Iran sentences 5 to death in postelection turmoil

Iran sentences 5 to death in postelection turmoil

www.google.com

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has sentenced five defendants to death in a mass trial of opposition figures accused of fomenting the unrest that followed the disputed June presidential election, state television reported Tuesday.
The five apparently include three death sentences announced last month. None of the five have been identified by Iranian authorities.
Iran began the mass trial in August of more than 100 prominent opposition figures and activists, accusing them of a range of charges from rioting to spying and plotting what Iran's clerical rulers have depicted as a foreign-backed plot to o

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[edit on 17-11-2009 by Sestias]

[edit on 17-11-2009 by Sestias]

I've been watching events in Iran since the post-election turmoil early last summer. The "Green Revolution," a pro-reform movement that centered around the electoral defeat of Mousavi by Ahmadinejad, is still going strong, in spite of harsh reprisals by the authorities.

Execution seems an extreme punishment for fomenting civil unrest. Of course, as a westerner I'm going to sympathize with a pro-democracy movement (we could use more of that in our own country). I therefore have a bias.

I am interested in the specific reasons for the individual charges--how much violence was actually involved vs. how much the executions are a means of trying to silence the opposition through fear.

I am also interested in the other side: how the supporters of Ahmadinejad see this conflict and how they justify these executions, if they do.

www.google.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 17-11-2009 by Sestias]

I've yet to hear any "public" condemnation of these planned cold-blooded murders.
Murdered for excercising your right to mere free speech?
Where is the Arab Muslim World's public outcry?
Even the West speaks little of it.
BUT, if the U.S., European powers, or Israel jails cold-blooded Arab Muslim murderers for killing someone who has committed no crime, it's "racism", "stereotyping", or "Muslim-hatred".
Freedom has to be earned by the people and no one else can do it for them.

reply to post by TypeSH2001

Westerners, especially the U.S. and Britain, are not very popular in the Muslim world. There are some historic reasons for that, like conquests and occupations, and some recent ones like our support of Israel.

I would think that a reform movement that so clearly embraces western ideals (like democracy and freedom of speech) would not go over very well in the middle east.

As I said in my opening post, I would welcome the input of those who see the "Green revolution" as a betrayal of their country, and/or those who support Ahmadinejad.

I'm not trying to be disrespectful, but why should Iran have to explain their decisions to you or anyone else? They are an independent country with their own laws. They don't guarantee their citizens any rights and as we can see here they impose strict penalties for defying their government.

Living in America where we have a Constitution guaranteeing our right to free speech, it's easy to sit on the inside and point the finger at other countries who don't do as we do. If anything it should give you a heightened appreciation for living in the U.S. or any other country that won't execute you for speaking your mind.