Dear Friends
We would like to thank the Italian human rights group Information, Safety & Freedom for conferring this year’s Freedom of the Press Award to Adnan Hassanpour and Hiwa Butimar.
The presentation of this award comes at a critical time, as both Adnan and Hiwa’s lives are threatened by the Iranian authorities. One week ago the Iranian Supreme Court upheld the death sentence for Adnan, and prolonged the imprisonment for Hiwa.
As families and friends of Adnan and Hiwa, we are grateful for all the support of the human right protectors of
We would like to take this oppportunity to intensify our efforts, as fellow humans, to demolish the death penalty all-over the world. We hope the case of Hiwa and Adnan could become the milestone for this important step of mankind.
Capital punishment does not serve the cause of peace on our planet; on the contrary, it deepens the feuds, civil unrests and creates hatred, keeping us apart while we need to pursue integration- mankind as one family. Capital punishment and torture alienates the authorities from the very people that they should represent, protect and work for their wellbeing. If this alienation is deepened, the authorities can also become the victim of these conflicts and civil unrests, as we have seen in the case of
We urge you to support the case of Hiwa and Adnan to be re-tried in a court that complies with international legal standards. No confession should be taken from them as evidence when it is recorded by the means of torture. While Hiwa and Adnan waiting for their final court verdict, they should be able to receive printed materials, including books and newspapers, and their families and friends should be allowed to visit them.
While we urge the Iranian authorities to review their verdict in the case of Hiwa and Adnan, we only wish peaceful coexistence for the peoples living in
Thank you,
Butimar and Hassanpour families
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