Iranian Woman's Death Sentence May Take Place After Ramadan

A separate penalty was carried out last week on her when a British newspaper published a picture of an unveiled woman who was identified mistakenly to be Ashtiani. It caused 99 lashes erroneously meted out for Ashtiani because she violated an Iranian clerical rule that women in public must cover their hair. It was found out that the woman was not actually Ashtiani and the newspaper later apologized for such an unfortunate mistake.

An international outcry over the so-called brutality of the punishment caused the suspension of the death sentence pending review by the Supreme Court of Iran.

In 2006, Ashtiani was convicted of having an "illicit relationship" with two men after her husband was murdered in 2005. She received 99 lashes for such conviction. Later of the same year, she was again convicted of adultery and sentenced to be stoned to death. However, Ashtiani reportedly retracted her confession saying that the same was taken under duress.

Italy's foreign minister, Franco Frattini disclosed that no decision has been made yet to the case of Ashtiani. This was confirmed by Italian ambassador to Iran who reportedly met authorities in Tehran. It can be noted that Italy is one of several countries who is pressing Iran to be flexible about the case. He opined that the death sentence is yet to take place.

When the death sentence was put on hold, Iranian authorities later announced that Ashtiani was brought to a trial and allegedly convicted of an active role in the death of her husband in 2005. This was disputed by her lawyer because there were no charges implicating her participation in her husband's death that was part of her case on file.

During the month of August, the state-run TV station broadcasted an alleged confession of Ashtiani that contains admission to being an unwitting accomplice to murder of her husband. In reaction to the said broadcast, Ashtiani's lawyer believed that her client was forced into confessing the crime that she did not actually committed.

Ashtiani’s lawyer was allowed to make contact with his client, which according to a fellow prisoner who was recently released from prison, saying that Ashtiani had 99 lashes for not covering her hair in the public. But in the meantime, the lawyer claimed that he has no access yet to his client but he firmly believed that there was no reason for a released prisoner to lie about the lashing. On the other hand, the Iranian authorities have no official confirmation about the new punishment meted out on Ashtiani.

Meanwhile, the 22-year-old Sajjad Qaderzadeh, son of Ashtiani said that he doesn't really know whether the new punishment was carried out as yet. He only heard it also from a newly released prisoner from Tabriz prison where his mother is being imprisoned. But he believed that such publication of photo did provide the judge an excusable reason to punish his mother with 99 lashes.

The Times newspaper issued an apology in one of its editions while saying that the lashing was simply a pretext. But the real purpose was making Ashtiani suffer in response to the international outcry in saving her and exposed this much iniquity.

Mohammad Mostafaei, a former lawyer of Ashtiani said during a news conference that he was not really certain whether there was a new conviction related to the published photograph.  He said that he contacted his colleagues in court but they could not confirm that such situation actually happened, and in this particular act, there is no such punishment exists in their laws.