Sunday, July 16, 2006













IGLHRC's Five UN Complaints on Iran's Gay Hangings

Ms. Paula Ettelbrick
International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission
New York, NY

Dear Paula,

In preparation for San Francisco's July 19 demonstration about Iran hanging two gay teenagers last year, I looked over some of your group's work on gays in Iran, including a column you wrote for Gay City News and a story that ran on a UN news feed service last fall.

Excerpts from your column show in October you submitted complaints and documents to the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Extra-Judicial Executions, U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, U.N. Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and with the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture.

Nine months later, I wonder what responses you may have received from these four UN agencies. Have the four agencies taken any action? If they have, are you satisfied with the UN's reports or actions, or lack thereof, on the hanging of the two gay teens last year?

Furthermore, in your quotes in November to the IRIN News Service, you say you again approached the UN with demands on the world body to investigate new reports from Iran about more hangings of homosexuals.

I would like to know how the UN responded to your demands. Hopefully investigators were sent to Iran and examined the charges and circumstances of the executions carried out against homosexuals.

Based on your column and the UN news feed, it appears you have at least five complaints and demands for investigations about the executions and over all mistreatment of Iranians homosexuals, complaints filed months ago.

Also, the news feed says IGLHRC is following up on claims of ninety-two hangings and death sentences in the early fall. What has your follow up work shown?

As I prepare remarks for my speech at Harvey Milk Plaza in three days, I realize I'd like to say something positive about IGLHRC's work at the UN on behalf of gay Iranians, and a status report from you on your five complaints would be most helpful.

Regards,
Michael
-

Gay City News
October 06 - 12, 2005

Working in Coalition
By Paula Ettelbrick


[...] IGLHRC immediately reported the cases in Iran to key human rights experts employed by the United Nations. The job of these U.N. experts is to investigate the cases and demand that Iran’s government be made to answer for its clear violation of human rights laws. We took this step as we often work as a bridge between activist groups and the U.N. system that is supposed to be ensuring that countries adhere to human rights treaties that they sign.

We have raised the situation in Iran with the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Extra-Judicial Executions so that he can build a case at the U.N. level. We have also raised the cases with the assistant to the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, given his interest in pursuing sodomy cases, as in and of themselves they constitute arbitrary detention. We are instituting communications with the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and with the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture. [...]
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IRAN: Rights groups call on UN to investigate executions based on sexual orientation

U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
November 30, 2005


Human rights groups fighting for gay rights have called on the United Nations to act on reports of executions based on sexual orientation in Iran. [...]

In November the US-based International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLRHC) cited new reports from Iran that two young men who had been hanged in public in the northern city of Gorgan may have been executed because of their sexual orientation, prompting the IGLRC to call on UN human rights experts to investigate such cases, while demanding government accountability for any violation of human rights.

But according to Kahramananoglu, getting reliable information out of the country has proven difficult, while the IGLHRC is following up on information circulating that 92 hangings and death sentences had taken place in Iran within the past four and a half months alone, a 16 November statement by the group said.

“We are alarmed at these latest hangings and call for an immediate investigation by the UN and national human rights monitors,” stated Paula Ettelbrick, executive director of IGLHRC. “It’s clear that a pattern is emerging in which young men are executed as couples and that the crimes they allegedly committed always involve some form of sexual assault of another male.”

Public executions, in and of themselves, are considered to be cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment under international law and the IGLHRC has long documented specific conditions in Iran involving clear violations of human rights law, the statement read. [...]

“When the first reported executions came to our attention in July, it was nearly impossible to determine whether the two men were executed because of their sexual orientation,” continued Ettelbrick. “But this pattern that we have identified, along with the extraordinary increase of public death sentences being carried out under this new government, requires a response not just from the global LGBT community but from all human rights advocates.” [...]

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Here is Paula's response, then my reactions to her UN status report, and lack thereof, which I have sent to the fabulous organizers of the July 19 day of actions.


In a message dated 7/17/2006 8:50:12 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time, pettelbrick@iglhrc.org writes:
Michael-

this is an unfair report related to IGLHRC's activity
on the 19th. As you know from our conversation on
Friday, we have shifted to a community discussion in
order to open this up to a broader range of people to
discuss real, live strategies for dealing with the
issue of persecution of LGBT people in Iran. this is
in keeping with the idea of responding the executions,
regardless of whether we agree on the clarity of the
motivation....

Paula

Hello you beautiful fellow organizers! I can't see of you all right now, but trust me when I tell you I can see each of you incredible activists around the world, getting ready for our fabulous action in two days.

As you can see, Paula has replied to my post about her important work with the UN on gay Iranians. While I am disappointed she didn't provide me with a status report on her five complaints to four UN agencies, all made more than nine months ago, I still applaud IGLRHC lodging complaints and demanding investigations about all of the gay hangings in Iran.

Frankly, I have no problem with her reacting to us and following our leadership. Of course, I wish her success with her town hall meeting, which should attract lots of people. And I don't doubt that Paula is doing the best she can about the gay executions.

But it's silly to accuse me of being unfair in asking for her UN/gay Iran status report, without fully explaining to me why it's wrong to ask for follow up on IGLHRC's complaints to the UN on this matter.

The issue is: Has the UN replied to IGLHRC?

If they have, then I want to know what the UN reported to Paula. If the four UN agencies contacted by IGLHRC have not replied, I'd like to know that also.

And finally, IGLHRC said back in the fall it had reports of 92 hangings that it was seeking more information on. A status report on what IGLHRC has found out about these additional hangings would be appreciated.




-----------------
Forwarded Message:
Subj: Re: July 19 = Tulsa, OK, and Iran UN mission vigil revived
Date: 7/17/2006 8:50:12 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time
From: pettelbrick@iglhrc.org
To: MPetrelis@aol.com
CC: gknox@geoffreyknox.com, longs@hrw.org, sternj@hrw.org, llevy@iglhrc.org
Sent from the Internet (Details)



Michael-

this is an unfair report related to IGLHRC's activity
on the 19th. As you know from our conversation on
Friday, we have shifted to a community discussion in
order to open this up to a broader range of people to
discuss real, live strategies for dealing with the
issue of persecution of LGBT people in Iran. this is
in keeping with the idea of responding the executions,
regardless of whether we agree on the clarity of the
motivation....

Paula

Anonymous said...

But Ms Ettelbrick, could you simply answer Michael's question? What did the UN say in response? Surly all that typing, not to mention the high cost of postage, warranted an answer from the UN. It would be fabulous of you to share that answer with what has become a worldwide community (including a number of very worthwhile international organizations) brought together by the 19 July actions and concerned about the welfare of GLBT people in Iran and around the world.