Victim

Before you click play on this animated short, please be warned that although not explicit it does contain scenes which may distress you.  It tells the story of Mohammad Mostafaei, an Iranian lawyer who has lobbied against the death penalty in his home country for the duration of his professional life and is based on an interview with him. It focuses in on the story of Behnoud Shojaee, a teenager who in many other countries would probably have been convicted for manslaughter – but not in Iran.

This certainly had a profound effect on me although no one needs to argue against the death penalty in my household (or country for that matter). Yet this reinforced my belief that the death penalty is never the answer in a world where governments and cultures should be judged by how they treat their criminals.

This animated short was commissioned through Guardian Films, as part of Amnesty International’s work to stop the use of the death penalty worldwide – visit their page against the death penalty here.  It was made by Sherbet, a Bafta winning Animation Production company specializing in high end visuals for the television, film and music industries. The film does not seem to have a title so I have created one - it is up to you to decide for yourself who the victim was.