Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic
of Iran A/67/369 para 74
Full recommendation:
The Special Rapporteur concludes that specific attention must be paid to legislation that serves
to attenuate and abrogate rights guaranteed by the five international instruments to which the
Islamic Republic of Iran is a party. Impunity must also be addressed in order to facilitate
accountability, provide redress for human rights violations and strengthen the rule of law, all of
which are required to effectively promote respect for human rights in the country.
Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1
A) The Special Rapporteur concludes that specific attention must be paid to legislation
that serves to attenuate and abrogate rights guaranteed by the five international
instruments to which the Islamic Republic of Iran is a party.
Article 4 of the Iranian Constitution states that “All civil, penal financial, economic,
administrative, cultural, military, political, and other laws and regulations must be based on
Islamic criteria. This principle applies absolutely and generally to all articles of the Constitution
as well as to all other laws and regulations, and the wise persons of the Guardian Council are
judges in this matter.”2 Article 20 of the Iranian Constitution states that “All citizens of the
country, both men and women, equally enjoy the protection of the law and enjoy all human,
political, economic, social, and cultural rights, in conformity with Islamic criteria.”3
According to Article 4 of the Constitution, the Guardian Council of the Islamic Republic of Iran
is entrusted with defining and determining the framework of what constitutes “Islamic criteria”
or standards applicable to it. Among the 12 non-elected members of the Guardian Council, only
the six male clerics, directly appointed by the Supreme Leader, are responsible for such task.
While Article 4 and Article 20 of the Constitution supposedly safeguard the human rights of
women and protect them from discrimination, such legal guarantees exist only when they are in
conformity with “Islamic criteria.” The opportunity for interpretation allowed under the
qualifications such as “in conformity with Islamic criteria” has often resulted in legislation that
discriminates, or has a discriminatory impact on various grounds, attenuating rights that are
otherwise guaranteed under the five international instruments to which the Islamic Republic of
Iran is a party.
1
ESCR.2.2.S.1; ESCR.3.S.1; CCPR.6.1.S.2; CCPR.6.5.S.1; CCPR.7.1.S.1; CRC.37.1.S.2
ESCR.2.2.P.2; CCPR.6.1.P.1; CCPR.7.1.P.1;
ESCR.2.2.O.2 ; CCPR.6.5.O.1
2
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, English translation, https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wp-content/uploads/constitutionenglish-1368.pdf
3
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, English translation, https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wp-content/uploads/constitutionenglish-1368.pdf
1