Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences
E/CN.4/2006/61/Add.3 para 74 (g)
Full recommendation:
To prioritise the elimination of violence against women as a public policy issue and to prevent,
investigate and punish all acts of violence against women, whether perpetrated by private or
State actors, it is recommended that the Government:
Investigate publicly all allegations of arbitrary detention and to ensure that victims of arbitrary
detention receive compensation;
Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1
Article 32 of the Constitution states that "No one may be arrested except in accordance with the
law" and "In case of arrest, the subject of the accusation must be immediately notified to the
accused in writing, stating the reasons, and the case file must be sent to the judicial authorities
within a maximum of 24 hours." However, this principle of the constitution is constantly violated
in practice.
Iranian authorities often resort to arbitrarily detaining dissidents or activists in order to repress
any opposition.2 Targeted groups include, but are not limited to, activists, lawyers, artists,
journalists, and minorities, as well as dual and foreign3 nationals.4 According to human rights
groups, in 2018 alone, more than 7,000 members of the aforementioned targeted groups were
arrested, many arbitrarily.5
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 reviewed and investigated.6
1
CCPR.9.1.S.1; CCPR.9.1.S.2; CCPR.9.1.S.3; CCPR.9.2.S.1; CCPR.9.4.S.1; CCPR.9.5.S.1; CCPR.9.1.P.1; CCPR.9.2.P.2;
CCPR.9.5.P.2; CCPR.9.1.O.2; CCPR.9.2.O.3; CCPR.9.4.O.1; CCPR.9.5.O.1
2
Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI): https://www.en-hrana.org/statements/joint-ngo-letter-support-human-rights-council34th-resolution-human-rights-iran
3
Human Rights Watch: https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/09/26/iran-targeting-dual-citizens-foreigners
4
Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRAI): https://www.en-hrana.org/statements/36-human-rights-groups-call-un-pass-resolutioniran
5
Amnesty International: https://www.amnestyusa.org/press-releases/irans-year-of-shame-more-than-7000-arrested-in-chillingcrackdown-on-dissent-during-2018/
6
Joint submission to the Human Rights Committee, Abdorrahman Center, Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC), Impact Iran and Human Rights
Activists in Iran, 2020, https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=INT%2fCCPR%2fICS%2fIRN%2f42313&Lang=en
1