Islamic Republic of Iran raised serious concerns over recurrent arrests and detentions of HRDs solely for carrying out their legitimate work. 32 33 34 The Special Rapporteur also referred to reports of harassment, imprisonment and mistreatment in prison of HRDs and the increasing pressure faced by their families.35 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.36 Additionally, as the State relies on the Iranian legal framework to repress the work of HRDs, access to justice is particularly limited. In light of the above, the Islamic Republic of Iran has not taken proactive steps to promote the full realisation of the rights of human rights defenders and has not refrained from any acts that violate the rights of human rights defenders because of their human rights work. B. The government should take strict measures to ensure that the security and intelligence apparatus does not use reprisals against families of those who monitor or campaign against human rights violations or express views that are contrary to government policies The Constitution established the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as an independent security force tasked to preserve the ideals of the 1979 revolution.37 Nowadays, the IRGC extended its security and intelligence role in Iran, it being separate from the country’s regular forces. This was done notably through its Basij all-volunteer paramilitary force and the IRGC Intelligence Organisation. The head of the IRGC reports directly to the Supreme Leader and in effect is not accountable to either the government or the judiciary. The Supreme Leader, who appoints, dismisses and 32 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 33 See more: United for Iran, database of Iran’s prisons and political prisoners available at https://ipa.united4iran.org/en/ 34 See more: EN-Human Rights Activists News Agency, https://www.en-hrana.org/?s=activists 35 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 36 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 37 Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, English translation, https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wp-content/uploads/constitutionenglish-1368.pdf 4