Vice Chancellor and Sports Minister Werner Kogler (Greens) supports the karate master Saleh Mirhaschemi, who has been sentenced to death in Iran. In a letter to the Iranian sports minister, Kogler appealed for the enforcement of the judgment to be suspended and ultimately overturned, as he told the Ö1-Mittagsjournal today.
According to the report, Mirhashemi admitted under torture to having been involved in an armed group. Kogler sees his letter as a sign of support for the resistance movement in Iran.
“Experience shows that public engagement by politicians in other countries can already help to increase the likelihood that the execution of these sentences will be stayed. It’s not entirely hopeless,” he said.
Mandataries took on sponsorships for 143 inmates
NEOS MP Helmut Brandstätter, who has sponsored Iranian prisoners, also underlines the need for public action. According to Ö1, members of the National and Federal Council have sponsored a total of 143 prisoners in Iran. At least no death sentence has been passed since the beginning of the campaign, said Brandstätter.
“Above all, it drew attention and excitement on the Iranian side,” said ÖVP MP Reinhold Lopatka. The SPÖ MP Petra Bayr drew “a mixed picture”: some prisoners were released, others were sentenced to death, and nothing was known about others. According to the Greens, 18 people have been released.
