Home page > News > Nasrin Sotoodeh: If the violation of the judgment for hanging of MehrNahad (...)

Feminist School: We heard from the media that the judgment on Yaghoub MehrNahad a civil society activist was carried out by hanging. Hence we decided to look at the shocking consequences of this action in depth with Nasrin Sotoodeh, one of the lawyers in Iran.

N.S: We heard that Yaghoub MehrNahad was a journalist in Zahedan and had no lawyer present during his court hearing and was hanged immediately after the judgment. If this is right then:

First- without the presence of lawyer is an obvious offence in the case. As it is in the law that the accused should have access to a lawyer for defence in particular if the punishment is hanging. In this case not only the defender has the right to a lawyer even if they unable to provide their own lawyer then the court have to provide one.

In this case not only there was no defence lawyer present also there were no juries present.

Second- Mr Yaghoub MehrNahad was accused of web logging and as this was the courts judgment then most certainly the jury had to be present.

Third- Hanging is one of the punishments that governments use to rid their political opponents and as a result it is accepted in the world that for political opponents and cultural activists and journalist’s punishment by hanging is illegal.

Fourth- Regardless of all the violations and abuse in this case, the absolute silence of the judge is unfair. Considering that the accused had been in jail for a year and half and some time had passed from the passed judgment, it was up to the media and the human rights organisation to report on the case so that the society would have knowledge of the case and the judgment and also on the connection of this reporter to the Jondolah group nominated as Abdolmalek Rigi.

Hence we see that the deficiencies and violation in this case is so obvious that begs to be reopened and have a retrial but the question is if the judge decides that the punishment should not have been by hanging then what can we do?

see persian version here

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