There is no readily available information that may indicate that the Government developed a
crime prevention strategy for children. Official and readily available data on the administration
of criminal justice for children are particularly scarce, if not inaccessible. The age of criminal
responsibility in Iran is set at 9 lunar years for girls (the Gregorian equivalent of eight years, nine
months in solar years) and 15 lunar years for boys (the Gregorian equivalent of fourteen years,
seven months in solar years).4 While the Iranian judicial system has established several
procedural mechanisms to administer juvenile justice, the State still lacks a distinctive and
comprehensive juvenile justice system that is geared toward the best interest of the child. Iranian
law does not ensure that detention is used as a last resort and for the shortest possible period of
time for children. As children are subjected to the same legal framework as adult offenders, they
may be sentenced for crimes with mandatory punishments which include imprisonment, flogging
and the death penalty. While there are Rehabilitation and Training Centers established of
convicted juvenile offenders in Iran, 5 they reportedly are not designed to facilitate the
rehabilitation of detainees. 6 There is no readily available information that might indicate the
existence of rehabilitation programs designed for children who were in conflict with the law in
Iran that comply with the Convention on the Rights of the Child.7
B. The State party should seek technical assistance in the area of juvenile justice from
members of the Panel and relevant international bodies.
From 2005 to 2011, the UNICEF Iran Country Office conducted a workshop on juvenile justice
for police officers in collaboration with the Iranian Judiciary and Law Enforcement Forces. 8
There is no readily available information that might indicate that the Islamic Republic of Iran has
sought any additional technical assistance in the area of juvenile justice from relevant
international bodies nor from members of the Inter-agency Panel on Juvenile Justice.
Recommendation Status:
This recommendation has NOT been implemented.
4
Criminal responsibility, Articles 140, 146 and 147 of the Islamic Penal Code, 2013 https://iranhrdc.org/english-translation-ofbooks-i-ii-of-the-new-islamic-penal-code/
5
For a history of “Rehabilitation and Training Centers” in Iran, please see: http://www.madadkar.org/preven- tion-of-socialdamage/history-correcting-and-training-centers.html
6
Iran Human Rights Documentation Center’s consultation with Iranian lawyer Hossein Raeesi, February 2015
7
See more: Joint alternative report by civil society organizations on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child by the Islamic Republic of Iran, 2015,
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CRC/Shared%20Documents/IRN/INT_CRC_NGO_IRN_19809_E.pdf
8
UNICEF, https://www.unicef.org/evaldatabase/index_73936.html
2