Iran seeks jail term not death for drug offenders

The Iranian Parliament has approved amendments to its drug laws that could potentially see the number of executions drop in the country.

Under Iran’s existing law, nonviolent offences, including possession of drugs, carry a mandatory death sentence. While the law still demands perpetrators of these offences to be executed, the amendment has raised the drug possession threshold which carries a death penalty from 30 kilogrammes to 50 kilogrammes.

With 576 executions last year, according to Human Rights Watch, Iran is second to China in the global state execution rate. The rights group also revealed there are currently 5,000 people on death row for drug offences in Iran, the majority between the ages of 20 and 30.

It’s believed that the move is prompted by the recognition that existing laws are not working in curtailing the number of drug dealers. It’s estimated that ten million Iranians are currently working in the drug industry. The industry is said to be worth $1.5 billion and with drug abuse going up by 14 per cent since 2015, the trend is unlikely to change any time soon.

While the Parliament has approved the amendment the bill will only come into law if the Guardian Council, a body of 12 Islamic jurists, approves the changes.