Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran A/72/322 para 111 Full recommendation The Special Rapporteur urges the Government, in line with its international obligations, to immediately release all detainees who have been imprisoned for exercising their right to freedom of opinion, expression and peaceful assembly and to quash the prison sentences that have been handed down against others for similar reasons. State entities that organize crackdowns on peaceful dissent should be identified and held accountable in order to prevent a recurrence of such violations. The Government should also take strict measures to ensure that the security and intelligence apparatus stops using reprisals against the families of those who monitor or campaign against human rights violations or express views that are contrary to government policies. Assessment using Impact Iran human rights indicators1 A. The Special Rapporteur urges the Government, in line with its international obligations, to immediately release all detainees who have been imprisoned for exercising their right to freedom of opinion, expression and peaceful assembly and to quash the prison sentences that have been handed down against others for similar reasons Article 27 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran2 ostensibly protects the right to freedom of peaceful assembly, however only if it is not “in violation of the fundamental principles of Islam.” There is no clear definition or criteria that define what constitutes “fundamental principles of Islam,” therefore granting the State significant opportunity to restrict rights that contain such condition. Similar restrictions are also found under Article 2 of the Law on Political Crimes, adopted in 2016, which stipulates that participation in an unauthorized assembly, even if it is peaceful, can effectively be considered a political offence.3 Similarly, the right to freedom of expression, recognized under Article 24 of the Constitution is restricted if “deemed harmful to the principles of Islam or the rights of the public.” Article 40 further allows restrictions of rights, including peaceful assembly, if the exercise is deemed “injurious to others” or “detrimental to public interests.” Similar provisions restrict the right to freedom of expression online through the criminalization of vaguely worded offences such as the 1 CCPR.9.1.S.1; CCPR.9.1.S.2; CCPR.9.1.S.3; CCPR.9.2.S.1; CCPR.9.3.S.2; CCPR.14.1.S.2; CCPR.9.1.P.1; CCPR.9.1.P.2; CCPR.9.1.P.5; CCPR.9.1.P.6; CCPR.9.2.P.1; CCPR.9.3.P.1; CCPR.9.1.O.1; CCPR.9.1.O.1; CCPR.9.2.O.1; CCPR.9.2.O.4; CCPR.14.1.O.8 2 Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, English translation, https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wp-content/uploads/constitutionenglish-1368.pdf 3 The 2016 Law on Political Crimes, available at: https://rc.majlis.ir/fa/law/show/968421 1

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