Is Sending a Romantic Text a Crime in Iran?
- Iranians found guilty of “sex crimes” including homosexuality can face execution in some cases.
- Other punishments include stoning and flogging, and there are harsh sentences for committing a sinful act in public.
- Kissing between two people who are not married to each other is classified as illicit sexual activity. Texting, walking together in a park, or speaking on the phone can also be considered a crime.
In Iran, extra-marital sex is illegal.
But how serious are “crimes against chastity and public morality” and
so-called “sex crimes”? How much trouble can two consenting adults get
into by sending each other texts of a sexual nature, walking in a park
together, or even drinking coffee in a cafe?
According to the Islamic Penal Code of
Iran, “sex crimes” include intercourse between adults that are not
married to one another (in Persian, zena) and lavat and mosahegheh (homosexuality for men and women, respectively).
“Crimes against chastity and public morality” include illicit sexual relationships, and acts against public morality that do not fall under the definition of zena,
committing a sinful act in public, women appearing in public places
without an Islamic hijab, establishing or managing a “center for
corruption or promiscuity,” or facilitating or encouraging people to
engage in corruption or promiscuity.
Depending on the nature of the offence
and the status of the offender, authorities can order the following
punishments for people found guilty of the crime of zena: death by stoning, execution (death by hanging), or floggings.
When is zena punishable by death?
Under Iran’s Penal Code, zena is defined as sexual intercourse between a man and a woman who are not married to each other. The punishment for zena
is stoning if it can be established that the man or the woman are
medically sane and able to engage in sexual intercourse with their legal
spouses but have had extramarital sex.
The punishment for zena can be execution in the following circumstances:
- If a couple engages in zena with a blood relative who they are prohibited from marrying, both people will be condemned to execution.
- If a man sleeps with his step-mother,
he will face execution; [and since the step-mother is married, she will
be condemned to stoning].
- If a non-Muslim man has intercourse with a Muslim woman, the man will be punished by execution.
It is also worth mentioning that the punishment for rape — which also falls under the definition of zena — is
execution. So in Iran, a person found guilty of consensual
extra-marital sex can be handed down the same sentence as a rapist.
Although execution is not always the punishment for other types of zena
— depending on the case, punishment could result in the guilty party
receiving lashes — it is perhaps surprising that such a scenario exists
under Iranian law.
However, when the person guilty of zena is not married and has sex outside of marriage, the punishment is one hundred lashes.
Illicit sexual relations and acts against chastity other than zena
According to Article 637, if a man and a
woman who are not married to each other become engaged in an illicit
sexual relation other than sexual intercourse — such as kissing — or are
found guilty of acts against chastity, they will be sentenced to punishment of up to 99 lashes.
But what is the difference between
“illicit sexual relations” and “acts against chastity”? Mousa Barzin
Khalifeloo, a jurist based in Turkey, says illicit sexual relations
refer to a “prohibited relations under sharia,” but not
intercourse. However, he says, acts against chastity are not necessarily
prohibited under sharia. Instead, they are acts that go against customs
or mores in society. For example, if a married couple performs a sexual
act in a public place, since they are married to each other, their act
does not go against sharia, but it is not acceptable behavior because of
Iran’s social customs. Barzin provides another example: “Under sharia,
there is no rule about men’s clothing, but if a man appears without a
shirt on the street, it would be against the custom of the society of
Iran.”
When asked what kinds of relations are prohibited under sharia, Barzin
says there is no consensus amongst judges in Iran on the matter. “Some
judges argue that physical contact is required for a relation to be
considered as an illicit sexual relation, but other judges argue that
although the article specifically refers to kissing, this is just one example,
and that the definition of illicit sexual relations should not be
limited to physical contact between opposite sexes.” Barzin also says
judges who view the law in this way tend to have a very broad
interpretation of the term “illicit sexual relations.” In fact, many of
them apply the term to anything they view to be in violation of sharia —
“such as unmarried men and women walking together in a park, drinking
coffee in a café or even speaking on the phone.” Barzin
says he represented a female client who was charged with engaging in
illicit sexual relations for sending romantic text messages.
Committing a sinful act in public places and roads
According to Article 638 of the Penal Code, individuals found guilty of committing a sinful act (harām)
in public places or roads will face punishment for the crime, plus 10
days to two months’ imprisonment or up to 74 lashes. In addition to
this, an addendum to the article stipulates that women who appear in
public places and roads without wearing an Islamic hijab should be
sentenced to between 10 days and two months’ imprisonment or a fine of
between 50,000 and 500,000 rials
(between 1.23 $ - $12.26). But the article stops short of providing any
definition for what a “sinful act” might be. This ambiguity makes it
possible for the Basij, Iran’s paramilitary volunteer militia, and the
Law Enforcement Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran (NAJA) to make
broad interpretations when assessing what constitutes illicit behavior
under sharia law — and both regularly respond accordingly, arresting
women they deem to be violating Islamic dress codes or going against
Iran’s public morality codes.
Naghi Mahmoudi, a jurist based in
Germany, says one of his clients was charged with committing a sinful
act for drinking coffee. “In 2009, a young woman came to my office and
asked me to take her case. She said that a few days before, she and her
(female) cousin had gone out together to drink coffee and have a chat at
a local café. They were arrested in the midst of their conversation by
members of the Basij and were brought to the Center for Fighting Against
Social Corruption in Tabriz city. They were both released on bail. When
I studied her case, I realized that my client and her cousin were
charged with committing sinful acts by drinking coffee in a provocative
way and also with not observing the rules on wearing Islamic hijab.
Fortunately, I managed to obtain an acquittal verdict for my client.”
Establishments that Promote Promiscuity and Corruption
Under Article 639 of the penal code,
setting up or running a center that promotes corruption or promiscuity,
or facilitating or encouraging people to do so, is punishable by a
prison sentence of between one to 10 years. However, the article does
not provide any definition of corruption or promiscuity — and, like
other vaguely-defined crimes in Iran, this makes it possible for the
judiciary to hand down this charge regularly, and use it as a means to
silence dissent or punish civil society.
Naghi Mahmoud gives the example of another of his clients, a man who had set
up a cultural institution in East Azerbaijan, a province in
northwestern Iran. Despite the fact that he secured official permission
from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance of Eastern Azerbaijan
for his activities, he was charged with establishing and directing a
center used for corruption and promiscuity purposes. “The institution’s
activities include teaching the Azeri Turkish language, researching the
oral literature of Azerbaijan, and organizing a workshop to teach
Azerbaijan’s myths and literature. One day, some plainclothes agents
entered the institution and told my client that they had an order to
seal the premises and arrest him. They confiscated and took all the
books and CDs in the institution. When I read his case, I realized that
authorities had pressed many charges against my client — but what struck
me the most was the charge of ‘establishing a corruption and
promiscuity center through teaching Azeri dance’. The charge was based
on a CD about teaching Azeri dance, which the agents had found in my
client’s office.”
Mahmoudi described his defense in court.
“I argued to the court that ‘corruption’ is a vague charge that can be
attributed to any illegal act. Promiscuity refers to zena and sodomy, or acts similar to zena
and sodomy. Now, if a person establishes and runs a center in which
corruption and promiscuity are committed and spread, he can be charged
with this crime. But my client established this institution with
official permission from the Ministry of Cultural and Islamic Guidance
for cultural and artistic activities.” Mahmoudi finally managed to
obtain an acquittal verdict for his client.
Homosexuality
The punishment for homosexuality for
women is 100 lashes for both women involved. But when it comes to men,
it is a different matter. A differentiation is drawn between the
“passive” party and the “active” party, with different
punishments for each. The punishment for the passive individual is
execution, but the punishment for the active individual is 100 lashes
(unless he is married, or it can be proven that he raped the passive
individual, in which case the punishment is execution). The
differentiation between the two types of punishments probably stems from
Iran’s patriarchal culture, which allows for more severe punishment for
the person who has been seen to not have maintained his so-called
masculinity and conformed to a submissive role.
Iran has signed up to a range of human
rights instruments, including the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights. As part of this, Article 17 stipulates that “no one
shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his
privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his
honor and reputation.” Iran’s practice of punishing consenting adults
for sexual activity is a clear breach of its obligations and commitments
to these rights. The international community must challenge the
government on the matter on international platforms, and continue to
place pressure on Iran to honor its citizens’ rights to privacy and a
private life without interference.
http://en.iranwire.com/features/7368/
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