Ensemble Contre la Peine de Mort (ECPM) and Iran Human Rights reported at least 280
executions in 2019, against 273 in 2018.16 17 18 19
The Islamic Republic of Iran has continued to implement death penalties throughout 2020,20
notably against protesters, dissidents and members of minority groups,21 most recently with the
execution of the journalist Ruhollah Zam on December 12, 2020.22 Although there are no readily
official and available data on the number of detainees in death row in Iran, a number of NGOs
reported a significant number of individuals currently in prison and sentenced to the capital
punishment for crimes that are not “the most serious” under international standards. 23 24 There is
no readily available information that might indicate that the Government of the Islamic Republic
of Iran has planned to commute pending death sentences.
B. The Islamic Republic of Iran should ensure that, whenever it is imposed, the
requirements of articles 6 and 14 of the Covenant are fully met.
As described above, the Islamic Republic of Iran does not ensure that whenever the death penalty
is imposed the requirements of article 6 of the Covenant is fully met. Additionally, the Islamic
Republic of Iran does not guarantee that all individuals sentenced to the death penalty have
access to legal assistance of one’s choosing, although such right is protected under Article 14 of
the Covenant.
Article 35 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran ostensibly guarantees the right to
legal defence, which also ensures the right to choose a lawyer. In the event that a party to a
lawsuit is unable to secure legal counselling, according to Article 35 of the Iranian Constitution a
lawyer will be provided.25 Additionally, Article 190 of the revised Code of Criminal Procedure
(CCP) protects the right of a suspect to “be accompanied by a lawyer during the preliminary
investigations”. Similarly, Article 48 of the CCP permits the accused to “demand the presence of
a lawyer from the beginning of his/her detention.”26 27 According to Iran Human Rights, every
16
ECPM, Iran Human Rights, https://www.ecpm.org/wp-content/uploads/Rapport-iran-2020-gb-070420-WEB.pdf
Amnesty International, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/04/death-penalty-in-2019-facts-and-figures/
18
See more: Abdorrahman Boroumand Center https://www.iranrights.org/projects/omidmap
19
See more: Human Rights Activists in Iran https://www.en-hrana.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Annual-Report-ofExecutions-2019.pdf
20
See for instance: Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, https://iranhrdc.org/ihrdc-chart-of-executions-by-the-islamicrepublic-of-iran-2020/
21
Amnesty International, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/07/iran-two-kurds-executed-amid-increasing-use-ofdeath-penalty-as-weapon-of-repression/
22
OHCHR News, https://www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=26603&LangID=E
23
United For Iran’s Prison atlas, https://ipa.united4iran.org/en/prisoner/
24
ECPM & IRH, https://www.ecpm.org/wp-content/uploads/Rapport-iran-2020-gb-070420-WEB.pdf
25
Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran http://www.iranchamber.com/government/laws/constitution_ch03.php
26
Code of Criminal Procedure of the Islamic Republic of Iran (2015) as referenced in the joint submission to the Human Rights
Committee from the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center, Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, Impact Iran, Human Rights
Activists in Iran, 2020,
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CCPR/Shared%20Documents/IRN/INT_CCPR_ICS_IRN_42313_E.pdf
27
Code of Criminal Procedure of the Islamic Republic of Iran (2015) original version http://dotic.ir/print/5584
17
3