Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD)
Website: www.idpd.org
Date: 29.11.2022
Press Release
IDPD expresses concern at death penalty to peaceful protesters by the govt. in Iran
Indian Doctors for Peace and Development (IDPD) expresses it grave concern on Iranian authorities indicting people with charges punishable with death for participation in peaceful demonstrations. In a statement released Dr S S Soodan – President, Dr.Satyajit Kumar Singh & Dr Arun Mitra – Senior Vice Presidents and Dr Shakeel Ur Rahman – General Secretary said that IDPD supports UN statement that urges Iranian authorities to stop using the death penalty as a tool to squash protests and calls to immediately release all protesters who have been arbitrarily deprived of their liberty of exercising their legitimate rights to freedom of opinion and expression and for their actions to protect and promote human rights and fundamental freedoms through peaceful means.
Thousands of peaceful protesters have been arrested and around 400 people killed, including many women and children since 16 September 2022 following the death of Jina Mahsa Amini by the Iranian militia.
IDPD supports the resolution at UN Human Rights Council to investigate the crackdown on protesters in Iran. IDPD expresses its shock over India abstaining from the resolution at the UNHRC on 25 November and voting ’No’ to a UN General Assembly third committee’s draft resolution that urged Iranian officials to ’cease the use of excessive force against peaceful protesters, including women and children" on 16 November. IDPD further cautions to unite against fundamentalism of all hues in different parts in the world including our own country. The fundamentalist ideology is ultimately repressive, obscurantist and against the human rights. Such situations lead to internal strife which can at a later stage turn into external conflicts.