Reports of cases of torture and ill-treatment in the Islamic Republic of Iran are regular, including
within detention centers.9 10 Amnesty International reported widespread and systematic use of
torture and ill-treatment by Iranian authorities against protestors during and after the November
2019 protests, as well as cases of death while in Iranian custody.11 According to Iran Human
Rights, all death row prisoners they have been in contact with have testified that they were
subjected to torture in order to confess to the crime they were charged with. 12As of December
2020, there is no readily available information that might indicate that Iranian authorities have
opened investigations compliant with international standards into allegations of torture and
killings committed by police, security and intelligence agents and prison officials in the context
of the November 2019 protests.
Despite the existence of several mechanisms that ostensibly accept complaints regarding violations
of citizens' rights, such as the Article 90 Commission of the parliament (established based on
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.13 Additionally and as aforementioned, the absence of a
crime of torture in itself under Iranian law prevents prosecution, which is limited to cases of torture
provided under the law, and therefore hindering access to justice for victims.
The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has not ensured that deaths in custody and
allegations of violations of due process and of ill-treatment are promptly, independently,
impartially and effectively investigated by an independent competent authority with a view to
holding perpetrators accountable and in compliance with the right to a fair trial.
Recommendation Status:
This recommendation has NOT been implemented.
9
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, March 2018,
https://undocs.org/A/HRC/37/68
10
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2020,
https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G20/021/53/PDF/G2002153.pdf?OpenElement
11
Amnesty International, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/MDE1328912020ENGLISH.PDF
12
https://iranhr.net/en/articles/4732/
13
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
3