Iranian singer Anita Papist sentenced to 74 lashes for ‘offending public decency’ by singing
Papist, who posts videos of herself online singing in both English and Persian without a head covering, confirmed that her passport was confiscated and her mobile phone blocked.
Why was Anita Papist lashed?
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What was Papist's crime?
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Who else was lashed 74 times?
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What is 'gender apartheid'?
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ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
JULY 19, 2026 15:39
Updated: JULY 19, 2026 19:00
Tehran-based singer Anita Papist was sentenced to 74 lashes for “offending public decency” by Branch 1088 of the Second Criminal Court at Tehran’s Ershad Judicial Complex, the musician and Iran rights groups announced over the weekend.
Papist, who posts videos of herself online singing in English and Persian without a head covering, confirmed that her passport was confiscated and her mobile phone blocked, punishments that the Iranian legal advocacy group Dadbaan said were “imposed solely for posting her artwork on social media.”
Dadbaan noted that singing and producing music are not themselves a crime, and said the sentence against Papist was “in conflict with Iran’s international obligations in the field of freedom of expression, freedom of cultural activities, and the prohibition of cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment.”
https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-902972#google_vignette