O you who believe, you shall be absolutely equitable, and observe Allah, when you serve as witnesses, even against yourselves, or your parents, or your relatives. Whether the accused is rich or poor, Allah takes care of both. Therefore, do not be biased by your personal wishes. If you deviate or disregard (this commandment), then Allah is fully Cognizant of everything you do.
Sura 4:135
Therefore the latest case to emerge from Iran, allegedly based on religious teachings must taken in light of what else the holy book is teaching the Islamic Republic. That latest story involves another client of Mohammad Mostafaei, 18-year-old Ebrahim Hamidi, who is accused of sodomy and has been sentanced to death. Mostafaei who seems to have been the only lawyer to have been prepared to stand up to defend human rights at this level in Iran.
With lawyer fleeing for his live to Norway following his defence of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani. The woman who has been sentenced to death for alleged adultery yesterday pointed out the sexism of the Iranian judicial system when she was interviewed and told that the person who had murdered her husband is not facing death. While she is accused of adultery solely on the say so of a judicial official (see the above quote from the Koran).
The case of Hamidi is even more fraught with false witnesses. In his case along with three friends they were involved in a fight with another family. They were accused of homosexual attack on the victim. After threes in which he was tortured Hamidi then confessed, his three co-accused where acquitted when they agreed to testify against him. Last month the alleged victim admitted he had been under pressure from his parents to make the false accusations.
Looking at that part of the Koran again:
you shall be absolutely equitable, and observe Allah, when you serve as witnesses,
even against yourselves, Eprahim Hamidi may have given false testimony against himself but this was under duress and not to free himself but to condemn himself. His victim has admitted to false witness under duress.
or your parents, or your relatives. The three co-accused used false witness against one of their own family to gain release for themselves. In truly Darwinian fashion it was against the one who broke down first under pressure and appears to have been the youngest of the accused. The parents of the alleged victim started the whole ball rolling putting pressure on for the homosexual assault charge, which led to the tortured confessions, then the other false witnesses.
Whether the accused is rich or poor, Surely the judiciary count as being the rich. They have heard facts that the evidence they are basing this on are false yet they continue not to take corrective action. Surely having the truth and acting on falsehoods is also against this part of the Koran. In the case of the woman, Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, it is a judge who without evidence has accused her of adultery.
Allah takes care of both. Therefore, do not be biased by your personal wishes. If you deviate or disregard (this commandment), then Allah is fully Cognizant of everything you do.
So by keeping only a part of law and ignoring other parts their religious zealousness is actually being shown up as hypocritical.
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