Pope And Vatican Monitoring Developments
Amid the international uproar over the death-by-stoning sentence of Iranian woman Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the Roman Catholic Church in the Vatican City said that Pope Benedict XVI is now monitoring developments of this case intently. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said that Pope Benedict XVI will act through diplomatic channels if asked by authorities in another country.” Denouncing the act of stoning, Federico Lombardi said, “The position of the church, which is opposed to the death penalty, is that stoning is a particularly brutal form.”
Italian Government Also Increasing Diplomatic Pressure
According to Italy’s media, the Italian government is also taking the lead to plead for clemency through its diplomatic channels for Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, who was sentenced to death by stoning for adultery. According to business chamber reports, Italy is a key trade partner with Iran with a bilateral trade exceeding $8 billion in 2009. In a joint statement to the media, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini and Equal Opportunities Minister Mara Carfagna said, “This unprecedented act aims to mobilize opinion and contribute to saving Sakineh from a brutal, unacceptable sentence. ”The case is being followed closely by the foreign ministry and personally by Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, who has given instructions for close bilateral relations to be maintained with the Iranian authorities so that they consider clemency in this specific case.”
Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani Lashed 99 Times Mistakenly
Meanwhile, media reports say that Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani had been lashed 99 times because of mistaken identity. Apparently, The Times of London newspaper ran a story of her but it published a photograph of another woman without a head scarf, an act considered inappropriate under Iran’s Islamic dress code. After they learnt of the photo, Iranian authorities carried out the lashings on Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani. The Times of London swiftly ran an apology and said that the photo of the woman was actually of Susan Hejrat, an Iranian political activist based in Sweden.
Clueless Why Photograph In The Times of London Article Bungled Up
Several media reports say that the wrong photograph was released to the media by Mohammad Mostafaei, Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani’s lawyer who is now exiled in Oslo, Norway. How this was bungled up cannot be ascertained. Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani’s son, Sajjad Ghaderzadeh, wrote to the media, “We do not know how that picture was originally obtained, nor to whom the picture belongs…My mother has been called in to see the judge in charge of prison misdemeanors and he has sentenced our helpless mother to 99 lashes on false charges of spreading corruption and indecency by disseminating this picture of a woman presumed to be her without hijab.” Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani is currently being held in Tabriz, Iran and her visitation rights have been revoked.
Sajjad Ghaderzadeh Pleads “Please Save My Mother”
Whilst the lashings have been carried out, Sajjad Ghaderzadeh also pleaded with the international community for sustained to save his mother. “I urge you, please keep up the pressure. Had you not been there, my mother would have already been dead.” He had also earlier pleaded with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a letter which read, “Your voice has more weight for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad than ours.” However, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had failed to convince Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on granting clemency to Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani and to allow her to leave on exile to Brazil.
Think About It
Was Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani lashed 99 times without proper verification of the photograph by the Iranian authorities? As she had been lashed mistakenly, should the person who is responsible for the lashing be punished? Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has tried and failed to convince the Iranian government to grant Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani clemency. Will the involvement of Pope Benedict XVI and the Italian government save Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani?
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