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Amir Salar Davoudi

The representatives of the Islamic Consultative Assembly approved a bill “Amendment of a Clause to the Anti-Drug Law” as a priority, which leads to a decrease in executions for these crimes, on December 24, 2016.

Therefore, as it is quite evident, the purpose of adding a substance to the anti-drug law is not necessarily to completely eliminate the smuggling of various drugs, but rather to reduce it in certain cases.

“The plan to reduce executions from the Anti-Drug Law was passed in the ninth parliament, and its purpose was not only to exempt carriers, keepers, and even small-scale drug dealers from harsh penalties for drug trafficking, but the sword of execution (the death penalty) will undoubtedly hang over the heads of major drug traffickers, founders, managers, and members of organized criminal organizations accused of these crimes.”

However, the implementation of such a law is as follows: first, it must be approved in the Judicial Commission of the Parliament and then be reviewed by the Guardian Council. If the Council approves it, it must be published in the official newspaper for experimental implementation. Alternatively, it can be approved in the open session of the Parliament and then, after being reviewed by the Guardian Council, it can be permanently implemented until the next review by the Parliament.

And as for many eyes that are currently seeking to benefit from the addition of a substance to the law of punishment for drug crimes, despite the thousands of convicted criminals whose sentences have been finalized or are on the verge of finalization, the process of approving such a law of amnesty should be carried out at a faster pace.

Therefore, since the urgency of this matter was approved about two months ago and yet, after two months have passed since the third of Azar 95 (the day of urgency approval), the Parliament has not approved the general and detailed plan of the representatives, the mentioned delay has seemed abnormally significant and has caused some suspicion that the Parliament may be waiting for a decrease in the population through the implementation of final judgments, so that in case such a law is approved, criminals will have less chance of release and return to society!

In other words, when the government does not have the ability to re-educate individuals in society and cannot effectively and efficiently eliminate small-scale smugglers in a way that would lead to positive outcomes and contribute to the community, it is preferable to abolish some cases of execution in regards to the aforementioned law in hopes that we will no longer witness similar crimes being committed by them in society, rather than practically giving us the lead.

In any case, we must wait and see if our efforts as parliamentarians to abolish the death penalty for drug offenses will eventually be successful.

The wait that is longer and earlier for the prisoners convicted of drug crimes and their families is accompanied by fears and hopes.

This is where it must be said with certainty that the plan to amend the law on punishment of drug crimes by abolishing some cases of the death penalty for drug crimes goes through the slow process of approval!