Stop Child's Sharebook 

May 6th 2009: Protest Iran's Illegal Execution of Delara Darabi

Many Stop Child Executions supporters have been asking what they can do to honour Delara's  passing and send a message to the Iranian officials to voice their outrage.
Stop Child Executon's liaison to Amnesty International representative Aubrey Harris had a great idea...

THREE THINGS YOU CAN DO:

1.   SEND A VIRTUAL WHITE ROSE TO THE IRANIAN EMBASSY.
Find an image of a WHITE rose by using Google's Image searching and email it to your Iranian embassy and/or the officials in Iran along with a short message about how you feel of the injustice in Delara's execution.

2.     Make your own CARD OF CONDOLENCE to mail to the Iranian Embassy & authorities. You can use the image of the white rose that Delara drew in her own painting which has been posted on the DP blog at http://www.amnesty.ca/blog_post2.php?id=833 

Copy and paste the image onto a word processing document rotated upside-down and aligned to the top-left corner of the page.  On the bottom-right corner of the page, type in your message (or wait to write it by hand). This should fold into quarters with your image on the front of the card and your message inside.

3.   LEAVE WHITE ROSES AT THE ENTRANCE OF YOUR  LOCAL IRANIAN EMBASSY or consulate on Wednesday 6th of May. This action is being taken around the world.

Here are available contacts for Iran in the action (please keep in mind that a two-month stay of execution had been issued by the Head of the Judiciary only two weeks before Delara's sudden and secretive execution):

Head of the Judiciary:
Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi
c/o Director, Judiciary Public Relations and Information Office
Ardeshir Sadiq
Judiciary Public Relations and Information Office
No. 57, Pasteur St., corner of Khosh Zaban Avenue
Tehran, Iran
Email:   info@dadiran.ir  (In the subject line write: FAO Ayatollah Shahroudi)
Salutation:  Your Excellency

Judiciary spokesperson:
Alireza Jamshidi
Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh / Office of the Head of the Judiciary
Pasteur St, Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhuri
Tehran 1316814737, Iran
Email:  info@a-jamshidi.ir
Salutation:  Dear Sir

Leader of the Islamic Republic:
Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei
The Office of the Supreme Leader
Islamic Republic Street – End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
Email:  info_leader@leader.ir
via website: http://www.leader.ir/langs/en/index.php?p=letter (English)
http://www.leader.ir/langs/fa/index.php?p=letter(Persian)
Salutation:  Your Excellency

Iranian Embassy in Canada:
Mr Bahram Ghasemi
Chargé d’Affaires, Embassy for the Islamic Republic of Iran
245 Metcalfe Street
Ottawa, Ontario K2P 2K2
Fax:   (613) 232-5712
E-mail (Consulate): consulate@salamiran.org
E-mail (Embassy): iranemb@salamiran.org
E-mail (Ambassador): ambassador@iranembassy.org

Director, Human Rights Headquarters of Iran:
Mohammad Javad Larijani
Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh / Office of the Head of the Judiciary
Pasteur St, Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhuri
Tehran 1316814737, Iran
Fax:   011 98 21 3390 4986 (difficult to reach)
Email:  info@dadgostary-tehran.ir (In the subject line write: FAO Javad Larijani)
Salutation: Dear Mr Larijani

In an interview with Sarmayeh newspaper, the family of the victim said “we are ready to give our forgiveness if Delara is convicted for 20 years or a life sentence”. The family said they believe a person who has been convicted of a proven crime, the act of killing someone should not be set free just because of their forgiveness.

The family had mentioned earlier in a letter that they believe in forgiveness and could not be witnesses of an execution – a death of another- and are ready to change the punishment of Ghesas (retribution) to a prison term.

Throughout Delara’s imprisonment many people, including artists, tried to help mediate between the two families and were pushing to obtain pardon from the deceased family. The family of the victim agreed to do so if Delara and her family show remorse for the death of their relative and in the condition that they dismiss their current attorney from handling their file.  They had mentioned in a prior interview that they did not like attorney Khoramshahi’s attitude towards them.

Abass Momenzadeh, a high level lawyer, mentioned that lawmakers can only convict the accused for no more than 10 years once the family of the victim gives their pardon. He said the decision of imprisonment is the responsibility of the lawmaker and not of the family of the deceased.  To ask for 20 years imprisonment is not a lawful request.  Only the court can decide the length of imprisonment. He continued that there is however other reasonable requests that can be a substituted. For example if the request was to pay 40 million toman (approx USD $40,000), they could instead request 100 million toman (approx USD $100,000) instead.

He continued saying that recently in another case the family of the deceased had asked for 6 kidneys to be donated to needy people instead of a dollar amount.  

When Mr. Momenzadeh was asked what would happen if there is no agreement, he said that the death penalty verdict must be executed.  If the family of the victim insists on their stance, their file will go back to the execution committee’s office and they will ask the family to make up their mind.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

PUBLIC                                                                                                                        AI Index: MDE 13/034/2009                         

20 April 2009

Further Information on 98/09 (MDE 13/031/2009, 09 April 2009) and follow-up (MDE 13/032/2009) - Fear of imminent execution

IRAN      Delara Darabi (f), aged 22, juvenile offender

Juvenile offender Delara Darabi was granted a two month stay of execution by the Head of the Judiciary on 19 April, the day before she was due to be executed.

Delara Darabi’s lawyer, Abdolsamad Khorramshahi, has confirmed that her execution has been postponed for two months after the family of the victim refused to attend the execution. They are however still demanding that she be executed. According to Article 7 of Iran’s Code of Procedure on executions, the family of the victim or their lawyer are required to be present for the implementation of the sentence.

Delara Darabi remains at risk of being executed unless the family of the victim agrees on compensation.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Iran has executed at least forty two juvenile offenders since 1990, eight of them in 2008 and one on 21 January 2009.

The execution of juvenile offenders is prohibited under international law, as stated in Article 6(5) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), to which Iran is a state party, and so has undertaken not to execute anyone for crimes committed when they were under 18.

In Iran a person convicted of murder has no right to seek pardon or commutation from the state, in violation of Article 6(4) of the ICCPR. The family of a murder victim have the right either to insist on execution, or to pardon the killer and receive financial compensation (diyeh).

For more information about executions of child offenders in Iran, please see Iran: The last executioner of children (Index: MDE 13/059/2007), June 2007, (http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engmde130592007).

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in Persian, Arabic, English or your own language:

- welcoming the stay of execution for Delara Darabi;

- calling on the authorities to commute her death sentence, as she is facing execution for a crime committed when he was under 18;

- acknowledging that governments have a right and responsibility to bring to justice those suspected of criminal offences in proceedings that meet international standards for fair trial and the Convention of the Rights of the Child, and pointing out that no one should be executed for crimes committed when under 18;

- calling on the authorities to pass, as a matter of urgency, legislation abolishing the death penalty for all offences committed by those under 18, in accordance with Iran’s obligations as a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Head of the Judiciary

Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi

c/o Director, Judiciary Public Relations and Information Office

Ardeshir Sadiq

Judiciary Public Relations and Information Office

No. 57, Pasteur St., corner of Khosh Zaban Avenue

Tehran, Iran

Email:                    info@dadiran.ir  (In the subject line write: FAO Ayatollah Shahroudi)

Salutation:           Your Excellency

Judiciary spokesperson

Alireza Jamshidi

Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh / Office of the Head of the Judiciary

Pasteur St, Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhuri

Tehran 1316814737, Iran

Email:                    info@a-jamshidi.ir

Salutation:           Dear Sir

Leader of the Islamic Republic

Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei, The Office of the Supreme Leader

Islamic Republic Street – End of Shahid Keshvar Doust Street, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

Email:                    info_leader@leader.ir

via website: http://www.leader.ir/langs/en/index.php?p=letter (English)

http://www.leader.ir/langs/fa/index.php?p=letter (Persian)

Salutation:           Your Excellency       

Director, Human Rights Headquarters of Iran

Mohammad Javad Larijani

Howzeh Riyasat-e Qoveh Qazaiyeh / Office of the Head of the Judiciary

Pasteur St, Vali Asr Ave., south of Serah-e Jomhuri

Tehran 1316814737, Iran

Fax:                        +98 21 3390 4986 (please keep trying)

Email:                    info@dadgostary-tehran.ir (In the subject line write: FAO Javad Larijani)

Salutation:           Dear Mr Larijani

and to diplomatic representatives of Iran accredited to your country.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 1 June.