[lbo-talk] "There Currently Is No Active Policy of Prosecution of Charges of Homosexuality in Iran"

[Doug Henwood]

On Jul 10, 2006, at 3:10 AM, Yoshie Furuhashi wrote:

> Now, I'm signing off again.

Ah, dialogue.

<http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/11/21/iran12072.htm>

Iran: Two More Executions for Homosexual Conduct

(New York, November 22, 2005) – Iran’s execution of two men last week  
for homosexual conduct highlights a pattern of persecution of gay men  
that stands in stark violation of the rights to life and privacy,  
Human Rights Watch said today.

On Sunday, November 13, the semi-official Tehran daily Kayhan  
reported that the Iranian government publicly hung two men, Mokhtar  
N. (24 years old) and Ali A. (25 years old), in the Shahid Bahonar  
Square of the northern town of Gorgan.

The government reportedly executed the two men for the crime of  
"lavat." Iran's shari`a-based penal code defines lavat as penetrative  
and non-penetrative sexual acts between men. Iranian law punishes all  
penetrative sexual acts between adult men with the death penalty. Non- 
penetrative sexual acts between men are punished with lashes until  
the fourth offense, when they are punished with death. Sexual acts  
between women, which are defined differently, are punished with  
lashes until the fourth offense, when they are also punished with death.

"The execution of two men for consensual sexual activity is an  
outrage," said Jessica Stern, researcher with the Lesbian, Gay,  
Bisexual and Transgender Rights Program at Human Rights Watch. "The  
Iranian government's persecution of gay men flouts international  
human rights standards."

In addition to the two executions last week, there have been other  
cases of persecution and execution of gay men in Iran in recent years.

•	In September 2003, police arrested a group of men at a private  
gathering in one of their homes in Shiraz and held them in detention  
for several days. According to Amir, one of the men arrested, police  
tortured the men to obtain confessions. The judiciary charged five of  
the defendants with "participation in a corrupt gathering" and fined  
them.

•	In June 2004, undercover police agents in Shiraz arranged meetings  
with men through Internet chatrooms and then arrested them. Police  
held Amir, a 21-year-old, in detention for a week, during which time  
they repeatedly tortured him. The judicial authorities in Shiraz  
sentenced him to 175 lashes, 100 of which were administered  
immediately. Following his arrest, security officials subjected Amir  
to regular surveillance and periodic arrests. From July 2005 until he  
fled the country later in the year, police threatened Amir with  
imminent execution.

•	On March 15, 2005, the daily newspaper Etemaad reported that the  
Tehran Criminal Court sentenced two men to death following the  
discovery of a video showing them engaged in homosexual acts.  
According to the paper, one of the men confessed that he had shot the  
video as a precaution in case his partner withdrew the financial  
support he had been providing in return for sex. In response to the  
man's confession, his partner was summoned to the authorities and  
both men were sentenced to death. As the death penalty was pronounced  
against both men, it appears to have been based on their sexual  
activity.

"These abuses have created an atmosphere of terror for lesbians,  
gays, bisexuals and transgender people throughout Iran," said Stern.  
"But arrest, torture and execution are not limited to gays and  
lesbians. Any group of people deemed 'immoral' becomes subject to  
state-sanctioned persecution and even murder."

In Iran, executions and lashings are regular means of punishment for  
a broad range of crimes, not merely same-sex acts. Judges often  
accept coerced confessions, and security officials routinely deny  
defendants access to counsel. Late last year, the Iranian judiciary,  
which has been at the center of many reported human rights  
violations, formed the Special Protection Division, a new institution  
that empowers volunteers to police moral crimes in neighborhoods,  
mosques, offices and any place where people gather. The Special  
Protection Division is an intrusive mechanism of surveillance that  
promotes prosecution of citizens for behavior in their private domain.

Human Rights Watch called upon the Iranian government to  
decriminalize homosexuality and reminded Iran of its obligations  
under Toonen v. Australia (1994), the Human Rights Committee's  
authoritative interpretation of the International Covenant on Civil  
and Political Rights, to which Iran is party. Toonen v. Australia  
extends recognition of the right to privacy and the right to freedom  
from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation throughout  
human rights law.

Furthermore, Human Rights Watch urged Iran to reform its judiciary in  
accordance with principles for fair trials enshrined in both the  
Iranian constitution and international human rights law. Finally,  
Human Rights Watch called upon Iran to cease implementation of  
capital punishment in all circumstances because of its inherent  
cruelty, irreversibility, and potential for discriminatory application.