Execution of Mohammad Ali Salamat; Users Emphasize 'Systematic Corruption' of the Government

The public execution of Mohammad Ali Salamat, accused of 'rape' against dozens of women and girls in Hamadan, has sparked significant reactions on social media. Some users, opposing this action, have attributed the rapes committed by this individual, who is said to have connections with officials of the Islamic Republic, to the 'systematic corruption' of the government. The judiciary of the Islamic Republic announced on Tuesday, November 22, that Mohammad Ali Salamat, a 43-year-old prisoner who had reportedly been detained for a year and a half on charges of 'rape' and sentenced to death, was executed by hanging in public using a crane in Hamadan. Journalist Hediyeh Kimiai wrote on social media platform X: 'Mohammad Ali Salamat, a serial rapist in Hamadan, committed rapes against women and girls for over 20 years under the security provided by the Islamic Republic, and not only was he not arrested, but he continued his rapes and extortions from women with new tricks each time.' Kimiai noted that at least three women committed suicide after being raped by him, 'but their cries went unheard,' adding: 'It is said that Mohammad Ali Salamat had close ties with Hassan Khanjani, the prosecutor of Hamadan, and continued his rapes with his support.' Another user on X emphasized that 'this type of systemic corruption can be extended to other systems of governance in the country with the same quality!' Ali Barnaei, a media activist, also questioned 'what will happen to that corrupt judge, prosecutor, and police officer who supported the rapist' and who, after each complaint, 'would reveal the identity of the complainant to Ali Salamat' and 'for all these years kept the cases silent and took bribes from a rapist?' Barnaei, stressing 'systematic corruption' in the Islamic Republic, sarcastically added, 'As usual in the just government of Seyyed Ali [Khamenei], the corrupt agents of the government got away again.' Mahsimah Pouyafard, a psychologist, also considered Mohammad Ali Salamat to be 'a sexual patient' and opposed his execution, stating: 'Such a person is a mental patient and should be in a mental hospital forever.' Furthermore, the legal advisors of Dadban criticized the public execution of Mohammad Ali Salamat, stating: 'The insistence on carrying out the death penalty in public is while none of the existing laws in Iran have a legal obligation for public execution, and this policy is only implemented based on the teachings and penal rulings of Islamic law and outdated criminology and criminal law practices.' According to Dadban's statement published on X, 'the display of the unjust and inhumane punishment of execution as a tool of repression' and 'the policy of public execution in Iran is solely aimed at creating fear and terror among citizens.' The Iran Human Rights Campaign also described the death penalty as 'governmental murder' that 'reproduces violence' and added: 'No individual, with any kind of accusation, should be executed.' This human rights organization emphasized that 'criminal proceedings in Iran are not fair, and defendants are systematically deprived of the right to defense.' The campaign 'Tuesdays No to Execution' has emphasized today that 'the heavy shadow of execution still hangs over prisoners' in the prisons of the Islamic Republic's judiciary, and the trend of executions continues with intensity. According to this campaign, since the beginning of Aban, more than 103 people, including 2 women, have been executed in Iranian prisons, averaging five executions per day. Additionally, since the new government of the Islamic Republic took office, 'more than 450 people have been executed, which is considered the most significant and at the same time the bitterest outcome of the new government's work.'