recently in December 2007. In Resolution 62/168, the UN expressed deep concern with Iran's continued flouting of international human rights law, particularly, "confirmed instances of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including flogging and amputations."