The Defense Attorney Under Sharia - Granite Grok

The Defense Attorney Under Sharia

The attorney under sharia

It is tough to be a defense attorney in Iran. Reza Kahndan has reported that his 55 year old wife, Nasrin Sotoudeh, an Iranian human rights attorney, has been sentenced to 38 Years in prison and 148 lashes. She is facing spending the rest of her life in prison plus an excruciating lashing for defending the seven women arrested for protesting Iran’s hijab law. Their offense was removing their head coverings in public.

Sharia is the law of the land in Iran. It is different from western jurisprudence in some significant ways. Failure to wear you hajib might be considered a fashion faux pax here… maybe. But, it is still quite unlikely you will be arrested, even when the fashioned police are called. Your attorney is never in jeopardy unless he or she is unable to make an argument that cannot pass the smile test. This is a significant real life example of the differences between western civilization and Islam.

The charges against the attorney

Reza Kahndan, said that Nasrin Sotoudeh faces charges of “assembly and collusion against national security,” “propaganda against the state,” “encouraging corruption and prostitution,” “appearing at the judiciary without Islamic hijab,” “disturbing public peace and order,” and “publishing falsehoods with the intent to disturb public opinion.”

The process

The Revolutionary Court in Tehran tried her in absentia. She refused to appear because she could not choose her own attorney. She told her husband that she has not received the length of her sentences in writing, but that she faces 5 years for one case and 33 for another.

This was not the first time Sotoudeh’s human rights work drew the ire of Iranian authorities. She was arrested in 2010 and sentenced to six years in prison for “activities against national security” and “propaganda against the regime.” She served some time before being released along with 10 other political prisoners just before the Iranian President addressed the United Nations.

The government arrested Sotoudeh in her home last June without any explanation for the arrest. She has been held at Evin Prison in Tehran ever since. Global human rights groups condemned Sotoudeh’s sentence and called for her immediate release.

The international reaction

Philip Luther, Middle East and North Africa Research and Advocacy Director for Amnesty International, said “It is absolutely shocking that Nasrin Sotoudeh is facing nearly four decades in jail and 148 lashes for peaceful human rights work, including her defense of women protesting Iran’s degrading forced hijab(veiling) laws… Nasrin Sotoudeh must be released immediately and unconditionally and this obscene sentence quashed without delay.”

European Parliament President Antonio Tajini condemned the sentence as “utterly outrageous,” saying she has dedicated her life to “defending women’s rights” and speaking against the death penalty. Sotoudeh and Khandan have two young children. Khandan has been posting updates about her situation on Facebook and has not yet been arrested by the government for doing so.

Ref:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/she-defended-iranian-women-who-removed-their-hijabs-now-shes-been-given-38-years-in-prison/2019/03/17/b1720fea-45b1-11e9-aaf8-4512a6fe3439_story.html?utm_term=.df77758331cd
https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/scott-slayton/iranian-attorney-sentenced-to-38-years-148-lashes-for-defending-women-who-removed-their-head-scarves.html
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/03/iran-shocking-33-year-prison-term-and-148-lashes-for-womens-rights-defender-nasrin-sotoudeh/
https://twitter.com/EP_President/status/1105422742046892033
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/she-defends-the-downtrodden-so-iran-put-her-in-jail/2018/06/21/3d84c5e6-73e8-11e8-b4b7-308400242c2e_story.html?utm_term=.6fac7488babb

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