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Post by MaryAnn Layton on Jul 10, 2010 12:30:01 GMT -5
I received this today from Avaaz.org... Dear Friends, Yesterday an Iranian woman, Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, was saved by global protests from being stoned to death. But she may still be hanged -- and, meanwhile, execution by stoning continues. Right now fifteen more people are on death row awaiting stoning in which victims are buried up to their necks in the ground and then large rocks are thrown at their heads. The partial reprieve of Sakineh, triggered by the call from her children for international pressure to save her life, has shown that if enough of us come together and voice our horror, we may be able to save her life, and stop stoning once and for all. Sign the urgent petition now and send it onto everyone you know -- let's end this cruel slaughter NOW! www.avaaz.org/en/stop_stoning/?vl Sakineh was convicted of adultery, like all the other 12 women and one of the men awaiting stoning. But her children and lawyer say she is innocent and that she did not get a fair trial -- they state her confession was forced from her and, speaking only Azerbaijani, she did not understand what was being asked of her in court. Despite Iran's signing of a UN convention that requires the death penalty only be used for the "most serious crimes" and despite the Iranian Parliament passing a law banning stoning last year, stoning for adultery continues. Sakineh's lawyer says the Iranian government "is afraid of Iranian public reaction and international attention" to the stoning cases. And after Turkey and Britain's Foreign Ministers spoke out against Sakineh's sentence, it was suspended. Sakineh's brave children are leading the international campaign to save their mother and stop stoning. Massive international condemnation now could finally stop this sickening punishment. Let's join together today across the world to end this brutality. Sign the petition to save Sakineh and end stoning here: www.avaaz.org/en/stop_stoning/?vl In hope and determination, Alice, David, Milena, Ben and the whole Avaaz team SOURCES: Iranians still facing death by stoning despite 'reprieve', The Guardian: www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/08/iran-death-stoning-adulteryBritain condemns planned Iran stoning as 'medieval', AFP: www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hjVdkvkzicGeInqw2R10rCKrqs3A Support the Avaaz community! We're entirely funded by donations and receive no money from governments or corporations. Our dedicated team ensures even the smallest contributions go a long way -- donate here.
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Post by MaryAnn Layton on Nov 4, 2010 11:42:54 GMT -5
We need to do something FAST! This just in from Avaaz.org... It's Thursday, and Sakineh is still alive. A staggering 500,000 of us contacted leaders in one day -- and they're instantly making calls to Iran! Our pressure is working, but we need to ramp it up to keep her alive -- sign now and forward this email to everyone: Dear Friends, Iran could execute Sakineh Ashtiani tomorrow. We saved her from stoning, now we have 24 hours to get key powers to take emergency action to stop this shameful killing. Tomorrow, Iran could execute Sakineh Ashtiani. Our global outcry stopped her unjust stoning sentence in July. Now we have 24 hours to save her life. Iran's allies and key UN powers are our best hope -- they could persuade Iran of the serious political cost of this high-profile killing. Click below to send them an urgent call to action and send this to everyone -- it only takes three minutes and we are her last chance! PLEASE click this link to send a message. www.avaaz.org/en/24h_to_save_sakineh/?vl Sakineh's adultery case is a tragic sham stacked with human rights violations. First, she was to be stoned to death. But the Iranian government had to revoke the sentence after her children generated a worldwide outcry against the farcical trial -- she could not speak the language used in court, and the alleged incidents of adultery took place after her husband's death. Then her lawyer was forced into exile, and the prosecution conjured up a new trumped-up charge for which she would be executed -- the murder of her husband. Despite this being double jeopardy, as she is already serving time for alleged complicity in this crime, Sakineh was tortured and paraded on national television to 'confess', and was found guilty. Since then the regime has arrested two German journalists, her lawyer and her son, who has bravely led the international campaign to save his mother. All remain in prison and Sakineh's son and lawyer have been also tortured and have no access to lawyers. Now Iranian human rights activists state an order has just been issued from Tehran to implement her killing immediately. She is on the list and tomorrow is execution day. Our persistent campaigning led Iran to drop Sakineh's stoning sentence and captured the attention of leaders in countries with influence on Iran, like Turkey and Brazil. Now let's urgently raise our voices to stop her killing and inhumane treatment and free her, her lawyer, her son and the jailed German journalists. Send a message and share this emergency call with friends and family: www.avaaz.org/en/24h_to_save_sakineh/?vl A massive public outcry has the moral authority to stop heinous crimes. Let's use these 24 hours to send a clear message -- the world is watching and we all stand together today to save Sakineh's life and against injustice everywhere. With hope and determination, Alice, Stephanie, Pascal, Giulia, Benjamin and the whole of the Avaaz team Sources: Iranian woman could be stoned Wednesday www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hipKgm5UqJOxciOi1f07BwbfRgFg?docId=CNG.6ef6de7af5f33847d19e690e61087c73.811Guardian article on Avaaz emergency campaign: www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/nov/03/sakineh-mohammadi-ashtiani-executionBrazil President Elect speaks against Iran stoning www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/03/AR2010110305762.htmlSarkozy threatens to suspend dialogue if Sakineh was executed. www.lefigaro.fr/international/2010/11/03/01003-20101103ARTFIG00419-sakineh-sarkozy-aurait-directement-menace-l-iran.phpCanada condemns possible execution: www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canada-calls-planned-execution-of-iranian-woman-completely-out-of-line/article1783290/ UK calls for halt of execution ukiniran.fco.gov.uk/en/news/?view=News&id=23139672US demands no execution: www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hXcWTNyR_NntWQMCKG3d9XxYBISw?docId=CNG.8a2d12eae1177874ba5a4a061cec5e53.231Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani: A life in the Balance (Amnesty International) www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/MDE13/089/2010/en/589bd56b-49ac-4028-8dc6-abd903ac9bac/mde130892010en.pdf Support the Avaaz community! We're entirely funded by donations and receive no money from governments or corporations. Our dedicated team ensures even the smallest contributions go a long way -- donate here.
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Post by MaryAnn Layton on Nov 11, 2010 7:50:06 GMT -5
Good news! Read this from Avaaz.org... they still desperately need your help to save this woman's life! Dear friends, Our global outcry worked and Sakineh is still alive! The next step is to fund international experts to strengthen Sakineh's legal defense and work with officials in Iran to resolve this shameful situation. Let's build on our 900,000-strong outcry and fund the next steps to win her freedom once and for all. Click below to help! Sakineh is still alive! We stopped her stoning sentence, postponed an attempt to hang her quietly and let the Iranian government know that the world is watching and outraged. Now is the time to save Sakineh for good. Last week over 900,000 of us sent messages and made calls to key government officials. But now we're at an impasse and have to give Iran a way out of this dilemma. The next step towards freeing Sakineh is to fund international experts to strengthen her legal defense and work with officials in Iran to resolve this shameful situation. If thousands of us donate in the next three days we can hire an elite team of advocates, keep campaigning to free Sakineh and work on behalf of others facing brutal injustice. Click on the link below to support Sakineh: secure.avaaz.org/en/whats_next_for_sakineh/?vlIran has tried everything to keep Sakineh in jail. They accused her of adultery and sentenced her to stoning despite the fact that the alleged adultery took place after her husband’s death. They sentenced her to death for the murder of her husband even though she had already been acquitted, and another man convicted and sentenced for the murder. They even arrested her son and lawyer and forced the rest of the legal team into exile. After massive international pressure, Iranian officials must be desperate for a face-saving way out of this mess.. And now, for the first time, there is dissent within Iran from Conservative forces about the treatment of Sakineh and the way her case has been handled by the Iranian government. Some are calling for her acquittal of all charges. A team of diplomatic and legal experts could build on this dissent and work within Iran to secure Sakineh's release. Our call, 900,000 voices strong, in combination with pressure from inside Iran for Sakineh's release is the best chance we have to save Sakineh. Now is the moment to give whatever we can to end her brutal persecution: secure.avaaz.org/en/whats_next_for_sakineh/?vl In the campaign against the death penalty worldwide, Sakineh's survival is an important beacon of hope. We have shown unprecedented support for her through an explosive petition, strategic ads in Iranian-allied countries and a flood of messages to world leaders generating an international outcry. Join us in this next step towards freeing Sakineh, ending stoning, and eliminating the death penalty across the globe. With hope and determination, Emma, Alice, Stephanie, Ricken, David, Graziela, Iain and the rest of the Avaaz team
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Post by divastyle on Nov 26, 2010 13:33:05 GMT -5
OMG Mal, this is horrible!! I didn't know that stoning was still going on in 2010, is Sakineh still alive?
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Post by MaryAnn Layton on Nov 26, 2010 15:16:52 GMT -5
Hi Dawn, I forgot to post an update. Yes, Sakineh is alive and will NOT be stoned! Because of the worldwide outrage, the Iranian government is looking at her case again, and looking at the corruption within their legal system. I don't know all the details, so if anyone has heard more, please post.
This should be a clear message to us that when we lift our voices up for justice, we can make a difference and change the world!
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Post by divastyle on Nov 26, 2010 18:53:10 GMT -5
That is WONDERFUL news, I am very happy for her & her children!!
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Post by MaryAnn Layton on Jan 19, 2011 11:01:46 GMT -5
So whatever happened to Sakineh? Good news!
++++++
We wrote many posts last summer about Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the Iranian woman who was convicted of adultery and sentenced to stoning. Over the months, the verdict changed from stoning to hanging, her lawyer was forced to flee to Norway, the Iranian government released Ashtiani's "confession," and the Brazilian government offered Ashtiani asylum. Now, she reportedly will serve 10 years in prison in a triumphant conclusion to many attempts to save her life.
According to Amnesty International, Iran executes more people every year than any country except China, and another NGO claims that Iran is on an "execution binge," with an average of one person hanged every 8 hours since the beginning of the year.
"The Iranian Judiciary is on an execution binge orchestrated by the intelligence and security agencies," explained Aaron Rhodes, a spokesman for the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.
The Ashtiani case, however, was an example of the positive effect that international attention can have. Politicians, religious institutions and celebrities alike spoke out on her behalf, including Carla Bruni, the singer and French first lady, who the Iranian media then called a prostitute, and the immense amount of pressure on the Iranian government to rescind the brutal sentence clearly had an impact.
We'll keep you posted on Ashtiani's fate, but for now, it's heartening to know that efforts like these can work, although it certainly won't save every person who is unjustly sentenced to death in Iran or even in the United States. For now, though, Care2 readers can be happy to know that their work, along with the help of many others, seems to have made a difference!
Change the world!
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Post by judith51 on Jan 20, 2011 10:29:25 GMT -5
The picture is quite disturbing. I'm so glad she has been saved. I tried to sign petition but had been closed. My field of expertise is domestic violence. Mary Ann you have the heart of an angel.
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Post by divastyle on Jan 20, 2011 13:38:35 GMT -5
I'm glad that she has been saved as well but I'm disturbed that she'll have to do 10 years in prison. I don't believe that she committed adultery at all and even if she did, I never knew that was a crime punishable by prison time.
I'm happy for her children, at least they'll be able to visit her I hope.
I agree Judith, MAL has a wonderful heart, L-O-V-E to you all!!
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Post by MaryAnn Layton on Jan 20, 2011 19:00:43 GMT -5
Thanks, Judith and Dawn. I'm just standing up for injustice.
We can't change Iranian laws, but at least she won't die because of a bogus charge, and yes it was bogus. She never did commit adultery. We are so blessed to live in a free country, where we don't have to worry about archaic laws against women.
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