AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

PUBLIC         - AI Index:  MDE 13/065/2008                

29 April 2008

UA 114/08 - Imminent Execution                

IRAN        Behnoud Shojaee (m), aged 20,



Behnoud Shojaee is facing imminent execution for a murder committed when he was 17 years old, even though Iran is a state party to international treaties including the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which expressly prohibit the execution of child offenders. The Office for the Implementation of Sentences has scheduled his execution to take place at 5:00 am on 7 May 2008.



On 18 June 2005, Behnoud Shojaee, then aged 17, intervened to stop a fight between his friend Hesam and another boy named Omid in Park-e-Vanak in Tehran. Behnoud Shojaee managed to separate the two boys but Omid swore at him, started a fight and threatened him with a knife. During the fight Behnoud Shojaee picked a shard of glass and stabbed Omid once in the chest, before fleeing the scene.

Behnoud Shojaee was sentenced to qesas (retribution) by Branch 74 of the Criminal Court in Tehran on 2 October 2006. During his trial, Behnoud Shojaee was not afforded legal representation and was therefore made to write a request for re-examination and re-trial of his case himself. According to his lawyer who recently took up his case, Behnoud Shojaee maintained throughout his trial that he only stabbed Omid once even though the coroner’s report stated that the victim died as a result of sustaining several injuries. His claims were never investigated and Behnoud Shojaee’s sentence was nevertheless confirmed by Branch 33 of the Supreme Court on 30 June 2007.



Under Article 206 (b) of Iran’s Criminal Code, murder is classed as premeditated “in cases where the murderer intentionally makes an action which is inherently lethal, even if [the murderer] does not intend to kill the person.”



BACKGROUND INFORMATION

As a state party to both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), Iran has undertaken not to execute child offenders, those convicted of crimes committed when they were under 18. However, since 1990 Iran has executed at least 28 child offenders, six of them in 2007. At least 86 child offenders are now on death row in Iran. This number may be even higher as at least a further 15 Afghan child offenders have reportedly been sentenced to death. For more information about executions of child offenders in Iran, please see: Iran: The last executioner of children (MDE 13/059/2007, June 2007), http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engmde130592007.



Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases, and supports the global trend away from the use of the death penalty, powerfully expressed in the UN General Assembly’s resolution calling for a worldwide moratorium on executions on 18 December 2007.



RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Leader of the Islamic Republic                                                                                                 by Azarin Sadegh
His Excellency Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei,

Your Excellency,

I am writing to you regarding Behnoud Shojaee.

He is going to be executed very soon for a crime he committed when he was 17 years old. When I read about him, I remembered my son, who is 14 years old. As I look at him, I realize how immature he is, despite the fact that he has been loved and nurtured constantly. I also remember how easily he makes careless mistakes, or pure misjudgments. As a parent, I try to help him to learn through his mistakes, and to grow up to become a responsible adult. 

As we know, Behnoud Shojaee never got this chance, but he seems to be a wonderful kid. His mistake? He mainly tried to end the fight between two of his friends, and unfortunately, at some point, he made a wrong choice. And after the accident, he never received any help and support from his parents or from his family.

A 17 years old had to face a terrible situation all by himslef and I truly find it unfair to this kid. Of course, he made a big mistake, but his young age should explain the resaon of this mistake, and it is so painful to know that this same mistake is going to end his young life.

I am sure he regrets it more than anybody else.  

At this point, you are his only hope.  

As a mother, I am asking for your forgiveness. Please give Behnoud a new chance to live, so he can believe in the values of humanity and empathy.  

With highest regards, 
Azarin Sadegh

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

PUBLIC AI Index: MDE 13/056/2008
23 April 2008

UA 107/08 Death penalty

IRAN Hossein Haghi (m), aged 21, child offender

Hossein Haghi is facing execution for a murder committed when he was 16 years old, even though Iran is a state party to international treaties including the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which expressly prohibit the execution of child offenders.

On 12 August 2003, Hossein Haghi, then aged 16, and his friend, known as Amrollah T, intervened to stop a fight between a friend of theirs and another boy, Mehdi Khalili. A number of others were also involved in the fight. According to his testimony, Hossein Haghi was held from behind, and Mehdi Khalili started hitting him. Hossein Haghi was able to free his hands, and retrieved a knife from his pocket to defend himself. Mehdi Khalili was killed by a knife wound to the chest. Upon his arrest, Hossein Haghi admitted to holding a knife and striking Mehdi Khalili to scare him away. However during his trial, Hossein Haghi denied stabbing Mehdi Khalili to death.

On 8 February 2004 Hossein Haghi was sentenced to qesas (retribution) by Branch 74 of the Criminal Court. Based on his initial confessions he was found guilty of premeditated murder under Article 206 (b) of Iran’s Criminal Code which states: “Murder is classed as premeditated in cases where the murderer intentionally makes an action which is inherently lethal, even if [the murderer] does not intend to kill the person.” On 25 June 2004, the Supreme Court upheld his sentence. Hossein Haghi‘s defence lawyer lodged a petition demanding a review of the case. Though the petition was rejected, the case was re-examined, and has now been referred to Branch 33 of the Supreme Court by the Head of the Judiciary.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION