Ameneh Bahrami

Ameneh Bahrami (Persian: آمنه بهرامی‎; born 1978 in Tehran, Iran) is an Iranian woman blinded in an acid attack. She became the focus of international controversy after demanding that her attacker, Majid Movahedi, be punished by being similarly blinded.[1] The punishment is permitted under the Qisas principle of sharia law.[2]

Attack

After Bahrami rejected the romantic advances of Movahedi, a fellow student at the University of Tehran, he threw a bucket of acid in her face in October 2004. She subsequently underwent 17 surgeries, some in Spain, but remains badly disfigured and blind in both eyes. The Iranian government has paid £22,500 towards her treatment.[3]

Trial and response

Bahrami testified against Movahedi at his trial. She informed the court that she desired "to inflict the same life on him that he inflicted on me". She requested that twenty drops of acid be dropped in his eyes.[4]

Tehran's deputy public prosecutor, Mahmoud Salarkia, defended the punishment. "If this sentence is properly publicized in the media, it will stop the repetition of such incidents," he said. "Awareness of the punishment has a huge deterrent effect in stopping social crimes."[3] However, human rights advocates strongly criticized the punishment.

The punishment was due to be carried out on April 15, 2009,[5] Movahedi's appeal was rejected by the court, although the blinding did not take place that year.[6]

A new punishment date of May 14, 2011 was revealed, but again the punishment was not carried out, and was postponed indefinitely.[7][8] On July 31, 2011, Ameneh forgave and pardoned her attacker, stating that she did so for her country.[9]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ In Iran, a case of eye for an eye
  2. ↑ Iraanse vrouw blij met zuur in ogen dader als straf
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Eye for an eye: Iranian man sentenced to be blinded for acid attack
  4. ↑ Iranian woman blinded in attack wants eye for an eye, 'Chicago Sun-Times', Dec 17 2008
  5. ↑ Iran court allows victim to blind culprit
  6. ↑ "Woman blinded by acid wants same fate for attacker - CNN.com". CNN. February 19, 2009. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
  7. ↑ ACID ATTACK VICTIM’S EYE FOR AN EYE
  8. ↑ "Iran acid blinding punishment postponed" BBC News, May 14, 2011
  9. ↑ Iranian sentenced to blinding for acid attack pardoned