In light of the above, the Government and Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran have not
ensured that all those arrested for the peaceful exercise of their rights to freedom of opinion,
expression, assembly and association are released.
B. The Special Rapporteur recommends that the Government and Parliament
promptly report to the families the whereabouts and situation of individuals taken
into custody
The current prisons operational regulations,34 passed in 1986, put the management of all prisons
and detention centers and affiliated bodies under the responsibility of the Prisons Organization.35
Such provision is reiterated under Article 18 of the Prison Regulations passed in 2001. However,
the existence of secret detention centers or facilities run outside the supervision of the Prisons
Organization is not explicitly prohibited. Secret detention centers run by security and intelligence
bodies, notably the Ministry of Intelligence and the intelligence unit of the Revolutionary
Guards, remain reportedly prevalent in the Islamic Republic of Iran.36 Additionally, security and
intelligence bodies can, with the approval37 and under the supervision of the Prisons
Organization,38 set up “security detention facilities”. Prosecution authorities are obliged to
inspect security detention facilities regularly and submit a report to the judiciary.39 Under the
Law on Respect for Legitimate Freedoms and Protection of Citizens’ Rights, the head of the
judiciary is obliged to set a committee to ensure that prisons and detention centers regulations are
respected and that those responsible for committing abuses are held to account.40 Reportedly,
these legal safeguards are not applied in practice, enabling intelligence and security bodies to
operate outside the Iranian legal framework and without accountability.41 Unofficial secret
detention centers are not regulated under Iranian law and are not registered under the Prisons
Organization, which prevents the detainees from knowing the exact location of where they are
being held. This is in contradiction of the Law on Respect for Legitimate Freedoms and
Protection of Citizen’s Rights which provides that law enforcement officials and interrogators
34
Full title: The Law Replacing the Supervisory Council on Prisons and Security and Corrective Measures with the State Prisons
Organization and Security and Corrective Measures, 1986.
35
Prison Regulations, Article 18. In 1986, the Prisons Organization replaced the Supervisory Council on Prisons and Security
and Corrective Measures. See the Law Replacing the Supervisory Council on Prisons and Security and Corrective Measures with
the State Prisons Organization and Security and Corrective Measures, 26 January 1986, available on the website of the Islamic
Parliament Research Centre at https://rc.majlis.ir/fa/law/show/91160. Article 9 of the Law required the passage of an executive
by-law which was passed in July 2001, 15 years after the adoption of the Law of Alteration in 1986. The 2001 Prison Regulations
were subjected to amendments in 2002 and 2010.
36
See more: Amnesty International, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/MDE1328912020ENGLISH.PDF
37
Prohibition of Forming Special Detention Facilities and Allocation of One Detention Facility for Security Crimes in Each
Province, www.rc.majlis.ir/fa/law/show/131562 ; Executive Regulations for Management of Security Detention Facilities, 21
November 2006, Note to Article 3, https://bit.ly/3loEKSf
38
Executive Regulations for Management of Security Detention Facilities, 21 November 2006, Articles 2 and 4-6,
https://bit.ly/3o9sqak
39
Executive Regulations for Management of Security Detention Facilities, 21 November 2006, Article 2, www.bit.ly/2Fu8rlx;
See also the Law on Respect for Legitimate Freedoms and Protection of Citizens’ Rights, 5 May 2004, Article 1(13),
www.rc.majlis.ir/fa/law/show/94150
40
The Law on Respect for Legitimate Freedoms and Protection of Citizens’ Rights, 5 May 2004, Article 1(15),
www.rc.majlis.ir/fa/law/show/94150
41
See more: Amnesty International, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/MDE1328912020ENGLISH.PDF
4