Iran’s Anti-Narcotics Police Oppose Removal of Death Penalty

While Iran’s Islamic Consultative Assembly is pursuing a bill to remove the death penalty from certain drug-related crimes, the head of Iran’s anti-narcotics police has opposed the plan, describing it as a move that would increase drug traffickers.

The Judicial Commission of Parliament voted on a bill last March that would exempt drug possession from the death penalty if it is not organized and armed, and if the accused has no prior prison sentence exceeding 15 years. The bill was drafted following widespread protests by international bodies and foreign governments over Iran’s high execution rates.

Iran is accused by human rights organizations and the annual U.S. State Department report on global human rights conditions of executing many of its citizens. After China, Iran carries out the most executions annually. However, the vast majority of these executions involve drug offenders.

According to reports from Iranian news agencies, Mohammad Masoud Zahedian, head of Iran’s anti-narcotics police, said in a press conference on Monday, April 1, that in his view, if this bill is fully approved and becomes law, the number of drug offenders would increase and more people would turn to this activity for profit.

Referencing Parliament’s bill, he said: “Removing the death penalty will embolden convicted drug offenders and traffickers, and during the recent period this debate has been raised, we have witnessed an increase in the number of first-time offenders arrested for drug possession.”

Under current laws, possessing one kilogram of drugs such as heroin or crack carries a death sentence. This law has made Iran one of the countries with the highest execution rates in the world.

Judiciary officials defend the execution of drug offenders. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, stated in his report last March that most death sentences in Iran are related to drug trafficking, and that according to international standards, they are not considered “most serious crimes.”

The Islamic Republic of Iran executed more than 530 people last year and 113 people in the first two months of this year.

The high number of executions in Iran has prompted protests from international human rights organizations.

Source: Voice of America