Following the murder of a young woman by the morality police in Iran last September, thousands of Iranian citizens, outraged, have been protesting all around the country. The protests have been going on for several months now and despite the (very) serious threats of the government, they show no sign of ceasing.
Amongst the citizens daring to speak up in the streets, you can find all kinds of people: men and women, young and elderly, doctors, shop workers, professional athletes, actors, ... The people of Iran have been unionising, all together, in hope that their rebellion would initiate a change they have been long waiting for. Their requests are simple: Iranians want a free country, in which all can dress as they like without the fear of being beaten up by the police, freedom for the press, no more corruption, etc.
After weeks of revolt, protesters were first brought up to believe that the government would perhaps hear their requests and be willing to make changes: indeed, on 4 December 2022, the official Iranian authorities stated that the ill-famed morality police was abolished. This announcement did not stop the protests though!
A few days after this announcement, the government declared that the protesters being caught and identified by the police would be at risk of being executed. Shortly after, the authorities carried out the first execution of a man convicted over the protests. This man, Mohsen Shekari, was accused of being a "rioter" who blocked a main road in Tehran in September and wounded a member of a paramilitary force with a machete. His trial was dashed off and several of his fundamental rights were violated during the process, such as his right to a lawyer and fair inspection of evidences.
Mohsen Shekari is not the only one who suffered this fate. Since this first execution, it was reported that three other men were hanged after hasty unfair trials.
Forty-three others are currently on death row, waiting to know what is in store for them. Alongside this astonishing number, one should also acknowledge the ‘unofficial’ executions occurring in the streets, where the authorities reportedly killed a bit more than 500 (including teenagers and children) since the start of the rebellion.
Even before the protests, death penalty was neither abolished nor condemned by Iran and very well still in practice.. According to Amnesty International, the country carried out 340 executions in 2021 (20% more than the previous year). Iran ranks amongst the world’s top executioners. Many of them faced an unjust judicial process.
Many people are still at risk of being executed. Amnesty International published a list of the individuals still waiting to be judged, which you can find here: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/6308/2022/en/
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