Cherie Blair writes, “When a mother of two can be sentenced to death by stoning on the basis of a disputed confession of adultery and without proper legal representation, there is little reason for faith in the fairness or mercy of Iran's judicial system. But as in the appalling case of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the 20-year jail sentences just handed out to seven Baha'i leaders must provoke an international outcry in the hope that the Iranian government can be shamed into thinking again. The sentences follow a sham trial in which the accused faced a variety of charges ranging from spreading propaganda against the state and engaging in espionage, to conspiring to commit offences against national security. Unless international pressure can force a change of mind, many of the Baha'i leaders are doomed to die in prison. The oldest – Jamaloddin Khanjani – is already 77 years old.”