While Iranian law prohibits - conditionally - 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 other purposes than extracting confessions and/or information is
not, therefore, explicitly prohibited. Without the existence of a prescribed crime of torture under
Iranian law, perpetrators cannot be prosecuted. While provisions of the Islamic Penal code could
be used for the prosecution of torture, they are restrictive in their definition and scope of
application. The Penal Code limits prosecution to acts of physical assault, therefore excluding
other forms of torture and ill-treatment, including acts harming the psychological integrity of the
accused. The Islamic Penal Code further restricts the application of Article 578 by criminalizing
physical assault only when it is “in order for [the accused] to confess”, excluding forms of
torture and ill-treatment for other purposes, such as punishment.
The prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment is a jus cogens norm under international law
and cannot be restricted in any circumstances,5 including by conflicting domestic laws.
Concerning the restricted acts of torture banned under Iranian law, there are mechanisms
competent to receive and investigate complaints. The Supervision and Inspection Board,
established under the Law on Respect for Legitimate Freedoms and Safeguarding Citizen’s
Rights, monitors the compliance of policies and conducts with the law and confront those in
breach. The Board’s missions include submitting “the complaints it receives to the relevant
bodies and pursuing the investigation until it yields an outcome”; “deploying inspection groups
to the bodies”; and “preparing reports on the implementation of laws in the country every three
months and making them available to the public every three months.”6 The Supervision and
Inspection Board also has set up a database enabling victims and witnesses to submit their
complaints. On the occasion of its 2019 Universal Periodic Review, the Islamic Republic of Iran
stated that “the prosecutors, through judges stationed in prisons as well as the Secretariat of the
Protection of Citizenship Rights and provincial supervisory boards, conduct regular inspections
and investigate any reports or complaints” with regard to allegations of torture.7 There is no
readily available information that might indicate that complaints have been properly investigated
and adjudicated either by the Board or the Secretariat.
Additionally, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran reported that the Citizenship
Rights Watch Board carries periodic inspections within prisons and detention centers. According
to the Government the body has “received and handled 3,275 complaints and reports, through the
complaint system, in relation with civil rights violations. Between 2015 and 2018, a number of
28,504 inspections were carried out to prosecutors' offices, prisons and detention centers.”8
5
CCPR General Comment No. 20: Article 7, 10 March 1992, https://www.refworld.org/docid/453883fb0.html
See Executive By-law of Article 1(15) of the Law on Respect for Legitimate Freedoms and Safeguarding Citizens’ Rights.
7
Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review, February 2020, https://undocs.org/en/A/HRC/43/12/Add.1
8
National Report, UPR 2019, Islamic Republic of Iran, https://undocs.org/A/HRC/WG.6/34/IRN/1
6
2