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

Hadi Safdari

About

Age: 27
Nationality: Iran
Religion: Presumed Muslim
Civil Status: Unknown

Case

Date of Killing: April 28, 2005
Location of Killing: Bojnurd, Khorasan\Khorasan-e Razavi Province, Iran
Mode of Killing: Hanging
Charges: Homosexual act

About this Case

The execution of Mr. Hadi Safdari, son of Nasrollah, and known as Jabbar Sing, was published in the web site of the Group 8 Reporters in Khorasan Shomali (April 28, 2005), as well as the web edition of the Kayhan newspaper on May 2, 2005.

According to the report of Group 8, the public Revolutionary prosecutor of Bojnord stated that in 2005 the courts ruling would be implemented strictly and that “in the public prosecution office of Bojnord, a committee has been established in order to investigate the obstacles to the implementation of courts rulings, which will be effective in their speedy implementation… This Committee also helps archive the criminal records of the convicts and create a data bank on the status and background of these hooligans, through which law enforcement officers can identify and control [the activities of] these individuals.” He claimed that traditional teahouses are centers where youth get contaminated and added: “last year such cafes were under surveillance and approximately 50 vagabonds have been arrested… Reportedly, there are still [suspicious] gatherings and law enforcement officers have been authorized to inspect various location in plain clothes in order to identify the cause of corruption and crime and confront them.” He warned the owners of traditional cafes to “observe Islamic values, otherwise violators would be prosecuted and their businesses closed.”

Arrest and detention

The circumstances of this defendant’s arrest and detention are not known.

Trial

No information is available on his trial.

Charges

Kayhan stated that Mr. Safdari was charged with “an immoral, despicable act”. The Group 8 reported quoted the Public Prosecutor saying that in 2004, Mr. Safdari “committed the despicable act of sodomy, and with a help of a friend recorded this unchaste act with a video camera and they both blackmailed the passive partner.” This man filed a complaint with the Judiciary and Mr. Safdari and his co-defendant were arrested.

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 the Islamic Republic’s authorities have brought trumped-up charges against their political opponents and executed them for 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 Group 8 report stated: “at the time of arrest, video taped were recovered from the crime scene and the ruling was released taking into account Hadi Safdari’s confession.” According to the reports, Mr. Safdari had a criminal record including “sedition” and “moral corruption.”

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 Mr. Safdari’s defense.

Judgment

The details of the verdict are not known. According to the Group 8, the prosecutor stated: “since the aforementioned individual was a hooligan” and had a criminal record, “in order to teach a lesson to all hooligans”, he was condemned to death. The ruling was approved by the Supreme Court. According to the same source, Mr. Hadi Safdari was hanged in the presence of the prosecutor, other judicial authorities, police officers, as well as bystanders at six a.m. on April 28, 2005.

The Public Prosecutor of Bojnord claimed that in 2002, Mr. Safdari had murdered his wife, but after spending 18 months in prison, with the consent of the victim’s family, was released from prison.” He went on to say: “the other defendant, with initials M. Sh. who was an accomplice and witnessed this immoral act and filmed it, has been condemned to flogging and imprisonment and is now serving his prison sentence.”

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