Amnesty International: Iran Must Stop 'Legalized Violence' Against Youth

On Wednesday, January 18, Amnesty International stated that youth in Iran are subjected to 'legalized violence' for eating during Ramadan or attending mixed-gender parties, with punishments including flogging. The organization condemned the 'widespread' use of corporal punishment and included statistics and information it gathered on the implementation of such penalties. One case mentioned involved a journalist who received 40 lashes for mistakenly reporting the number of motorcycles confiscated by law enforcement in Najafabad, Isfahan Province on January 5. Randa Habib, a Middle East official at Amnesty International, said, 'These shocking assaults on human dignity are a blatant violation of international laws prohibiting the use of torture and other forms of ill-treatment and abuse.' To compile its report, Amnesty International examined the experiences of Iranian women who claim they have been flogged by police, through a Facebook page titled 'Secret Freedoms' launched by Iranian journalist and activist Masih Alinejad. One woman explained that after police raided her engagement party in Robat Karim, a suburb of Tehran, they confiscated bottles of alcohol and detained several guests for three days, each sentenced to 74 lashes. Amnesty International's report also noted a case where a man convicted of blinding a four-year-old girl with acid had medical professionals provide 'expert' recommendations for blinding him in return. The organization documented at least four instances of amputation penalties for theft-related crimes in Iran, which included the severing of fingers and toes from both sides of the criminals' bodies. According to Iranian judicial laws, flogging is applied to individuals committing crimes such as theft, physical assault, property destruction, insult, fraud, or those engaging in sexual relations outside of marriage.