Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran
A/HRC/40/67 para 70(e)
Full recommendation:
Ensure that deaths in custody, and allegations of violations of due process and of ill-treatment
are promptly, independently, impartially and effectively investigated by an independent
competent authority with a view to bringing those suspected of criminal responsibility to justice
in compliance with their right to a fair trial.
Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1
Article 38 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran prohibits torture and other illtreatment, but only when it is “used to extract an admission of guilt or to obtain information.”
Article 39 of the Constitution stipulates that “All affronts to the dignity and repute of persons
arrested, detained, imprisoned, or banished in accordance with the law, whatever form they may
take, are forbidden and liable to punishment.”2
Article 570 of the Islamic Penal Code states: “Any official and agent associated with State
agencies and institutions, who unlawfully strips members of the public of their personal freedom
or deprives them from their rights provided in the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran,
shall be sentenced to two months to three years’ imprisonment, in addition to dismissal from the
service and prohibition of employment in state offices for one to five years.” 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 The article also stipulates that the perpetrator of abuse will be charged for murder if the
accused persons dies as a result of mistreatment, and the person who made the order of abuse
will also be charged accordingly. 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
1
CCPR.7.1.S.1
CCPR.7.1.P.1; CCPR.10.3.P.2; CCPR.10.3.P.3;
CCPR.7.1.O.1; CCPR.7.1O.2;
2
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, English Translation, Iran Data Portal, https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wpcontent/uploads/constitution-english-1368.pdf
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/
1