MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Iran
20.10.2009
pursuant to Rule 122 of the Rules of Procedure
Fiorello Provera on behalf of the EFD Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0104/2009
B7‑0117/2009
European Parliament resolution on Iran
The European Parliament,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Iran,
– having regard to the statement by the President of the European Parliament on the occasion of the European Day against Death Penalty on 10 October 2009,
– having regard to the declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on imminent executions of minors in Iran of 9 October 2009,
– having regard to the statement of the Swedish Presidency on the execution of Behnoud Shojaee in Iran on 11 October 2009,
– having regard to the statement on Iran of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights of 13 October 2009,
– having regard to the resolution A/RES/62/149 of 18 December 2007 on a moratorium on the use of the death penalty,
– having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which the Islamic Republic of Iran is a party,
– having regard to Rule 122 of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas, the Teheran Revolutionary Court sentenced to death Mohammad-Reza Ali-Zamani and two others for demonstrating in the aftermath of June 2009 Presidential elections,
B. whereas at least 13 individuals are currently at risk of being executed in Iran,
C. whereas, according to Amnesty International, at least 346 executions were carried out in Iran in 2008 and whereas, since 1990, at least 41 alleged juvenile offenders have been executed in Iran and over 140 are known to remain on death row,
D. whereas the imposition of the death penalty for crimes that do not result in the loss of life is contrary to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to which the Islamic Republic of Iran is a party and whereas the juvenile death penalty is a negation of the essential principles of juvenile justice accepted by all States,
E. whereas on 11 October 2009 Behnoud Shojaee was hanged after being convicted of stabbing to death 7-year-old Ehsan Nazrollahi during a fight in August 2005, when he himself was aged 17, whereas the Iranian authorities continued to execute prisoners who were under 18 at the time of the alleged offence in flagrant violation of international law and whereas a blogger named Omidreza Mir Sayafi committed suicide in Teheran's Evin prison whilst serving a thirty months sentence for criticizing the "Supreme Leader", whereas dozens of political prisoners are being abused and victimized to the point where they may perceive suicide as the only means of escape,
G. whereas, hanging is the preferred method with which the Islamic Republic of Iran applies Sharia law, but stoning was used in at least two cases in 2008 and one in 2009, whereas the death penalty is not the only punishment dictated by the Iranian implementation of Sharia or Islamic law, but there is also torture, amputation, flogging and other cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments,
H. whereas the execution of juvenile offenders is prohibited under international law, as stated in Article 6(5) of the ICCPR and the Convention on the Rights of the Child,
1. Strongly condemns the growing number of executions and urges the Iranian authorities to establish a moratorium on the use of the death penalty with a view to its abolition, in accordance with the resolution adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 18 December 2007;
2. Strongly condemns the recent sentences to death for those who demonstrated in the aftermath of the disputed Iranian presidential elections; expresses deep concern for the fate of the "jonbesh-e sabz" civil democratic movement members, who are under serious threat of being arbitrarily detained and sentenced to death;
3. expresses its solidarity with the families of those who lost their lives during the demonstrations held in the aftermath of the disputed presidential elections of 12 June 2009 and pays tribute to Neda Agha Sultan, the 27-year-old Iranian woman who was shot in the chest last summer as she stood in the street, peacefully protesting after the announcement of the results of Iran’s presidential elections;
4. Strongly condemns the recent execution of juvenile offenders in Iran, making Iran the only country in the world where this grave and inhumane punishment is still practised in 2009;
5. Deplores the use of torture and ill-treatment in order to exact confessions, which are presented as evidence during trials of those who were arrested following the disputed elections of 12 June 2009;
6. Calls on the Islamic Republic of Iran to provide adequate legal assistance to all those who commit crimes considered punishable by death;
7. Calls for the presentation of a resolution, at the next UN General Assembly, with a request to all countries who retain the death penalty to make available to the UN Secretary General and to public opinion all information on capital punishment and executions, so as to overcome State secrecy on the death penalty, which is a factor in a great number of executions;
8. Strongly urges that the Islamic Republic of Iran makes a concerted effort to fulfil its obligations as a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Rights of the Child;
9. Strongly condemns the Islamic Republic of Iran attempts to manipulate the tenets of the Convention of the Right of the Child by detaining juvenile prisoners until they reach the age of eighteen;
10. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Government and Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Council, the Commission, the High Representative for the CFSP, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the UN Human Rights Council.