Dear friends in the Campaign for Abolition of all Misogynist Gender Based Legislation and Islamic Punitive Laws in Iran,

At this very moment when several women are facing execution in Iran on the basis of Islamic Punitive Laws, I join my voice to yours and offer my support to your march against the gender biased legislation of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

According to the Amnesty International there are several women condemned to be executed: Among them, Nazanin who is now 18 years old from Kurdistan of Iran. She is accused of having killed a person when she was 17. Reports say that she was defending herself against rape. Hajieh Esmailvand, 17 years girl sentenced to death by stoning after a period of five years in prison. She is 22 now. Her crime according to the Iranian inquisitors was extra marital sexual relation. Leila is another woman condemned to death by the division 25 of Arak city’s justice department. Her crime: prostitution.

There are reports that in southern Iran many women lose their lives to honor killings. The Iranien News Agency ISNA reports that 20 percent of all murders in the country are honor killings. But most of these go unpunished as according to clause no.630 of the Islamic Punitive Laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, when a man finds his wife with another man, or has proof that his wife is guilty of adultery, he’s allowed to kill her. The 83 to 90 clauses of the Islamic Punitive laws stipulate that when a married woman enters a sexual relationship with any other than her husband, the sentence would be: death by stoning. Plus, sexual relation outside marriage is punishable by death according to law. Atefe Rajabi, a 16 year old girl who was executed last year, was accused of prostitution. She was not only a child, but also mentally handicapped.

These few examples are representative of how the Islamic State has legalized an inferno for Iranian women.

Dear friends,

I am sure that the Iranian women will achieve their emancipation from these medieval laws through their resistance and struggle. In this struggle they deserve all support that every democrat and progressive people from around the world can render. I assume this Campaign is very necessary and join my support to your struggle heartily.

Susan George

February 3, 2006