Protest notes - THANK YOU and keep sending!

Thanks to all of you you have called, faxed and emailed the Islamic regime's embassies and the regime in Tehran to protest at Sakineh's execution sentence and demanded her freedom. Keep it coming! It's important we keep up the pressure.

There is no misunderstanding!

Malek Ajdar Sharifi, the justice chief for East Azarbaijan province, who had talked on Sunday, 25 December about Sakineh Ashtiani and her death sentence to Iranian media, now says that he has been ‘misquoted’.

"In recent days, reports quoting me on the case, especially... on the method of carrying out the sentence against Sakineh Ashtiani were published in abbreviated form and with an incorrect interpretation," he told Iranian media on Wednesday, 28 December.

Well, we are quite familiar by now with how quickly after an international outcry the Islamic regime’s authorities always fall back on ‘not having said this or that’, ‘misquotation’ and ‘wrong information’ in an attempt to deflect attention and outrage.

The facts I think speak for themselves. 

Sakineh Ashtiani is still in prison awaiting her execution.

Houtan Kian, her lawyer, is still in prison.

Neither has committed a crime.

So unless Sakineh and Houtan are out of prison, safe and secure, we haven’t understood anything wrong.

As long as Sakineh is imprisoned by the Islamic regime, she could be executed at any moment.

There is no doubt about this!

 

Sakineh and her lawyer, Houtan Kian, must be released immediately.

Two days after Malek Azhdar Sharifi, head of the East Azerbayjan branch of the regime’s judicial system, spoke of the possible execution of Sakineh, because of international pressure and the swift appearance of this news in the international media, he corrected his statements and said they had been misrepresented. Nevertheless, according to information received by the International Committee Against Stoning, even Sakineh herself was informed in prison of the possibility of her execution.

Despite the Christmas and New Year holidays, the news of Sakineh's possible execution has appeared in many news outlets including CNN, BBC, Al-Arabiyyah, Der Spiegel, and the Italian press as well as many others. The authorities of several governments including those of Germany and France have protested to Iran, demanding Sakineh's release. In Italy, the mayors of Rome, Florence and a number of other cities have announced that they will rise in defence of Sakineh in collaboration with the International Committee Against Stoning. These protests were covered extensively by the Italian media. Other efforts are also under way in more countries. Human-rights officials in the Brazilian government have contacted the International Committee Against Stoning in order to organise protests against the Islamic Republic after gathering additional information. The authorities of the Islamic Republic have realised that Sakineh has not been forgotten and that killing her will have a high political cost for the villainous Islamic regime.

According to other reports, Houtan Kian, condemned to six years in prison and currently incarcerated in a prison ward reserved for methadone users, has no opportunity to contact anyone outside the jail and is denied family visits. We must also not abandon him.

The Islamic Republic is clearly a murderous regime, and while Sakineh remains its prisoner, she could be executed at any moment. However, with the help of people around the world, Sakineh and Houtan can be delivered from the hands of these Islamic torturers and murderers.

The International Committee Against Stoning asks the noble people of the world, as well as the press, governments and human-rights organisations, to exert pressure in any way they can in pursuit of Sakineh and Houtan's release by the Islamic Republic.

International Committee Against Stoning.
28 December 2011.

Mina Ahadi
International Committee against Execution
International Committee against Stoning
Email: minaahadi@aol.com
Tel: 0049 (0) 1775692413
http://notonemoreexecution.org
http://stopstonningnow.com/wpress

Notes from Iran #3: Shoe thrower Rashid S. is likely to face execution

Two weeks ago we wrote about Rashid S. who had thrown his shoe at Ahmadinejad in an act of civil disobedience and disgust over his unemployment and the fact that he had not been paid by his employer for the last year he had been working.  According to news reports, Rashid Shahbandi had been arrested, has been tortured and is very likely facing execution.

There is no doubt that he will not get a fair trial, if he gets one at all. It will probably be one of those show trials the Islamic regime likes to put on, thinking that there are actually people out there believing that ‘justice’ is being done… when all that is happening is that the Islamic regime is trying to keep its power by spreading and inflicting more violence and more terror.

Throwing your shoe at a leader of a dictatorial regime is nothing but couragous. We can only imagine under what pressure people like Mr Shahbandi must live to lose their fear of confronting their oppressor. No doubt the regime will try to hand down a heavy sentence to deter others from showing and voicing their anger. But it is too late for that. It was too late for that a long time ago.

What you can do for Sakineh

The Islamic regime of Iran is talking about changing Sakineh's sentence of stoning to hanging and to execute her once they get the go-ahead from the Ministry of Justice.

You can do something!

It is important that we let the Iranian regime know that the world stands in support of Sakineh. It is important that as many people as possible let the Islamic regime know that we are outraged at Sakineh's execution sentence. Tell them that we want her freed NOW! The worldwide outrage and protest is what kept Sakineh alive. It is vital that we continue our protest. Flood the embassies and the Islamic regime's offices with protest letters, emails, faxes and calls.

At the top of our blog you find the contact list for the embassies of the Islamic Republic across the world. Email, fax and call them. You can organise a protest outside the IRI embassy in your country. It's very effective! Invite your friends, publish it on social media site and invite the media.

List of IRI embassies around the world

We have also the list with contact details for various government offices of the Islamic regime. Again, call, fax and email them.


List of IRI government offices in Iran

If you have any questions, need help with something or you are planning a protest, please get in touch!
iransolidaritynow (at)  gmail (dot) com

minaahadi (at) aol (dot) com

Stand up to help save Sakineh’s life

International Committee against Stoning

Press Release 26 December 2011

The Islamic Republic of Iran is considering Sakineh Mohamadi Ashtiani’s execution

This is an attempt to gauge the international response

Malek Ajdar Sharifi, the head of East Azerbaijan province’s justice department, has announced that the Islamic Republic of Iran is considering changing Sakineh Mohamadi Ashtiani’s stoning sentence to execution by hanging and said that they are waiting for the go-ahead from the Ministry of Justice to execute Sakineh.

Clearly, the regime has been unable to stone Sakineh to death because of the global outrage. The regime arrested her lawyer and son and forced her and her son to ‘confess’ on Press TV and incriminate themselves. They have been barred from contacting international institutions.

By planning to execute Sakineh, the Islamic regime is trying to show the world that despite public outrage, it will continue its execution machinery in order to ensure its survival.

The International Committee against Stoning declares:

This is a shameless attempt by the regime and its criminal judicial system to test the reaction of world public opinion in order to create the groundwork for Sakineh’s murder.

Sakineh’s image has become a global symbol against stoning and Sharia laws. The world has risen up in defence of Sakineh and declared it would not ever allow sadists and murderers to stone women and men to death again. By executing Sakineh, the Islamic regime wants to destroy all efforts in her support.

Every year during the New Year period the Islamic regime tries to kill-off well-known cases. Last year it executed Shahla Jahed and this year they are trying to murder Sakineh.

The International Committee against Stoning will not allow Sakineh to be executed. All people and organisations that have stood up before to save Sakineh from death by stoning must once again stand up to help save Sakineh’s life.

International Committee against Stoning

International Committee against Execution

For more information, contact:

Mina Ahadi

International Committee against Execution

International Committee against Stoning

Email: minaahadi@aol.com

Tel: 0049 (0) 1775692413

http://notonemoreexecution.org

http://stopstonningnow.com/wpress/

Sakineh Ashtiani to be hanged or stoned to death

Today the Islamic regime of Iran announced that their 'experts' are studying whether they can hang Sakineh Ashtiani instead of stoning her to death. There is no doubt that this comes in an attempt by the Islamic regime to affirm their 'authority' in the face of worldwide protests and recent tit for tats with the West while at the same time finding a more 'acceptable' solution for murdering her. Possibly a solution that would face less resistance by the world?  Does the Islamic regime think that hanging Sakineh Ashtiani would be somehow more acceptable to the world that cried out in protest at her stoning sentence????  NO it wouldn't!

 ISNA news agency reported today that Malek Ajdar Sharifi, the head of the East Azerbaijan province justice department, where Ashtiani is jailed said that "As soon as the result (of the investigation) is obtained, we will carry out the sentence."

The Islamic regime is trying to murder yet another innocent woman.
There is only one solution.
Sakineh Ashitiani must be freed immediately!

Notes from Iran #2: Hail the shoe thrower Rashid S.

Rashid S., a recently sacked textile worker in his 40s, threw his shoe at Ahmadinejad at a meeting in the northern province of Mazandaran on Tuesday, 13 December. Rashid S. was protesting the fact that he had been sacked, but more importantly that he had not been paid for the last year of working in the factory.

This is of course is common practice in Iran. There are thousands upon thousands of workers in Iran who do their daily work without being paid for it by the state or private owners for months on end.

You might ask why they keep working? They hope they will get paid in the future as promised by their bosses and more importantly, there is no other work around, neither is there unemployment benefit. That of course under a regime that made 40 billion US Dollars between March and August this year alone from oil exports. The same regime whose members are transferring their 'accumulated' monies abroad, especially through their family members. High on the list are investments like the purchase of expensive properties (they can afford it of course) which guarantees few questions and a preferential residential status by the host country; the higher the investment the warmer the welcome. And with all the riches that are to be made exploiting Iran's natural resources and the labour force, a warm welcome they get.

Rashid S. missed. He was thrown to the floor and beaten up. It is unclear whether he was arrested and taken away. His act of civil outrage is to be applauded.

1 gone - 96 to go!

Wednesday, 30 November saw the closure of the Islamic regime of Iran's embassy in London on the orders of the foreign secretary William Hague. This came in response to the attacks on the British embassy in Tehran by members of the government-backed Basij militia that happened on Tuesday, 29 November. We are now seeing the last of the Iranian diplomats leave the UK.

Iran Solidarity welcomes the closure of the embassy in London.
And we are actively supporting the closure of ALL the Islamic regime's embassies around the world. We counted 97, so 96 to go!

We have long been calling for the diplomatic isolation of the Iranian regime and the closure of ALL of its embassies are part of this. Diplomatic and political isolation of the regime are the cornerstones of support for the Iranian people's struggle to get rid of the Islamic Republic. It is unfortunate however that this important step comes only now after a tit for tat over sanctions in regards to the nuclear issue and the attack on the British embassy in Tehran; decades of hideous crimes against Iranians have provoked no such reaction by foreign governments.

The embassies of the Islamic regime are an outpost of the terror that sits in Tehran.

ALL embassies of the Islamic regime must be shut down.