Judges in Iran can now assign a different form of the death penalty, rather than stoning, to those found guilty of adultery. This has been made possible by the adoption of the country's new amendments to the Penal Code, France Presse reported today.
The practice of stoning to death those found guilty of adultery was introduced in Iran after the Islamic revolution in 1979 and has been constantly criticized by international human rights organizations and Western governments. In particular, UN experts believe the punishment is too harsh.
According to a new Islamic Penal Code published this week, the judge may appoint a different form of the death penalty "if there is no possibility of executing a sentence (through stoning)." The article does not explain what exactly the "lack of possibility to execute the sentence" means, RIA News reports.
Parliamentarians initially excluded stoning from the article about adultery, but the Guardian Council, a body of lawyers and members of the clergy that controls parliamentary Acts, reinstated it in the new version of the article.
According to the International Committee against the death penalty and stoning, at least 150 people may have been executed by stoning in the period from 1980 to 2010. This form of punishment is used for those convicted of murder, rape, armed robbery and drug smuggling.
