John Whitehead's Commentary
Women, Rape and the Death Penalty in Iran
On January 6, 2006, the Republic of Iran sentenced a young woman to death for the so-called crime of defending herself against three male attackers. The case, that of 18-year-old Nazanin, presents the United States with an opportunity to take a stand for basic equality and women's rights.
In March 2005, Nazanin, who was 17 at the time, and her niece were attacked by three men while walking in a park in Tehran, the capital of Iran. When the men began throwing stones at them, the girls were abandoned by their boyfriends, who left them alone to defend themselves from the brutality. Out of fear and panic, the girls did the only thing they knew to do--try to run away. Yet despite their desperate attempts to escape the grasps of the three ill-minded men, the young girls were caught, thrown to the ground and forced upon by the strangers attempting to rape them. Acting on instinct, Nazanin tried to protect herself and her niece. Drawing a knife she kept hidden beneath her clothing to guard against this type of attack, Nazanin stabbed one of the men in the chest as he was forcing himself upon her. Although Nazanin persists that she merely intended to use the knife to force the man off her, the stabbing resulted in the rapist's death. Nazanin was subsequently arrested, charged and convicted for the death of the rapist and is sentenced to die by hanging.
Nazanin's plight is not uncommon in Iran, which has been criticized for its treatment of women and its use of capital punishment in a country where more women are reportedly executed per year than in any other country. Since 1979, when the Ayatollah Khomeini assumed power, Iran's penal system has been marked by so-called "Revolutionary Law," which is derived from Islamic and Sharia law. It is particularly brutal in its treatment of women, especially those who are found guilty of breaking the law and condemned to die for their purported crimes. And according to an Iranian doctor who has witnessed many state executions of women, women and girls are commonly raped by guards prior to their execution. Ostensibly, this practice ensures that the woman is not a virgin when she dies, thus preventing her from entering paradise.
Death sentences imposed on women in Iran are typically carried out by hanging or stoning. When a sentence calls for death by stoning, the woman is buried up to the shoulders, covered over the head and beaten to death with stones of a size dictated by Iranian law. Death by hanging typically involves either the use of a hydraulic crane or a low platform to ensure a slower, more painful death. A strong thin rope or steel cable in the form of a noose is placed around the neck to crush the larynx, inflicting as much pain as possible and prolonging the moment of death.
Such a brutal death is what awaits Nazanin unless the United States, the United Nations and other international agencies exercise their moral leadership and demand that the Iranian government grant her clemency. Indeed, the United States should lead the way in raising an outcry over Iran's inhumane treatment of Nazanin. In fact, America has long been a champion of human rights in word, if not always in deed. And although America's reputation as a defender of human rights has been tarnished by allegations of prisoner abuse at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, Nazanin's plight presents the Bush Administration with an opportunity to stand by its much-avowed commitment to human rights. This is one important reason why at least limited diplomatic ties with despotic regimes should be maintained by the U.S. Otherwise, it renders the U.S. helpless to do anything in this kind of situation.
Just as international pressure succeeded in granting Sufiyatu Huseini clemency from an unjust death sentence, so the international community--led by the U.S.--must take on the burden of advocating Nazanin's cause. Huseini was charged by Nigerian officials with the crime of adultery after having been raped and was sentenced to death by stoning. However, as a result of international pressure and several months of negotiations, she was granted clemency.
As a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Iran must be challenged to stand by its commitments to respect the fundamental human rights of women and to treat all persons deprived of their liberty "with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person."
First Lady Laura Bush has been vocal in speaking out against the severe repression and brutality of women in Afghanistan. She is to be commended for admonishing our nation to take a stand. As Mrs. Bush stated, "Civilized people throughout the world are speaking out in horror--not only because our hearts break for the women and children in Afghanistan, but also because in Afghanistan we see the world the terrorists would like to impose on the rest of us. All of us have an obligation to speak out. We may come from different backgrounds and faiths--but parents the world over love our children. We respect our mothers, our sisters and daughters. Fighting brutality against women and children is not the expression of a specific culture; it is the acceptance of our common humanity--a commitment shared by people of good will on every continent."
However, it's time to move past the rhetoric. Indeed, if people like Laura Bush are really sincere about what they're saying about women's rights around the world, then it is incumbent on them to act and to persuade her husband the president, a world leader, to act affirmatively in this situation.
What this means is that in order to truly end the horror being enacted against women in Iran, particularly on young Nazanin, it is incumbent upon the U.S. to act now. To remain silent about this horrific incident amounts to turning a blind eye and it is a travesty of justice that renders meaningless anything the United States has to say about women's rights.
In March 2005, Nazanin, who was 17 at the time, and her niece were attacked by three men while walking in a park in Tehran, the capital of Iran. When the men began throwing stones at them, the girls were abandoned by their boyfriends, who left them alone to defend themselves from the brutality. Out of fear and panic, the girls did the only thing they knew to do--try to run away. Yet despite their desperate attempts to escape the grasps of the three ill-minded men, the young girls were caught, thrown to the ground and forced upon by the strangers attempting to rape them. Acting on instinct, Nazanin tried to protect herself and her niece. Drawing a knife she kept hidden beneath her clothing to guard against this type of attack, Nazanin stabbed one of the men in the chest as he was forcing himself upon her. Although Nazanin persists that she merely intended to use the knife to force the man off her, the stabbing resulted in the rapist's death. Nazanin was subsequently arrested, charged and convicted for the death of the rapist and is sentenced to die by hanging.
Nazanin's plight is not uncommon in Iran, which has been criticized for its treatment of women and its use of capital punishment in a country where more women are reportedly executed per year than in any other country. Since 1979, when the Ayatollah Khomeini assumed power, Iran's penal system has been marked by so-called "Revolutionary Law," which is derived from Islamic and Sharia law. It is particularly brutal in its treatment of women, especially those who are found guilty of breaking the law and condemned to die for their purported crimes. And according to an Iranian doctor who has witnessed many state executions of women, women and girls are commonly raped by guards prior to their execution. Ostensibly, this practice ensures that the woman is not a virgin when she dies, thus preventing her from entering paradise.
Death sentences imposed on women in Iran are typically carried out by hanging or stoning. When a sentence calls for death by stoning, the woman is buried up to the shoulders, covered over the head and beaten to death with stones of a size dictated by Iranian law. Death by hanging typically involves either the use of a hydraulic crane or a low platform to ensure a slower, more painful death. A strong thin rope or steel cable in the form of a noose is placed around the neck to crush the larynx, inflicting as much pain as possible and prolonging the moment of death.
Such a brutal death is what awaits Nazanin unless the United States, the United Nations and other international agencies exercise their moral leadership and demand that the Iranian government grant her clemency. Indeed, the United States should lead the way in raising an outcry over Iran's inhumane treatment of Nazanin. In fact, America has long been a champion of human rights in word, if not always in deed. And although America's reputation as a defender of human rights has been tarnished by allegations of prisoner abuse at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, Nazanin's plight presents the Bush Administration with an opportunity to stand by its much-avowed commitment to human rights. This is one important reason why at least limited diplomatic ties with despotic regimes should be maintained by the U.S. Otherwise, it renders the U.S. helpless to do anything in this kind of situation.
Just as international pressure succeeded in granting Sufiyatu Huseini clemency from an unjust death sentence, so the international community--led by the U.S.--must take on the burden of advocating Nazanin's cause. Huseini was charged by Nigerian officials with the crime of adultery after having been raped and was sentenced to death by stoning. However, as a result of international pressure and several months of negotiations, she was granted clemency.
As a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Iran must be challenged to stand by its commitments to respect the fundamental human rights of women and to treat all persons deprived of their liberty "with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person."
First Lady Laura Bush has been vocal in speaking out against the severe repression and brutality of women in Afghanistan. She is to be commended for admonishing our nation to take a stand. As Mrs. Bush stated, "Civilized people throughout the world are speaking out in horror--not only because our hearts break for the women and children in Afghanistan, but also because in Afghanistan we see the world the terrorists would like to impose on the rest of us. All of us have an obligation to speak out. We may come from different backgrounds and faiths--but parents the world over love our children. We respect our mothers, our sisters and daughters. Fighting brutality against women and children is not the expression of a specific culture; it is the acceptance of our common humanity--a commitment shared by people of good will on every continent."
However, it's time to move past the rhetoric. Indeed, if people like Laura Bush are really sincere about what they're saying about women's rights around the world, then it is incumbent on them to act and to persuade her husband the president, a world leader, to act affirmatively in this situation.
What this means is that in order to truly end the horror being enacted against women in Iran, particularly on young Nazanin, it is incumbent upon the U.S. to act now. To remain silent about this horrific incident amounts to turning a blind eye and it is a travesty of justice that renders meaningless anything the United States has to say about women's rights.
ABOUT JOHN W. WHITEHEAD
Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute. His most recent books are the best-selling Battlefield America: The War on the American People, the award-winning A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State, and a debut dystopian fiction novel, The Erik Blair Diaries. Whitehead can be contacted at staff@rutherford.org. Nisha Whitehead is the Executive Director of The Rutherford Institute. Information about The Rutherford Institute is available at www.rutherford.org.
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