Atefah Sahaaleh

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Atefeh Rajabi Sahaaleh Persian: عاطفه رجبی سهاله(1988 - August 15, 2004) was a 16-year-old schoolgirl from the town of Neka, Iran who was executed a week after being sentenced to death by Haji Rezai, head of Nekah's clerical court on charges of adultery and "crimes against chastity". Rezai, who took the execution order to the Supreme Court himself and put the noose round Atefah's neck before she was hoisted on a crane to her death[1], was later arrested himself on charges of rape and torture of the defendant.[2].

The execution is controversial because as a signatory of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Iran promised not to execute anyone under the age of 18 but the clerical courts are under the power of the religious Supreme Leader of Iran and do not answer to the civil court system. Atefah's father had passed her birth certificate to the civil authorities, lawyers involved, journalists and Judge Rezai himself but according to a witness "The judge just looked at her body, because of the developed physique...and declared her as 22."[3] Furthermore, the charges of adultery against her were also flawed as she had never married. Pursuant to continual complaints filed by Atefeh's family about her execution and the way the judge mishandled the case, the Supreme Court of Iran issued an order to free Atefeh, which came three weeks too late.

After the execution of Atefeh, Iranian media reported that Judge Rezai and several militia members including Captain Zabihi and Captain Molai were arrested by the Intelligence Ministry. An inside source added that in addition to the confession of his rape of Atefeh, Judge Rezai also confessed to the rape of the 16 year old. During his interrogation the judge confessed that in order to obtain a confession from Atefeh that she was 22 and to extract the names of others she had relations with, he tortured her. He also confessed that to cover up what he and the militia members had done to Atefeh, he issued the verdict of execution and carried out the execution with permission from the religious authorities. Judge Rezai insisted that the verdict and the execution were fully in compliance with the laws of Islam, permitted and sanctioned by the religious authorities[citation needed].


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[edit] Early life

Atefeh's mother died in a car accident when she was five. Her father became a drug addict and she was forced to care for her octogenerian grandparents. Despite her attending to their needs they are reported to have completely ignored her. She grew up in the town of Neka, Iran and was described as a "lively and intelligent girl", who everyone knew, and was often seen wandering free on streets. She was called "gypsy of Neka" by the locals, as she was not restrained in her behaviour, having no parental guidance.[1]

She was arrested three times by the Moral Police and convicted for having sex with unmarried men.[4] On each occasion she was jailed and given 100 lashes. The punishment for sex with married men is far more severe.

[edit] Affair with a 51 year old man

She was having an affair with a married man three times her age, which lasted over 3 years. [2] However, sex outside of wedlock is a crime against chastity. Atefeh was arrested for the fourth time and under alleged torture admitted the affair, for which she was convicted, and as a repeat offender, sentenced to death.

[edit] Arrest

On the day she was due to attend a wedding, the Moral Police arrested her as she was preparing dinner for her grandparents. As she had not committed an offense, a petition was presented declaring her a "bad influence". It was not signed.

She was convicted for ‘crimes against chastity’, based on her admission that she had repeatedly had sex with a 51-year-old ex-revolutionary guard turned taxi-driver Ali Darabi, a married man with children. In the court the judge was Haji Rezai. As Atefeh realised she was losing her case, she removed her hijab, an act seen as a severe contempt of the court, and argued that Ali Darabi should be punished, not her. She even removed her shoes and hit the judge with them.[3] The judge later sentenced her to death.

Atefeh appealed her conviction. Her family could still not afford a lawyer, and none was provided, in contravention of Iranian law. Although such appeals are usually not resolved within a year, her death sentence was upheld by a Supreme Court . Haji Rezai, the religious judge, was reportedly so incensed with Atefeh’s "sharp tongue" during the trial that he travelled to Tehran personally to convince the mullahs of the Supreme Court to uphold the death sentence. According to the BBC, the documents presented to the Supreme Court of Appeal described her as a 22-year-old, but her birth certificate and death certificate stated that she was 16. The issue of her age was not brought to proper attention before it was too late. Apparently, the judge arbitrarily put the incorrect age which he estimated based on Atefeh's appearance.

Amnesty International and a number of other organisations have reported that she suffered from psychological illness, both before and at the trial.

[edit] Execution

She was publicly hanged from a crane in Neka, Iran, on August 15, 2004 . The judge in her case, Haji Rezai, also acted as executioner and applied the noose himself. She was left hanging for 45 minutes. He later boasted that she had been "taught a lesson" for her "sharp tongue". Her father was not notified of her execution. They never said goodbye.

The next day her body was stolen from her grave. It has never been recovered.

Amnesty International and many other human rights organizations from the international community declared her killing to be a crime against humanity and against children of the world.[5]

[edit] BBC Undercover - "Execution of a Teenage Girl"

The case of Atefeh Sahaaleh is the subject of a BBC documentary made by Wild Pictures. Director, Monica Garnsey and Associate Producer, Arash Sahami went undercover to document the case.[6] It is also the subject of an hour-long Discovery Times program called "Execution in Iran."

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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[edit] References

  1. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5217424.stm
  2. ^ http://web.peykeiran.com/net_iran/irnewsbody.aspx?ID=18928
  3. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/5217424.stm
  4. ^ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named art1
  5. ^ Iran: Amnesty International outraged at reported execution of 16 year-old girl
  6. ^ "Execution of a Teenage Girl", BBC News Online, 2006-06-27. Retrieved on 2006-07-27. 
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