World Day Against the Death Penalty; Life Under the Shadow of Death

Sixteen years ago, dozens of human rights organizations decided to designate October 10, corresponding to Mehr 18, as the World Day Against the Death Penalty, aiming to advocate for the abolition of this punishment worldwide. According to human rights defenders, this punishment is 'inhumane and violates the right to life.' This penalty claims the lives of hundreds annually in Iran. Raha Bahreini, a researcher on Iran at Amnesty International, states: 'Currently, more than two-thirds of the world's countries have abolished or suspended the death penalty in law or in practice. Unfortunately, Iran remains far behind global progress towards abolishing the death penalty and was specifically responsible for 51% of all executions worldwide in 2017.' This year's October 10 focuses on the conditions of death row inmates, living under the heavy shadow of death. The aim of this selection, according to the website of the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, is to raise public awareness about the living conditions of these inmates, which have been described as inhumane. Arash, a convict who was pardoned moments before his execution years ago, says he lived with the nightmare of death for four years: 'My death sentence was confirmed; I saw the shadow of death over my head for four years. During these four years, I lived every night with this nightmare in prison. It was very hard; I was really tired of the prison conditions and wanted my sentence to be executed as soon as possible.' Omid, another convict who was freed from the gallows years ago, shares this horrifying common experience: 'When your distance from death is just a few days, a lump in your throat prevents you from crying. The conditions are very hard, and it cannot be described in words. If someone tells you that you will be killed or die at a certain time in ten years, from the very first day until the next ten years, you will be afraid.' According to the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, the conditions of death row inmates can vary from country to country, from solitary confinement to crowded rooms and wards. However, this coalition states that in some countries, in addition to these conditions, death row inmates face unfair judicial processes. Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam, head of the Iran Human Rights Organization, which is a member of this global coalition, says Iran is one of these countries: 'So far, most attention has been on the issue of execution, which is an inhumane punishment, but a significant part of the inhumanity of this punishment relates to the conditions of prisoners sentenced to death. In Iran, individuals sentenced to death can remain in prison from a few days after their sentencing to several years. Most of these individuals do not have access to a lawyer during the preliminary period after their arrest and are tortured in detention centers to obtain confessions, and many death sentences are based on confessions obtained under duress, which is illegal.' However, what may be an even more difficult and horrifying experience than enduring these conditions is the nightmare that haunts death row inmates day and night, reconstructing the scene of execution and how death occurs by hanging in the cold morning darkness. Omid says: 'Someone who has been in prison for several years thinks about what will happen? When the stool is pulled away, will your neck break? Will you suffocate? Will your airways be cut off? In that moment, can you see? Can you scream? Can you kick? Can you ask someone for help? How does that moment pass? When you think about these things, it is very terrifying.' In 2017, only 23 countries in the world carried out the death penalty, with Iran ranking second in the world after China with 507 executions, which is significantly higher than the number of executions in the next countries, namely Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Pakistan. The 507 individuals, according to Arash, lived the taste of death every day from the time their death sentence was announced until its execution: 'I tasted death; I saw death with my own eyes. I prayed and thought about my family. I had really lost hope.' Another issue that has faced severe criticism from human rights defenders in recent years is the execution of juvenile offenders in Iran. This was also mentioned in a recent report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran. Javaid Rehman states that this year, at least four juvenile offenders were executed in Iran, and with the execution of Zainab Sakanvand, this number reached five just a week ago. Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam says that abolishing the execution of juveniles is one of the most important recommendations to Iran: 'In this report, the main focus regarding executions was on the execution of juvenile offenders in Iran. Iran is still at the top of the world in executing juvenile offenders, and the Special Rapporteur has recommended that Iranian authorities unconditionally change the age of criminal responsibility to 18 years.' According to human rights defenders, dozens of other juvenile offenders are also awaiting the execution of their sentences in Iranian prisons. These convicts committed their crimes when they were under 18 years old, and their execution violates the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Individuals whose 18th birthday does not mark the beginning of a new stage in their lives, but rather the beginning of a countdown to their death. Abdolkarim Lahiji, a lawyer, states that executing these individuals contradicts Iran's commitments: 'Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, a person under 18 is considered a child, and the age of committing a crime should be regarded as the age of criminal responsibility according to all rules governing modern criminal law. Therefore, a person who commits a crime under the age of 18 should not be subjected to the same punishment as an adult. However, the trick that the Islamic Republic of Iran employs is to wait until this juvenile reaches 18 years of age and then execute them.' Additionally, Iranian judicial authorities in some cases carry out death sentences in public streets and squares in front of the eyes of citizens. Abdolkarim Lahiji, a lawyer in Paris, considers this punishment a form of torture: 'Corporal punishment in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is tantamount to torture, and torture is an act that is not only prohibited by international standards but is also punishable. Hanging in public is one of the manifestations of corporal punishment. Furthermore, the role of any government in determining criminal policy is to first ensure that the punishment it imposes is appropriate for the crime, and second, to try to establish an atmosphere of calm, security, and a culture without violence in society, but public hangings do the exact opposite, normalizing a torturous and inhumane act in front of people's eyes.' This year, October 10, World Day Against the Death Penalty, arrives while 107 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes, and dozens of other countries have not carried out this punishment for years, yet Iran remains at the top of the world in terms of per capita executions.