Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani at home in her garden in Osku
(Image credit: Reuters)
In an amazing turn of events, it appears to have been confirmed that the Iranian Republic has released Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani and her son Sajjad Ghaderzadeh. Photos of Sakineh in her home and garden appear to indicate that she has, indeed, been released. She was flogged 99 times in 2006 as punishment for her conviction for adultery she said she never committed. Retried in for murder of her husband but acquitted, the judge then subjectively decided that she was even guiltier of adultery and though she had already been punished according to sharia law, sentenced her to death by stoning. Her son, who witnessed her flogging in 2006, at the age of only 17, says that he has yet to recover from the experience:
"They lashed her in front my eyes and this has been carved in my mind since then."
While the release of Sakineh is nothing short of a minor miracle, one should be mindful that there are still another 12 women under the death sentence by stoning in Iran. Human rights supporters around the planet should remember that Sakineh was not alone in her plight. Among these women is Mariam Ghorbanzadeh, who was so savagely beaten while in prison Tabriz last August, that she miscarried at six months. All these women need our vocal support.
© Bright Nepenthe, 2010
No comments:
Post a Comment