نوجوانان را اعدام نکنید SCE News and Updates archives

As the Australian Human Rights Commissioner and Disability Discrimination Commissioner from 2000 to 2005, Dr Ozdowksi authored the ground-breaking “National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention: A Last Resort?” The report ignited a national debate about Australia’s immigration detention policies and ultimately led to children being released from mandatory detention and a rethinking of the government’s detention policies. As Disability Discrimination Commissioner, he was instrumental in the “National Inquiry into Mental Health Services: Not for service” report, which placed mental illness on the national agenda, led to the reform of, and major budgetary increases for mental health services in Australia.

In 1984 Dr Ozdowski was awarded the Harkness Fellowship which took him to Harvard and Georgetown Universities and the University of California to work on race relations, international human rights and public administration. He also holds the academic appointment of Honorary Professor at the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies in the School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry, University of Sydney and most recently was awarded an honorary doctorate from Melbourne’s RMIT University. Areas of Expertise: Human rights, multiculturalism, diversity,equity, discrimination, people with disabilities, mental health, civil society, diversity, equity, public administration, capacity building in developing countries and post communist countries, Asia-Pacific, Poland.

In an email Dr. Trita Parsi commended Nazanin Afshin Jam for her “excellent work on stopping child executions in Iran!”. Trita Parsi, an author and the president of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) also signed the SCE petition: 

Founded in early 2002, the National Iranian-American Council is a non-partisan, non-political, non-sectarian, and non-profit organization dedicated to promoting Iranian-American participation in American civic life.

Nazanin Afshin-Jam and Stop Child Executions Campaign appreciate the support of the president of the NIAC , Dr. Trita Parsi. To date more than 15,000 people worldwide have signed the petition to stop child executions. The list includes human rights advocates, lawyers, politicians and celebrities worldwide.

About Trita Parsi:

Trita Parsi has worked for the Swedish Permanent Mission to the UN in New York where he served in the Security Council handling affairs for Afghanistan, Iraq, Tajikistan and Western Sahara, and the General Assembly’s Third Committee addressing human rights in Iran, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Iraq. He has also served as a foreign policy advisor to Congressman Bob Ney (R-OH).

His expertise is Iranian foreign policy and US-Iran relations. His book, Treacherous Alliance – The Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran and the United States, (Yale University Press 2007), is based on more than 130 interviews that Dr. Parsi has conducted – in his personal capacity – in Israel, Iran and the United States with senior officials from all three countries.

Dr. Parsi’s articles on Middle East affairs have been published in the Financial Times, Jane’s Intelligence Review, the Globalist, the Jerusalem Post, The Forward, BitterLemons and the Daily Star. 

As a Middle East expert, he is a frequent commentator on US-Iranian relations and Middle Eastern affairs, and has appeared on BBC World News, PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, CNN, Al Jazeera, C-Span, NPR, ABC, and MSNBC. 

Dr. Parsi was born in Iran and grew up in Sweden. He earned a Master’s degree in international relations at Uppsala University, a second Master’s degree in economics at Stockholm School of Economics and a PhD in international relations at Johns Hopkins University’s SAIS. His personal website is www.tritaparsi.com. To read about  National Iranian American Council (NIAC) visit www.niacouncil.org.

Iranian-American actor comedian Maz Jobrani extended his support to Stop Child Executions Campaign.  Nazanin Afshin-Jam and SCE Campaign greally appreciate Mr. Jobrani’s support of the SCE campaign and the petition:

About Maz Jobrani:

Maz Jobrani is a member of the Axis of Evil Comedy Tour, which features some of the top Middle Eastern-American comics in the world. The Axis of Evil Comedy Central Special premiered in 2007 as the first all Middle Eastern show on American TV. The DVD was also released in 2007. The world tour continues and dates can be found at www.axisofevilcomedy

He has done standup on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson,” “The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn,” Comedy Central’s “Premium Blend,” and England’s Paramount 2 Network. He also performs standup at The Comedy Store and The Laugh Factory on LA’s famous Sunset Strip as well as many top clubs in New York, including The Comedy Cellar. His routine has been featured on CNN, CBS, PBS, and NPR; as well as being highlighted in Time Magazine, Newsweek, The New York Times, The LA Times and The Wall Street Journal. His sketch comedy performances at the ACME Theater in Los Angeles were hailed as “devilishly funny” and “extraordinary” by LA Weekly.

Maz Jobrani has played many characters in film and televison such as Knights of Prosperity (ABC), Friday After Next, The Interpreter, 13 Going on 30, Maryam, Dragonfly, Season of Madness, Something Borrowed, Moonpie and Bug, Life on a Stick (FOX), 24, Life with Bonnie, Cedric and the Entertainer Presents. His numerous guest appearances include both popular comedy and dramatic series such as Malcolm in the Middle, Still Standing, The West Wing, NYPD Blue, Without a Trace, ER, Law and Order  and Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO). 

Former member of Canada’s parliament and secretary of state joined the rank of known world politicians and human rights advocates who have signed the Stop Child Executions Campaign.

From January 2002 until December 2003, David Kilgour served as Canada’s Secretary of State (Asia-Pacific). Prior to that time, he served as Secretary of State for Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America (1997-2002). Mr. Kilgour was also the member of the Canadian government (1997-2006)

Nazanin Afshin-Jam and Stop Child Executions Campaign thank Mr. Kilgour for his kind support.

Nazanin Afshin-Jam and Stop Child Executions Campaign wish to thank Honorable members of the Swedish Parliament: Gunilla Wahlen and Lars Johansson for their support of the campaign to stop child executions.

To date 103 of the 350 members of the Swedish Parliament have signed the petition to Stop Child Executions:

Barbro Westerholm, Gunnar Andrén, Birgitta Ohlsson, Alice Åström, Wiwi-Anne Johansson, Gudrun Utas, Jenny Fors, Egon Frid, Mats Einarsson, Gunilla Wahlén, Eva Olofsson, Elina Linna, Lars Ohly, Anki Ahlsten, Rossana Dinamarca, Mats Sander, Ulla andersson, Ewa Larsson, Ulrika Carlsson, Göran Lindblad, Kerstin Engle, Helena Leander, Mats Pertoft, Siv Holma, Eva Selin Lindgren, Per Bolund, Gunvor G Ericson, Birgitta Sellén, Solveig Zander, Eva Flyborg, Maria Lundqvist-Brömster, Maria Kornevik Jakobsson, Christer Winbäck, Kristin Oretorp, Holger Gustafsson, Solveig Hellquist, Tina Acketoft, Tina Ehn, barbro westerholm, Max Andersson, Bodil Ceballos, Solveig Zander, Agneta Berliner, Staffan Danielsson, Per Lodenius, Mildred Thulin, Morgan Johansson, Anita Brodén, Karla Lopez, Lars Lilja, Peter Jeppsson, Karin Svensson Smith, Eva-Lena Jansson, Lars Mejern Larsson, Hans Rothenberg, Veronica Palm, Ulla Löfgren, Inger Jarl Beck, Betty Malmberg, Lars-Ivar Ericson, Annie Johansson, Lennart Pettersson, Fredrik Malm, Hillevi Larsson, Désirée Pethrus Engström, Stefan Attefall, Inger Davidson, Karin Pilsäter, Jan Ertsborn, Marianne Berg, Peter Hultqvist, Emma Henriksson, Torbjörn Björlund, Désirée Liljevall, Lars Tysklind, Nina Larsson, Jennifer Hacker, Ulf Holm, Ola Nilsson, LiseLotte Olsson, Hans Linde, Lena Hallengren, Hans Backman, Josefin Brink, Maryam Yazdanfar, Fredrick Federley, Allan Widman, Mikael Johansson, Johan Pehrson, Jan Ericson, Rolf K Nilsson, Tomas Tobé, Maria Östberg Svanelind, Inger René, Ewa Thalén Finné, Walburga Habsburg, Mats G Nilsson, Gunilla Wahlen and Lars Johansson

10004 Total Signatures

Number of signatures on the Stop Child Execution Campaign petition surpassed 10,000 and growing.

The petition is available in 6 languages:

• English
• Persian( فارسي)
• Spanish (Español)
• French(Français)
• Swedish(Svenska)
• Romanian (Limba româna)

Following is a partial list of a few of those who have signed the petition:

• Shirin Ebadi, Iranian Nobel Prize Laureate 2003, Lawyer and human rights advocate
• Irshad Manji Muslim author activist
• Mina Ahadi, Head of the International Committee Against Executions
• Mehrangiz Kar Writer, Human Rights Advocate
• Mohammad Mostafaei, Attorney for Nazanin Fatehi and Reza Alinejad
• Fatemeh Haghighatjou, Iranian former Member of Parliament, Human Rights advocate
• Amir-Abbas Fakhravar, Former political prisoner
• Nazanin Fatehi, Former minor on death row in Iran
• Ali Alinejad, Brother of Reza Alinejad: a minor on death row
• Ghazal Darabi, Sister of Delara Darabi: a minor on death row
• Save the Children Sweden
• Donna and Graham Greene, Australian Music Artists
• Tim Bowles, Director of Youth for Human Rights International
• Tarek Fatah, Canada, Founder of Muslim Canadian Congress / activist
• Neda Shahidyazdani, USA Human Rights Lawyer

POLITICIANS AND MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENTS:

On February 27, 2007 more than 34 members of European Parliament signed a resolution to Stop Child Executions in Iran.  Additionally, this is a list of world pliticians who have signed the Petition:

• Jason Kenney, Canada Secretary of State
• Belinda Stronach, Canada member of Parliament
• May Hansen, Norway Member of parliament
• Francois Nicoullaud Former ambassador of France to Iran and author
• Jean-Marcel Cremona, secretary general of the Lebertarian party of France
• Peter Hulme Cross, member of the City of London Assembly
• 101 Members of the Swedish Parliament:

Barbro Westerholm, Gunnar Andrén, Birgitta Ohlsson, Alice Åström, Wiwi-Anne Johansson, Gudrun Utas, Jenny Fors, Egon Frid, Mats Einarsson, Gunilla Wahlén, Eva Olofsson, Elina Linna, Lars Ohly, Anki Ahlsten, Rossana Dinamarca, Mats Sander, Ulla andersson, Ewa Larsson, Ulrika Carlsson, Göran Lindblad, Kerstin Engle, Helena Leander, Mats Pertoft, Siv Holma, Eva Selin Lindgren, Per Bolund, Gunvor G Ericson, Birgitta Sellén, Solveig Zander, Eva Flyborg, Maria Lundqvist-Brömster, Maria Kornevik Jakobsson, Christer Winbäck, Kristin Oretorp, Holger Gustafsson, Solveig Hellquist, Tina Acketoft, Tina Ehn, barbro westerholm, Max Andersson, Bodil Ceballos, Solveig Zander, Agneta Berliner, Staffan Danielsson, Per Lodenius, Mildred Thulin, Morgan Johansson, Anita Brodén, Karla Lopez, Lars Lilja, Peter Jeppsson, Karin Svensson Smith, Eva-Lena Jansson, Lars Mejern Larsson, Hans Rothenberg, Veronica Palm, Ulla Löfgren, Inger Jarl Beck, Betty Malmberg, Lars-Ivar Ericson, Annie Johansson, Lennart Pettersson, Fredrik Malm, Hillevi Larsson, Désirée Pethrus Engström, Stefan Attefall, Inger Davidson, Karin Pilsäter, Jan Ertsborn, Marianne Berg, Peter Hultqvist, Emma Henriksson, Torbjörn Björlund, Désirée Liljevall, Lars Tysklind, Nina Larsson, Jennifer Hacker, Ulf Holm, Ola Nilsson, LiseLotte Olsson, Hans Linde, Lena Hallengren, Hans Backman, Josefin Brink, Maryam Yazdanfar, Fredrick Federley, Allan Widman, Mikael Johansson, Johan Pehrson, Jan Ericson, Rolf K Nilsson, Tomas Tobé, Maria Östberg Svanelind, Inger René, Ewa Thalén Finné, Walburga Habsburg, Mats G Nilsson

Nazanin Afshin-Jam and SCE campaign thank everyone for their support of the campaign to permanently stop child executions as well as for the emails and comments in support of the campaign. Additional word of thanks to the campaign volunteers and supporters for your hard work. “Together…we can put an end to this”

                                                                                                                                                                                        Donna and Graham Greene of Stop Child Executions Campaign, both talented Australian artists, have just released a new music track “Resonance (Spirit of Man)“ dedicated to all who have been involved with the ontinuing http://www.stopchildexecutions.com Campaign.

Donna Greene wrote today: “ I want you to know that I dedicate this track to you …  to the first 5 people (including Vincent) because this is what you brought out in us through our association with you … quite a powerful experience from our perspective.”

“ ….We love you guys from across the waters – particularly Nazanin Afshin-Jam, David Etebari, Kristian & Vincent who have all played a major role in keeping this real life drama at the top of people’s minds to help young people less fortunate than ourselves and to be the voice of the voiceless minors on death row in Iran. Mahan, Lucy, Dave for Saving Delara, Mel, Nikki and everyone else who is still doing their part to help this campaign… you are all amazing and we will be joined for life through this experience. Never give up.  Over the past several months it has been uncovered that there are not 23 minors on Death Row awaiting Execution in Iran (as first depicted on our Video Collage with Graham “Raven’s Eye Pt1.” as the music backdrop) – but in fact 74 minors who deserve fair play, not neglect and ignorance by a world who ‘think they know’. Keep up the international pressure. Shine a light brightly and support Amnesty International’s effort to support the SCE Campaign and to Stop Child Executions once and for all. “

Resonance (Spirit of Man) can be heard at Donna Greene’s myspace site: http://www.myspace.com/donnalgreene

Lyrics:

I didn’t know we could help you.
I don’t know how you feel inside
Now the world wants to save you
I always knew you were born to survive.
Coz I – I – I did.

Photo: Eric Klefberg

Today Amnesty in the city of Borås, Sweden demonstrated on the town square in Borås to protest executions of minors in Iran. “Death penalty is used as state terrorism and Iran is breaking human rights in many ways” said Osborn Holmstrand who also gathered signatures for a petition.

Amnesty-protest mot avrättningar

[Mån 18:43] Borås I dag tog Amnesty Borås plats på Stora torget i Borås för att protestera mot avrättningar av minderåriga i Iran. 

Glamour Magazine has named Nazanin Afshin-Jam as their “Hero of the Month” in the July 2007 Issue. The article also provided a link to www.stopchildexecutions.com website and petition.

Last week we also received an email from one of the SCE campaign supporters suggesting to nominate Nazanin for CNN Hero Award in order to “help promote her stopchildexecutions quest”.

Glamour is a monthly women’s magazine published founded in 1939 in the United States. Glamour reaches a subscription audience of about 1.5 million readers in the United States. In addition it is also published in numerous countries including the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Russia, Greece, Poland, South Africa, Hungary, Romania, Netherlands, and in a Latin American (Spanish language) edition. 

 Nazanin Afshin-Jam had a roundtable discussion about Iran on France’s largest TV news station LCI with former Ambassador of France to Iran Francois Nicoullaud – an author/economist, Thierry Coville – author and  former assistant at the French Research Institute in Iran ,  and Jean-Pierre Montanay the film director who made the recent documentary about Nazanin Fatehi in Iran. Following the program, François Nicoullaud signed the petition to Stop Child Executions in Iran.

Follwoing the program Mr.  Francois Nicoullaud signed the petition demanding an end to Child Executions in Iran.

 Nazanin Afshin-Jam and SCE campaign appreciate Mr. Nicoullaud’s support of the Stop Child Executions Campaign.

François Nicoullaud was the French ambassador to Iran from 2001 to July, 2005.  After the end of his mission has published a book in France called “The turban and the rose”, in which he strongly critisized the regime in Iran. In a segment of his book, Nicoullaud, the Egyptian-born French politician wrote that the rulers of Iran are violent and rude individuals whose motivation for their election are deceptive and based on hidden costs and that the government of Iran is a Stalinist system. He has also written that the regime of Tehran does pursue nuclear weapons and they will ultimately get their hands on them

Stop Child Executions Campaign continues to gain support among Human Rights organizations, writers, artists and advocates. Nazanin Afshin-Jam and SCE campaign thank Miss Neda Shahidyazdani (USA) and Mr. Tarek Fateh (Canada) for their support of the campaign to end child executions:

Ms. Shahidyazdani is an Iranian human rights lawyer at the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center where she helped to author a recently released report on the persecution of the Bahá’í religious minority in Iran. Her professional work has also concentrated on the rights of minorities. Ms. Shahidyazdani has assisted with projects at Human Rights First and the Center for International Law at New York Law School.   

Tarek Fatah is a secular Muslim Canadian political activist, writer and TV host. Founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress , Fatah’s advocates separation of religion and state in Isalic countries, opposition to Sharia law, and promotes what he calls a “progressive” form of Islam 

Born in Karachi, Pakistan, Fatah a student at the time was imprisoned under military governments and charged with sedition. A biochemist by training, Fatah entered journalism as a reporter for the Karachi Sun in 1970, and went on to become an investigative journalist for Pakistani television. He was fired after the coup that brought General Zia ul-Haq to power, and fled to Saudi Arabia, where he lived for a decade. In 1987, he emigrated to Canada and settled in Toronto.  He is host of the Muslim Chronicle TV show since 1996, which airs Saturday nights on CTS-TV. Tarek is also a frequent guest on many TV shows and has written for the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail and TIME Magazine.

After receiving a series of death threats by Muslim extremists, in August 2006 Tarek Fatah resigned as the director of the Muslim Canadian Congress, severing all official ties with the organization he helped found. “It’s not just for me. It’s for my wife and my daughters” He said.

Fatah is the author of Chasing a Mirage: The Islamic State or a State of Islam, to be published in 2008.

Yanar Mohamad signed the petition to save Delara Darabi from execution. She is the head of the Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq (OWFI), is a renowned activist, and highly regarded in the world today for her brave efforts in defending women’s rights in Iraq. She and the OWFI have been at the forefront of raising Iraqi women’s awareness of their rights, fighting for an egalitarian secular state and full equality for women, as well as advocating for the separation of religion from the state and educational system which is a precondition for guaranteeing women’s rights in Iraq.

Nazanin Afshin-Jam and SCE Campaign thank Ms. Mohamad for joining the campaign to save Delara Darabi. 

Nealy 15,000 have signed Delara’s petition to date.   

We, the reform-minded Muslims of Project Ijtihad, believe that faith is a journey.  If it becomes a destination, it becomes dogma.  That is what Islam has become in the official circles of Iran: a dangerous and dignity-killing dogma. We know there are reformist Muslims in Iran, some of them theologians, and with this prayer we ask all Muslims of conscience and courage to speak out against child executions now: 

Allah, it is you who has given us the power of conscience, the blessing of intellect and the command to seek truth. These gifts are the makings of ijtihad, Islam’s tradition of critical thinking. It is a tradition that bestows on all of us the responsibility to speak our minds freely for the sake of justice. And nobody needs justice more than those who cannot speak for themselves – children. The Qu’ran tells us that “God does not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves” (13:11).  This is a call to speak truth to power.  As faithful Muslims, we honor your call.  As reform-minded Muslims, we will not be silent.  Let us demonstrate our faith, today and forever, on behalf of all your creatures.  Ameen 

Muslim writer and activist IRSHAD MANJI signed the petition to Stop Child Executions in Iran. In a letter to Nazanin Afshin Jam she wrote : “I’m attaching a “prayer” from the reform-minded Muslims of Project Ijtihad, asking all Muslims of conscience and compassion to speak out against children executions now.”

Nazanin Afshin-Jam and SCE Campaign greatly appreciate Ms. Irashad Manji’s and project Ijtihad’s support of the campagin to stop child executions.

About Irshad Manji:  Irshad is a Canadian feminist Muslim, author, journalist, and activist. She is a well-known critic of radical Islam and orthodox interpretations of the Qur’an, calling herself a “Muslim refusenik”. The New York Times has dubbed Irshad Manji “Osama Bin Laden’s worst nightmare.” She takes that as a compliment. Irshad is the best-selling author of The The Trouble with Islam Today : A Muslim’s Call for Reform in Her Faith. The book has been published in 25 languages. In those countries that have banned her book, she is reaching readers by posting free translations in Arabic, Urdu, and Persian on her website at http://www.muslim-refusenik.com. Irshad Manji also maintains a myspace website. 

Irshad also travels the globe to lecture about the liberal reformation of Islam. Her audiences include Amnesty International, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the United Nations Press Corps, the Democratic Muslims of Denmark, the National Committee on American Foreign Policy, the International Women’s Forum, the Swedish Defense Research Agency, the Pentagon, the Jean Jacques Rousseau Institute, and universities from Cambridge to Notre Dame. Currently, Irshad is a Senior Fellow with the European Foundation for Democracy. She writes columns that are distributed worldwide by the New York Times Syndicate. She is also making a feature film about Islam. Among the ideas it will showcase is “ijtihad,” Islam’s lost tradition of independent thinking. has appeared on numerous television networks worldwide. US PBS Television network recently broadcasted a documentary by Irshad Manji titled: Faith without fear.  

As a social entrepreneur, Irshad has launched Project Ijtihad, an initiative to develop the world’s first leadership network for reform-minded Muslims. In that capacity, she was recently named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. Oprah Winfrey honored Irshad with the first annual Chutzpah Award for “audacity, nerve, boldness and conviction.” Ms. magazine chose Irshad as a “Feminist for the 21st Century.” Maclean’s, Canada’s national news magazine, selected her one of ten “Canadians Who Make a Difference.” And the Jakarta Post in Indonesia — the world’s largest Muslim country — identified Irshad as one of three women creating a positive change in Islam today.

THANK YOU HONORABLE MAY HANSEN OF NORWEGIAN PARLIAMENT:

THANK YOU TO THE NEW MEMBERS OF THE SWEDISH PARLIAMENT MEMBERS FOR SUPPORT OF STOP CHILD EXECUTIONS CAMPAIGN: (101 MP’s have signed the petition to date)

THANK YOU SAVE THE CHILDREN (Sweden) (Rädda Barnen i Sverige ) FOR YOUR SUPPORT:

6208 SIGNATURES AND GROWING…

THANK YOU ALL

Signatures Per Month:

Month	Signatures
2007.03	1323
2007.04	1646
2007.05	3180