For deserters and draft-dodgers the ear is amputated. One victim was displayed on Iraqi government television recuperating in the hospital after his hand had been cut off. Reports from Iraqi news media indicate that the sentence of amputation has been carried out on several individuals convicted of theft. The penalty of amputation is now applied to theft, forgery, currency speculation, military desertion and draft-dodging. Moreover, Muslims outside Iraq hold views regarding the use of amputation under Islamic law that conflict with Iraq's interpretation.
The repressive political climate within Iraq prevents discussion by Iraqis about other interpretations. Sharia, however, is subject to various interpretations, and the Iraqi government's interpretation reflects its political agenda. The government of Iraq also maintains that the decrees are based on Sharia, Islamic law. While arguing that the decrees serve as a deterrent to crime, the government has offered no information that they are serving this purpose. By implying that if sanctions are lifted and the situation improves the decrees could be repealed, Iraq appears to use these abuses as leverage for the lifting of sanctions. The government of Iraq attempts to deflect international criticism of this cruelty by maintaining that the decrees were enacted to combat rising crime which, it says, is due to the poverty and desperation brought on by international economic sanctions. These new decrees greatly impinge on individual human rights and constitute violations of several international human rights conventions and standards. 3 IRAQ Iraq's Brutal Decrees Amputation, Branding and the Death Penalty SUMMARY Beginning in June 1994, the government of Iraq issued at least nine decrees that establish severe penalties, including amputation, branding and the death penalty for criminal offenses such as theft, corruption, currency speculation and military desertion.
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