Top judge seeks shorter prison terms
TEHRAN, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Iran's new judiciary chief has criticised
heavy prison terms and asked judges to be more lenient, especially towards
first-time offenders and women, newspapers reported on Wednesday.
``There is very little mention of imprisonment in Islamic texts and
Islam's policy of punishment is not based on limiting and imprisoning human
resources,'' Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi-Shahroudi was quoted as saying.
``Judges should try to issue shorter prison sentences, especially for
women and first-time offenders...Denying someone the right to a place in
society should be a last resort and only in special cases,'' he said.
Officials often complain about overcrowding in Iran's prisons, where
two-thirds of the estimated 150,000 inmates are held on drug-related charges.
Hashemi-Shahroudi, appointed in August, has vowed to reform the judicial
apparatus and to apply the rule of law in a system that has been troubled
by widespread allegations of corruption.
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