SHAHLA JAHED

That this House notes with grave concern reports from Iran that Shahla Jahed was hanged on 1 December 2010, despite appeals from Amnesty International and other human rights groups during the nine years of her imprisonment; is concerned that she may not have received a fair trial, after a previous verdict was overturned citing procedural flaws; is further concerned by reports from human rights organisations that there are strong grounds to believe that her confession may have been extracted under coercion; further notes that marriage laws in Iran, including those governing temporary marriage, can lead to gender inequalities in justice; and calls on the Government to make continued representations to oppose the death sentence in all its forms.