Such risk of restriction and repression has been confirmed in practice. Iranian authorities frequently rely on the legal framework to intimidate, arrest and prosecute individuals who peacefully exercise their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly,22 23 reportedly disproportionately targeting members of minorities.24 25 Further, the Government of Iran has responded to protests with excessive and unlawful force.26 Human rights lawyers have been increasingly targeted and repressed through arrests, detention, and imprisonment solely for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly during the course of their professional duty to defend their clients.27 Other human rights defenders, including trade unionists, environmental or abolitionist activists have also faced increasing levels of harassment and persecution due to their peaceful activities. 28 29 30 In his July 2020 report, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran raised serious concerns over recurrent arrests and detentions of HRDs solely for carrying out their legitimate work. 31 32 33The Special Rapporteur also referred to reports of harassment, imprisonment and mistreatment in prison of HRDs and increasing pressure on their families.34 Despite the existence of several mechanisms that ostensibly accept complaints regarding violations of citizens' rights, such as the Parliament’s Article 90 Commission (established under Article 90 of the Constitution, offering a mechanism to citizens to file complaint against any of the three branches of power) and the Oversight Bodies for the exercise of Citizenship Rights in the country's provincial courts, there is no evidence to suggest that complaints to these bodies are independently 22 See more : Amnesty International, Caught in a web of repression: Iran’s Human Rights Defenders under attack, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/MDE1364462017ENGLISH.PDF 23 While no official figure exists on the number of journalists detained with charges since 2011, documentation on specific cases of journalists imprisoned by HRANA News Agency, Committee to Protect Journalists, Amnesty International, Centre for Human Rights on Iran, and Reporters Without Borders and ARTICLE19 suggest the number is over a hundred. 24 See more: Association for the human rights of the Azerbaijani people in Iran, http://www.ahraz.org/association-for-the-humanrights-of-the-azerbaijani-people-in-iran-ahrazs-repot-regarding-the-current-situation-of-the-azerbaijani-arrestees-that-arearrested-during-the-recent-protests-nove/ 25 See more: Kurdistan Human Rights Geneva, https://kmmk-ge.org/sd/annual-report-2020/ 26 The Governmental crackdown on the November 2019 protests is emblematic of Iran’s repression of the rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association. See more: Amnesty International, Trampling Humanity: Mass arrests, disappearances and torture since Iran’s 2019 November protests, https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde13/2891/2020/en/ 27 See more: Abdorrahman Boroumand Center, https://www.iranrights.org/projects/timeline 28 See more : ARTICLE 19, Small Media, Human Rights Activists in Iran, Impact Iran, Human Rights Committee, 129th session (Geneva) 29 June – 24 July 2020, https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CCPR/Shared%20Documents/IRN/INT_CCPR_ICS_IRN_42315_E.pdf 29 See more: Iran Human Rights, https://www.iranhr.net/en/reports/23/ 30 See more: Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, https://iranhrdc.org/controlled-and-pursued-labor-activism-incontemporary-iran/ 31 Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2020, https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/IR/Report_of_the_Special_Rapporteur_on_the_situation_of_human_rights_in_the_ Islamic_Republic_of_IranA4361.pdf 32 See more: United for Iran, database of Iran’s prisons and political prisoners available at https://ipa.united4iran.org/en/ 33 See more: EN-Human Rights Activists News Agency, https://www.en-hrana.org/?s=activists 34 Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2020, https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/IR/Report_of_the_Special_Rapporteur_on_the_situation_of_human_rights_in_the_ Islamic_Republic_of_IranA4361.pdf 3