Concluding Observations Committee on the Rights of the Child CRC/C/IRN/CO/3-4 para
42
Full recommendation:
In light of its general comment No. 12 (2009) on the right of the child to be heard, the
Committee recommends that the State party adopt and implement legislation
recognising the right of the child to be heard in all relevant legal proceedings by
establishing systems and/or procedures for social workers and courts to comply with the
principle. It also recommends that the State party conduct programmes and awareness-raising
activities to promote the meaningful and effective participation of all children within the family,
the community and schools, including within student council bodies, with particular attention to
girls and to children in vulnerable situations.
Assessment using Impact Iran indicators1
A. Adopt and implement legislation recognising the right of the child to be
heard in all relevant legal proceedings by establishing systems and/or procedures
for social workers and courts to comply with the principle
Access to justice is guaranteed in Iran under Article 34 of the Constitution, which states that: “It
is the indisputable right of every citizen to seek justice by recourse to competent courts. All
citizens have the right to access such courts, and no one can be barred from courts to which he
has a legal right of recourse.” 2According to the Iranian Civil Code, all persons are entitled to
civil rights but nobody can utilise and employ these rights unless they possess the legal capacity
to do so.3 Only children over the age of 15, who are legally deemed mature, may bring a case to
the courts unassisted, however,4 all other children need to bring cases through their legal
guardian.5 The father’s consent is needed to initiate legal proceedings, except where the father is
the person against whom a complaint is made or he is unavailable to provide his consent.6
Another major obstacle to justice for children in Iran is access to legal aid. The Constitution of
Iran (Article 35) grants everyone the right to select a lawyer and states that if a person is unable
1
Indicators used: CRC.12.2.S.1; CRC.12.2.P.1; CRC.12.2.O.1
Impact Iran submission to the Committee on the Rights of the Child, review of the 3rd and 4th periodic reports of the Islamic
Republic of Iran: https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/TreatyBodyExternal/countries.aspx?CountryCode=IRN&Lang=EN
3
Civil Code art. 958.
4
Civil Code, art. 1210
5
Ibid.
6
For example see art. 1172 of the Civil law. The Guardianship of the child is fully explained in this article: Guardianship in
Iranian Law, Hakime Mohammadi, Published August 23, 2014, available at http://mehrkhane.com/fa/ news/12585/
2