Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani

According to reports...global protests have managed to prevent the execution of Iran stoning case Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani as of now. However the threat of imminent execution remains.

So anyone who hasn't signed a petition or sent a letter...do so now.  It is helping.  This lady would have been dead a long time ago if it were not for international pressure. 

Last week, Laureen Harper made another public plea for Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtian's life.


The voice of a Prime Minister's wife carries more weight than average citizens', I'm sure, so it's terrific that she has done this.

However, her protest and that of other Canadians would be taken more seriously if our current government had greater integrity in addressing national and international issues concerning unfair sentencing and the death penalty.

Canada has actively opposed the death penalty in recent decades, refusing extradition requests to the U.S. unless there are assurances the U.S. prosecutors won't seek the death penalty. The federal government has also, until recently, established a tradition of requesting clemency for Canadians sentenced to death abroad.

In late 2007, however, Stephen Harper's Conservative government indicated a change in procedure. Then public safety minister Stockwell Day stated Canada would "not actively pursue" the return of Canadians facing the death sentence "who have been tried in a democratic country that supports rule of law."

The Tories' decision drew harsh words from Amnesty International, which accused Canada of softening its opposition to capital punishment.

Iran considers itself a democratic country and can easily throw Canadian complaints back in our face considering we will not even oppose the death penalty for Canadians abroad.  We should be fighting for people like Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, but in order to be taken seriously, in order for other countries to listen to us, we need to apply our own laws fairly, equally, and with absolute resolve.