ongoing executions of child offenders in the Islamic Republic of Iran as “conclusive proof of the
failure of the 2013 amendments to stop the execution of individuals sentenced to death as
children”.17 In 2019, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic
Republic of Iran found that the aforementioned assessment of the mental development of the
accused at the time of the offence was “arbitrary and inconsistent, and at the sole discretion of
the judge, who can choose whether to seek medical advice or not”.18 In recent years, reports
indicate that courts have been selective in applying Article 91 and its note.19 There were cases
where, despite forensic reports confirming that the defendant was not “fully mature” at the time
of the crime, the judge decided that the accused individual(s) were mature and the language of
Article 91 did not apply to them, as they had previously been charged for criminal activities (e.g.,
robbery).
The appeal process for death sentence cases is covered by Chapter 4 of the Iranian Criminal
Procedure Code (Articles 426 through 483), which specifies appeals processes for each type of
charge. While any charge can be appealed, charges that carry the death penalty require approval
by the Supreme Court for an appeal to be made.
Additionally, in qisas cases, the pardon or commutation of the sentence is based solely on the
request of the victim or the victim’s guardian.20 The accused is unable to request their own
pardon or commutation, but there are a number institutions that can intervene to mediate cases
of children sentenced with qisas, notably in order to commute qisas into diya sentences (blood
money). These institutions include a reconciliation commission, a working group tasked to
support mediation with the next of kin victim, conflict resolution council branches and the
Women and Children and Protection Office of the judiciary. 21 There is no readily available
information indicating the number of cases concerning children that have been received,
reviewed and adjudicated by these institutions. However, the Government of the Islamic of Iran
stated that the State was not intervening in the execution of the sentence in cases of qisas, which
“is only possible on the basis of the request of the owners of the blood”.22 Ultimately, if the
victim’s next of kin does not grant pardon in exchange for diya, the sentence must be fulfilled,
with no option for the accused, including children, to seek pardon or commutation from the
State.
17
See OHCHR News, www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=21547&LangID=E
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2019,
https://undocs.org/Home/Mobile?FinalSymbol=A%2FHRC%2F40%2F67&Language=E&DeviceType=Desktop
19
Amnesty International, https://www.amnestyusa.org/press-releases/irans-hypocrisy-exposed-as-scores-of-juvenile-offenderscondemned-to-gallows/
20
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2019,
https://undocs.org/Home/Mobile?FinalSymbol=A%2FHRC%2F40%2F67&Language=E&DeviceType=Desktop
21
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2019,
https://undocs.org/Home/Mobile?FinalSymbol=A%2FHRC%2F40%2F67&Language=E&DeviceType=Desktop
22
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, January 2019,
https://undocs.org/en/A/HRC/40/67
18
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