Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran
A/HRC/34/65 para 84
Full recommendation
The legislation of the Islamic Republic of Iran continues to authorize punishments such as
flogging, blinding, amputation and stoning of individuals convicted of certain offences, in breach
of the absolute prohibition of torture and other forms of ill-treatment. The Special Rapporteur
recalls that the right to be free from torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment can never be limited or interfered with no matter what the circumstances, and urges
the Government to abolish all provisions that authorize such punishments.
Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1
A. The Special Rapporteur recalls that the right to be free from torture or cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment can never be limited or interfered
with whatever circumstances
Article 38 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran only prohibits torture and other illtreatment when it is “used to extract an admission of guilt or to obtain information”.2 Similarly,
Article 578 of the Islamic Penal Code asserts “any civil servant or judicial or non-judicial agent
who corporally mistreats and abuses an accused person in order to force him to confess shall be
sentenced […]”.3 Such provision is reiterated under Article 60 of the Code of Criminal
Procedure. Article 169 of the Prison Regulations prohibits “corporal punishment of the accused
or convicts, and imposing violent, excruciating or humiliating punishments, in all penal
institutions and prisons” and punishments are provided under Article 587 of the Islamic Penal
Code. 4 While Iranian law conditionally prohibits torture and certain abusive conducts during
interrogations, it does not provide a definition of torture per se. Torture and other ill-treatment
inflicted on an individual for purposes other than extracting confessions and/or information is not
explicitly prohibited.
The prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment is a jus cogens norm under international law
and cannot be restricted under any circumstances,5 including by conflicting domestic laws. The
1
CCPR.7.1.S.1; CCPR.7.1.P.1; CCPR.7.1.P.2; CCPR.7.1.O.1; CCPR.7.1.O.2; CCPR.7.1.O.3
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran English translation
http://www.iranchamber.com/government/laws/constitution_ch03.php
3
Islamic Penal Code of the Islamic Republic of Iran (2013), English translation, Iran Human Rights Documentation Center,
https://iranhrdc.org/islamic-penal-code-of-the-islamic-republic-of-iran-book-five/
4
Islamic Penal Code of the Islamic Republic of Iran (2013), English translation, Iran Human Rights Documentation Center,
https://iranhrdc.org/islamic-penal-code-of-the-islamic-republic-of-iran-book-five/
5
CCPR General Comment No. 20: Article 7, 10 March 1992, https://www.refworld.org/docid/453883fb0.html
2
1