The Deputy refers to the case of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, an Iranian mother of two whose stoning sentence has caused the gravest concern in Ireland and internationally. The case of Ms. Ashtianai has been raised with the Iranian Ambassador to Ireland by officials in my Department who have conveyed in the strongest terms that Ireland is completely opposed to the use of stoning, a practice which has no place in the 21st century. Ireland joins others in the international community, including EU High Representative Ashton, who have issued strong calls upon the Iranian government to revoke the death sentence in the case of Ms Ashtiani.
The EU has also been active in raising this case in Tehran with a detailed démarche delivered on behalf of the EU on the Ashtiani case and other human rights issues on 29 August. In response, the Iranian authorities have indicated that the stoning sentence would not be applied and that Ms Ashtiani would not be executed for adultery. However, no clear commitment has so far been given that there are no circumstances in which the death sentence will be applied to Ms. Ashtiani. I call on Iran to provide such a commitment.
There are also worrying reports about Ms Ashtiani's family, particularly her children, being subjected to harassment and imprisonment for bravely speaking out about this case. I am also appalled that Ms Ashtiani's lawyer, Mr Mostafaei, has had to leave his country, simply for doing his job and defending his clients as best as he can.
Ms. Ashtiani's case is symptomatic of the very poor human rights situation overall now obtaining in Iran. I have raised Ireland's serious concerns about the lack of respect for human rights in Iran directly with the Iranian authorities on a number of occasions, most recently when I met with Foreign Minister Mottaki in Dublin on 9 June. During that meeting, I also outlined Ireland and the EU's particular concerns about the extensive use of the death penalty in Iran, an issue which we also highlighted in our national intervention at the current UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva on 17 September. I have also written at length to Foreign Minister Mottaki on a number of occasions to express our concerns about, and raise specific aspects of, the human rights situation in Iran. Ireland will continue to raise our concerns on the human rights situation in Iran, both bilaterally and at multilateral organisations such as the UN Human Rights Council.
