Iran's penal code is based on Islamic sharia law and...

Iran's penal code is based on Islamic sharia law and prescribes death by stoning for the crime of "sexual perversion". The term can be used to imply rape, adultery or homosexuality. It states that adulterous or homosexual men must be buried up to their waist and women up to the armpits before being stoned by the crowd. If they manage to get free, their lives are spared. The punishment for a non-Moslem man who has sexual relations with a Moslem woman out of wedlock is the death penalty. Relatives of victims of murder, according to Iranian law have the right to demand the convicted killer's execution, settle for the payment of "blood money" or pardon the convict without receiving compensation. Sharia has been in effect in Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution. It also calls for the death penalty for those guilty of armed robbery as well as amputation for repeated thievery. Capital crimes also include apostasy, prostitution, and the production and distribution of pornographic audio and video material. In Iranian jurisprudence the Islamic judgment mofsede fel arz (corrupt on earth) is often pronounced. This sentence is applicable to everyone, regardless of age, sex or mental condition. Since 1979, more than 200 Baha'is, the biggest religious minority in Iran, have been killed, whilst 15 have disappeared. Baha'is have been imprisoned for teaching their religion, and holding meetings. They are only allowed to bury their dead in unmarked graves on waste ground. Baha'i marriages are not recognised by Iranian law. Eleven Baha'is are in prison in Iran for "crimes" such as holding a children's art exhibition, according to the Baha'i International Community. Four of them are sentenced to death.