Child Executions In Iran

I believed Islam is not a violent religion. However, there is not enough civil law to protect its believers. This is certainly true in the case of Iran which approved execution of children. Iran's use of the death penalty in juvenile cases has become particularly controversial.

The past two years, Iran led the world with a total of 28 hangings of youth offenders. Iran's constitution stipulates that the age of maturity for boys is 15, and for girls, 9 -- the ages at which Islamic law calls for children to take on religious duties such as prayer and fasting. (Executions aren't carried out until the person reaches 18.)

Some other Islamic countries also have juveniles on death row, but executions are rarer. According to Human Rights Watch, since January 2005, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen have carried out a total of six juvenile executions.

Human-rights activists and NGOs have long wanted Iran to ban juvenile executions altogether by changing the age of maturity to 18, where it stood before the 1979 Islamic revolution.

More at WSJ - Debate Over Child Executions Roils Iran's Presidential Vote

Article 37(a) of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

According to the United Nations, a child is a person under the age of 18. Despite the fact that the government of Iran has signed International Covenants that forbid them to execute anyone who has allegedly committed an offence before the age of 18, they continue to do so. Amnesty International has documented 26 executions of child offenders in Iran since 2005. In many cases, these minors have been imprisoned until the age of 18 and then executed. Currently, there are at least 134 minors on death row in Iran. Visit also Child executions violate international law

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