2 Men Sentenced to Hanging in Iran

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) has sent out a press release about reports of the imminent execution of two men in Piranshahr, Iran.

According to media accounts related by IGLHRC, "Ayub and Mosleh" have been sentenced to death for allegedly "raping a young man, filming their actions, and inserting images of President Ahmadinejad into the film."

As absurd as the charges are, the punishment appears all too real: There have been reports that the men are scheduled to be killed by stoning on Jan. 21. IGLHRC reports it has been unable to confirm the allegations in this case.

"This case is evidence, however, of much bigger problems in Iran," the release stated, "widespread abuse in the justice system and censorship of information. People, including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender may be arbitrarily arrested, tortured, and convicted on baseless charges. It can be difficult, if not impossible, to know the facts that lie behind convictions."

"Iran has an impenetrable and opaque criminal justice system that makes knowing what is really happening inside the country impossible," said Hossein Alizadeh, IGLHRC's Mid-East regional coordinator. "What we do know is that killing is wrong in all its forms, even when committed by the State."

Since the revolution that overthrew the shah and installed a theocratic Muslim regime, Iran has become one of the most sexually repressive societies on earth. Much of its judicial wrath has been focused on same-sex activity (especially male) and adultery (specifically, the female party).

As reported here, Human Rights Watch recently condemned Iran for its persecution of same-sex activity. Iranians convicted for same-sex activities are on death row and awaiting hanging, including several who were minors when arrested, Human Rights Watch reported in December.

HRW documented cases of arbitrary arrests, invasions of homes, mistreatment of detainees and the denial of due legal process to people suspected of nonconformist sexual activity. Thousands of people are believed to have been condemned to death for homosexual activity since the 1979 Iranian revolution. The public hanging of two men, one of them a minor, in 2005 for having consensual sex drew international condemnation.

ranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was jeered by students, the left and the right when he told an audience at New York's Columbia University that homosexuality didn't even exist in his country.