Woman to be stoned! We have to stop it!
October 4th, 2007The state-run newspaper Qods reported that a mother of three is sentenced to stoning. Reportedly, the evidence is video tapes of her having sex with another person [Persian].
We have to stop this! Spread the news and send the link in the comment section. We have to stop this.
Do we want this to happen again (Very Graphic)?
p.s. I didn’t even care translating the rest of the piece, but, as our commenter Ahwazi has correctly pointed out, the sex was obviously an act between her and a man and the man got away with 100 lashes.
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stop this immediatly! its wrong
This is insane. I can’t believe that stoning still exists. What can we do to help?
Kamangir,
Why don’t you put Canada next to your name since that is where you live. If you want to help these stoning victims why don’t you go back to Iran and do your activism there? All you and certain other Iranian bloggers do is show us the atrocities that are being committed but don’t give as much attention to the activists that are living in Iran who put their loves in danger to improve human rights. It’s important to bring up the horrible things that are goging on in Iran, but it is equally important to represent the human side of the Iranian people. When you only point out the negative aspects of Iran, than you provide an excuse for the Untied States to invade Iran the way it was done with Iraq, where millions of people have paid a heavy price for the actions of a few. Who knows how many heads and bodies have been burned and crushed from the bombings of two invasions and the use of depleted uranium and chemical weapons?
Here is an example of what I mean in terms of representing different aspects of Iranian life.
complete article at http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?itemid=12278
Randall I don’t think that was very appropriate. It is irrational to tell him or any of us to go back to our countries. We are doing what we can from where we are. The best thing to do is to talk about it and let those foolish mullahs know we know, and the whole World knows.
RandallJones,
I think you couldnt be more right. We need to stop dehumanising the people of these countries by exposing their corrupt governments. It makes it too easy for America or Israel to then get away with bombing these places. Yes ofcourse we have to bring to light the atrocities that are occuring across the world, but not at the expense of the innocent. We shouldn’t keep play into their hands. We need to support and promote the activists, where ever they may be.
You’re being sarcastic, right? Because what you say makes no sense, Tamara. You basically are saying that the people abused by the Iranian government are represented by their government who abuses them; and that, in the minds of some people, those who are being oppressed should be bombed because they are the same as their oppressors. I understand your cynicism, but Americans and Israelis are neither heartless nor stupid, and are capable of understanding the difference.
I disagree with the tactic of filtering exposure of human rights abuse through a political agenda. Abuse can, and should be exposed in a way that cultivates a sense of humanity toward the people who suffer at the hands of a regime, not hate toward them. Look at Burma. Nobody is trying to bomb them. Exposure of abuse doesn’t have to mean bombs, it can mean many other forms of engagement.
Well actually I wasnt being sarcastic. But I can see how what I said may have been misunderstood. Taking Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon or a number of other places as examples we can see how the media coverage of certain parties actions have resulted in the support of violent actions against the civillians of their respective nation.
When the media coverage only focuses on the atrocities committed and not the local or international activists fighting against this, as RandallJones was pointing out, what I believed he was correct about, makes it easier for people to support a war against that party and thus inevitably against their respective nation.
As a Syrian I find it very distressing how easy it is for so many people to discuss the possibility of a war with Syria and be so completely detached. As if the loss of innocent life has just become an acceptable consequence.
As for the American and Israeli government, I do not say that they do not know the difference, I think they know very well. But they have an agenda which they want to achieve, and which they want support for, and they are willing to get that support in any way they can. They play on our emotions, our fears and the business in our lives.
And isnt the inaction on behalf of Burma just another symptom of the double standards of the American and certain other governments?
I see your point Tamara, and agree to a certain extent, but I very much admire the extremely important work that bloggers and activists like Kamangir are doing for their country. Trust me, the last thing such people are advocating for is war. Randall is being incredibly one-sided as usual claiming that whatever we do is basically asking for the USA’s government to run for our rescue via tanks and bombs. Sorry but could that assumption be any more misguided and paranoid?
Where did Kamangir imply that?
He is simply doing his job as a decent human being to spread the word about a grave injustice happening in his beloved country. A woman is about to get stoned and what do you all expect us to do? Dismiss it? Just because the USA miiiiiighht use it for their own personal gains? Sorry but no. It’s both shallow to do such thing and inhumane.
Have we become so paranoid to the point where speaking up for human rights is the equivalent for asking that our countries get bombed?
Like another Iranian author here once said, “I hate my current government, but I’d hate our invaders even more.” And that is coming from a human rights activist, someone who risks their lives on a daily basis to help their people gain more freedom. It’s a noble fight, and the last thing they want us for us to put our conspiracies ahead of their struggles and claim that we should focus on the “good” things because God forbid the “bad” things might lead to the USA harming us.
This is not about dirty politics. It’s about someone being in serious danger and us wanting to help, as average people who wish to use their own advantages to support others who aren’t as lucky as we are. There is nothing at all wrong with that. But there’s something very wrong about refusing to speak about major human rights abuses in the fear that the U.S government might use it as an excuse for war. We CAN be and most of us already ARE against both things: human rights abuses and manipulative U.S invasions.
Well yes I agree with you Esra’a, I never said we shouldnt openly be able to discuss the violations and attrocities of governments and their policies. We have to, but it should be balanced. There has to be balance otherwise we end up where we are now. Activists, including bloggers need to become more prominent, and the focus in the media should cease to simply be about attrocities. People need to see ACTION, positive action. We are already too well aware of the hideous actions of too many people in this world.
I just think that the focus that is put on such events, has made people immune, and unaffected. I personally could not watch the clip, as I couldnt watch Saddam Husseins execution. What kind of world are we living in when it is the norm to see such videos? More focus on positive action may prevent at least some from giving up hope completely.
Well that says it all really.
We have had a very similar discussion on an excellent blog (in dutch) of a reporter in Teheran. He in fact uses his blog to give a balanced view of Iran, with much day-to-day life in Iran (also light issues) which I think he succeeds in very well, while at the same time not ignoring human rights abuses. I have also come to the conclusion that it should be a combination: exposing human rights abuses unreservedly but balancing that with reports on people and culture in the respective countries to show that normal, peace loving people live there as well. I know, it is somehow strange that we need to be reminded of that …
Ten responses to Kamangir’s post, and no one has suggested even one concrete thing that can be done to stop this stoning?! Talk is cheap, folks. It’s not entirely fair to sound the alarm, but then have no concrete ideas about what to do. I think that is precisely the problem with so many of these situations.
Well, what are we expected to do? We have already asked for ways in which we can help - we don’t know how or where to start. We are spreading the word and that’s the least we can do right now, but we can’t be blamed for being somewhat speechless as to how we can help stop this.
Have you got any ideas ERS?
Stoning is completely abhorrent, but the discussion here is very insightful, particularly for those of us replying from the West: What can we do about it? Given that outside pressure in the form of diplomatic protest is ineffective, and that military intervention is unrealistic, either grassroots action or legal intervention within the country becomes the only alternative. Does the accused have any recourse within the court system? Is there any hope of objective judgement, appeal, different religious/philosophical interpretations? If so, then is the issue a monetary one, such as establishing a legal defense fund for these cases? If not, if the implementation of punishment is extra-legal (vigilante), or if the legal system is too unresponsive, then the only recourse lies in establishing an “underground railroad”, establishing a sympathetic network of individuals that could somehow aid the condemned in escaping the country to a safe place. While this seems to be either an ineffective or fantastic solution, I do not think that the current Iranian government is reponsive enough to any kind of external advice, criticism, or pressure to make legal chanes on that basis, or summon the political will to enforce punishment on the extralegal perpetrators or this awful act.
Some good ideas here:
http://eteraz.wordpress.com/2006/10/04/stand-against-women-stoned-to-death-you-apathetic-monsters
PeacefulVanguard, you wrote “Look at Burma. Nobody is trying to bomb them. Exposure of abuse doesn’t have to mean bombs, it can mean many other forms of engagement.”
Compare Burma to Iraq. NO one points out that Buddhist monks have participated in the repression and that the military junta ruling Burma are Buddhists. Does anyone know the name of the people in charge of the Burmese regime? Yet we know the name of the noble peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi. With Saddam Huseein, even though he was secular was always linked to Muslim extremists.
The media kept on saying that Saddam Hussein was killing his own people, but they left out that the United States had helped Saddam into power and supported him, strategically and financially, when he was committing his worst atrocities.
Danial,
Regarding that link you put to the petition on Ali Eteraz’s website, the last I heard Eteraz was living in the United States. He wants us, Westerners t sign a petition to the Supreme Iranian Leader Ayatollah Khameini regarding the stoning of women.
But Eteraz has not called for a petition to our American president to stop the burning and crushing of the heads of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and Afghanis by the bombs and chemical weapons of the United States. He has not called for the prosecution of high level officials in the Bush Administration for war crimes.
Theoretically, since we live in a democracy it should be more easier for us to make change. But in reality it hasn’t been easy. SO that’s why you get people like Eteraz and other puttijg all their attention on creating petitions to solve the wrongs of other people’s countries instead of their own.
If we want to help the activists in Iran with their goals of improving human rights, we should be trying to stop the United States, Israel and certain European counties from threatening to bomb or invade the country.The people in Iran will take care of the rest.
Here is an interesting article to get a better understanding
complete article at http://www.progressive.org/node/4253
Can you stay on topic?
FYI Ali has criticized high level officials in this administration. You might want to check out http://www.eteraz.org sometime.
Danial,
I knew of Eteraz before you linked to it. My comments are on topic. I suggested what those in the West could do to help improve human rights in Iran. Stop threatening Iran and set the example by prosecuting our high level war criminals.
I’m not criticizing MEY. . .just the headline, which implies some action, but then suggests none. I think it was imcumbent upon the person who initiated this discussion either to write a headline reflective of the content of the post, to suggest actions that can be taken to stop this particular stoning (since he sounds the alarm and implies that is what is needed), and/or to solicit ideas from people who have some expertise in this.
I have my hands more than full working on a different human rights problem. I have no expertise on stoning, and what I know about Iran wouldn’t fill a teacup. Just out of my depth on this one, but I read this post hoping to learn something.
ERS,
I have already suggested some actions. What human rights problems are you working on? Maybe we can learn from you.
We suggest action and we do take action on a hell of a lot of other topics, we cannot possibly be expected to take action on every single injustice in our region. It’s crazy to expect that from us. It’s called Mideast Youth, not Mideast Superheroes, after all.
Esra’a I think ERS was just looking for a petition to sign, or a website to check out that would give her direction to any legal or public action she could take to prevent the stoning.
I was looking for one too after the fact, and it would be great to visit Eteraz.com to sign the petition ERS if you have the time to do that. Everyone’s help counts, even by reading the article and spreading the word.
Stoning is still applied in Iran and there IS a way to help stop it- in fact, as an example you’d just have to look at Nazanin Fatehi’s case. She was going to be executed for defending herself and her cousin by killing one of the men who were attempting to rape them. She was going to die but fortunately with the help of those measly “Westerners” [who seem to only care about foreigners while "high level war criminals" renege in their pools of oil-money] who signed the petitions and following a movement to stop it she was saved. She wasn’t executed. Just by spreading the word and getting letters out to local TV stations or by signing the petition and offering some support to organize a movement against the stoning can lead to diplomatic and or public pressure from the world against Iran.
Why is it not okay to talk about the crimes being committed in Iran and to actively seek to disseminate information regarding human rights abuses within Iran from the West? I think Randall, you may need to reconsider what this post is aiming to do. Spread the news about such an atrocity. It’s unfortunate that you think we shouldn’t discuss the human rights abuses within in Iran but instead focus on the evil Bush empire…really, why don’t you take your argument to a forum where they discuss American social and political issues then? It just seems natural to me to be able to be an activist for human rights in Iran and not LIVE in Iran…if you think about it, so many activists are thrown in Jail and yet they attempt to correspond and spread knowledge from their jail cell…technically, they’re inside the country but obviously they aren’t dealing with the same issues that an activist living outside in the streets would be. However, they can still be intertwined just like bloggers on the outside are connected to the people in the streets of Iran.
War will be inevitable. You think that by ignoring the abuses within Iran, there won’t be a war? What do you think would stop war? If it isn’t war with Iran, it’ll be war with another country. If you want to get rid of “high level” warlords in the States, then do it but you could be in the wrong forum for that…
(to all)
awful was the original news kamangir referred to:
“a woman goes to the police telling that a man is threatening her and trying extortion. a lawsuit if filled, and when the court calls the man, he provides some porn videos and pics to prove that the woman has done all the things without any threat by man. court sentences the man to 100 lashes for the man was single, and woman is sentenced to death by stoning for she has been married to another man.”
its much more horrible if the woman has been right and the man has been a tyrant…. do you think a judge can find enough evidences in a home-made video to get convinced that the woman has done it delibaretly?
and another scenario is also possible: the woman has done something wrong (not necessarily) at the very beginning. after it, the man has threatened her all the way to exploit her… and such sad stories would never be found on a video…
shame.
“I suggested what those in the West could do to help improve human rights in Iran. Stop threatening Iran and set the example by prosecuting our high level war criminals.”
You think that if America sets a good example the IRI will willingly follow? America puts great importance on assuring that executions are quick and painless: the IRI doesn’t seem to be following that example!