The Islamic Republic has reportedly suspended the death sentence of Saeed Malekpour, a computer programmer from Canada, but no new sentence has been announced.
Malekpour, an Iranian-born man with permanent residency in Canada but not citizenship, was arrested in December 2008 while visiting his ailing father in Iran.
At the time, the 37-year-old computer programmer, who lived in Toronto with his wife, was accused of operating a pornographic website.
Canada and several rights groups have petitioned for his release. Amnesty International has said a software program created by Malekpour for general use in posting photos to the Internet was used to post pornographic images unbeknownst to Malekpour.
In 2010, the Islamic Republic convicted him of three counts of “designing and moderating pornographic websites” and “insulting the sanctity of Islam.”
The Canadian government has protested Malekpour’s incarceration, saying he did not receive “fair and transparent legal treatment.” But Canada had limited grounds on which to act since Malekpour does not hold Canadian citizenship. But, even if he did, the Islamic Republic does not recognize foreign naturalizations of Iranians.
Malekpour’s lawyer, Mahmud Alizadeh Tabatabaei, told the Mehr news agency his client had repented for his actions and, therefore, the death sentence was rescinded. “We now hope that my client will receive a reduced sentence,” the lawyer was quoted as saying.
The Canadian Broadcasting Corp. (CBC) said Malekpour’s supporters and family remain skeptical that the death sentence has been voided as no “official documents” from Iran’s Judiciary have been released.
The Facebook page “Free Saeed Malekpour” posted a comment saying it was welcoming the announced suspension of the death sentence with “cautious optimism,” but said his supporters still needed to confirm the reports.
