Sources: Amnesty International, United Nations
28 March 2007 – The Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions issued the following statement today:
“The execution of juveniles in Iran is completely unacceptable”, says Philip Alston, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions. “The Iranian Government cannot continue to ignore its obligations under international law. In particular, in 1994 Iran ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child and made a clear and unambiguous legal commitment not to impose the death penalty for offences committed by persons less than eighteen years old.”
“It is time for Iran to demonstrate that its commitment to international law involves concrete action, not just empty words,” says Alston. “The Government of Iran must immediately commute all death sentences imposed for crimes individuals committed before the age of 18.”
A report released by Alston yesterday referred to the cases of 15 individuals on which he had acted over the past two years. These included nine boys and six girls who had been sentenced to death in Iran for crimes committed when they were under 18. According to the available information four of these juvenile offenders have been executed and two acquitted. Five other death sentences are “on hold” and one is under review. The status of the remaining three cases is unclear.
Alston presented his findings to the UN Human Rights Council on Tuesday. This report contains a comprehensive account of communications sent to Iranian Governments up to 1 December 2006, along with replies received up to the end of January 2007. In it’s communique about Naznin Fatehi last year the Iranian Goverrnent had falsely replied to UN that : “Ms. Nazanin was born in 1986…when she was over 19 years of age. According to the records of the court, the crime has been committed based on personal .reasons and not in self defense as it has been reported to the Special Rapporteurs.”
The report also clarifies some of the UN communique in Fenruary of 2006 about Delara Darabi. It also shows the urgent UN appeal about Rostam Tajok who was 16 at the time of alleged crime. However Islamic Republic of Iran still proceeded with his execution on December 10, 2006.
Philip Alston was appointed as Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights on 13 July 2004. In 2006, the Commission on Human Rights was replaced by the Human Rights Council, and Alston now reports to the Council. For further information on the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, see:
http://www.ohchr.org/english/issues/executions/ , http://www.extrajudicialexecutions.org/ The report that Alston presented to the Human Rights Council on March 27 is UN Doc. No. A/HRC/4/20, and communications with governments are included in A/HRC/4/20/Add.1.
A word of thanks to UN offices of Mr. Philp Aliston for their efforts and comments.
PARTS OF THE REPORT:
Islamic Republic of Iran:
Communications Sent: 8 (7 UA, 1 AL)
Government Responses: 2 (2 UA)
Number and Category of Individuals Concerned: 38 males (2 minors, 1
foreign national), 6 females (1 minor)
Alleged Violations of the Right to Life upon which the Special Rapporteur
Intervened: Death penalty safeguards (8)
Character of Replies Received:
No response (6)
Allegations rejected without adequate substantiation (1)
Cooperative but incomplete response (1)
Islamic Republic of Iran: Death Sentence of Rostam Tajik
Violation alleged: Non-respect of international standards relating to the imposition of capital
punishment
Subject(s) of appeal: 1 male (juvenile offender, foreign national)
Character of reply: No response
Observations of the Special Rapporteur
The Special Rapporteur regrets that the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has failed to cooperate with the mandate that he has been given by the General Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights.
Urgent appeal dated 8 December 2005
I would like to bring to the attention of Your Excellency’s Government the situation of Rostam Tajik, a 20-year-old Afghan national. He is scheduled for execution on 10 December 2005 for the May 2001 murder of Ms. Nafiseh Rafi’i, a crime he allegedly committed when he was less than 18 years old. According to the information I have received, Rostom Tajik was an apprentice with Ms. Rafi’i’s husband. In May 2001, he reportedly went into the couple’s house with the intention to burgle it. However, once inside, he killed Nafiseh Rafi’i and cut the throat of her 11-year-old daughter,
whose screams alerted the neighbours. Rostam Tajik fled the scene. The daughter was taken to the hospital for treatment where her life was saved. Rostam Tajik was later arrested in Qazvin, west of Tehran. He was sentenced to qisas (retribution specified by the victim’s family) by Branch 9 of the General Court of Esfahan for the murder of Ms. Rafi’i. The sentence was reportedly upheld by the Supreme Court. .If the information I have received is accurate, there would be grounds for serious concerns. As Your Excellency is aware of, this is not the first case of juvenile offender being sentenced to death and/or facing imminent execution I have received so far this year. Indeed, you will recall
that I had addressed this issue in previous correspondence with the Government of Your
Excellency, some of which you have provided partial responses to (see letter dated 9 February 2005, 21 April 2005, and joint communication sent on 7 August 2005 with the Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child). While I do not wish to prejudge the accuracy of these allegations, I would like to draw your attention once again to the fact that the execution of Rostom Tajik and any further executions of juvenile offenders are incompatible with the international legal obligations of the Islamic
Republic of Iran under various instruments which I have been mandated to bring to the attention of Governments. The right to life of persons below eighteen years of age and the obligation of States to guarantee the enjoyment of this right to the maximum extent possible are both specifically expressed in Article 6 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Besides, Article 37(a) expressly provides that capital punishment shall not be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age. In addition, Article 6(5) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provides that the death penalty shall not be imposed for crimes committed by persons below eighteen years of age. In this connection, I would also remind your Excellency of the discussions of this issue that took place between your Government and the Committee on the Rights of the Child in January 2005, in which the delegation stated that all executions of persons who had committed crimes under the age of 18 had been halted. This was reiterated in a note verbale from the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran on 8 March 2005 to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in which it was stated:
“In recent years the enactment of the death penalty for individuals aged under18 has
been halted and there has been no instance of such punishments for the category of
youth. The legal ban on under-aged capital punishment has been incorporated into the
draft Bill on Juvenile Courts, which is at present before parliament for ratification.”
I would respectfully urge the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to take all necessary measures to comply with international human rights law and to prevent executions which are inconsistent with accepted standards of international human rights law. These measures were, in my view, accurately reflected in the recommendations issued by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, which called on Iran in January 2005 to “immediately suspend the execution of all death penalties imposed on persons for having committed a crime before the age of 18, to take the appropriate legal measures to convert them to penalties in conformity with the provisions of the Convention and to abolish the death penalty as a sentence imposed on persons for having committed crimes before the age of 18, as required by article 37 of the Convention.” (See CRC/C/15/Add. 254, 28 January 2005, at para. 30). Finally, I would respectfully reiterate my requests for a comprehensive and detailed indication of the details of individuals who have been sentenced to death for crimes committed when they were less than eighteen years of age, even if such sentences have not yet been confirmed by the
Supreme Court. These requests were contained in the above-mentioned previous
communications sent to the Government of Your Excellency, in relation to the situation of at least 30 individuals under the age of 18 who were reportedly sentenced to death and were held in juvenile detention centres in Tehran and Raja’I Shahr. It is regrettable that no response has yet been received.
Islamic Republic of Iran: Death Sentence of Ms. Nazanin
Violation alleged: Non-respect of international standards relating to the imposition of capital punishment
Subject(s) of appeal: 1 female (juvenile offender)
Character of reply: Allegations rejected but without adequate substantiation
Observations of the Special Rapporteur
The Special Rapporteur appreciates the information provided by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. However, the SR would reiterate that, in light of the importance attached to the issue and the need for accuracy and certainty, he would be most grateful if the Government could provide a copy of Ms. Nazanin’s birth certificate, passport or other official document confirming that she was over 18 at the time of the crime.
Urgent appeal dated 10 February 2006 sent with the Special Rapporteur on the question of torture and Special Rapporteur on violence against women.
We would like to draw the attention of your Government to information we have received
regarding Ms. Nazanin, aged 18, who has reportedly been sentenced to death for a homicide committed when she was seventeen. According to the information we have received, on 3 January 2006, Nazanin was sentenced to death for murder by a criminal court, after she reportedly admitted stabbing to death one of three men who attempted to rape her and her 16-year-old niece in a park in Karaj in March 2005. She was seventeen at the time. Her sentence is subject to review by the Court of Appeal, and if upheld, to confirmation by the Supreme Court. In this connection, we would like to draw your attention to the positive developments in a similarly situated case recently raised with your Excellency’s Government by the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions. In note no. 331-2/3459, dated 17 January 2006, your Excellency’s Government informs the Special Rapporteur that “according to information received from the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran legal counsels of Ms. Darabi appealed to the Supreme Court and raised the issue of her age at the time of the crime. On this basis the Supreme Court has overturned the sentence and has referred it to the Juvenile Legal
Center for due consideration.We wish to welcome the steps taken in Ms. Darabi’s case. We urge your Excellency’s Government to ensure on its own motion that Ms. Nazanin’s age at the time of the offence is taken into account in appeals proceedings and the death sentence overturned, whether or not her lawyer raises the issue. It would appear that only this course of action will ensure compliance of your Government with its international human rights obligations.
Response of the Government of Islamic Republic of Iran dated 22 February 2006 to an urgent appeal dated 10 February 2006 With reference to the letter dated 10 February 2006 of the Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Execution, the Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture and the Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, Its Causes and Consequences, the Islamic Republic of Iran has the honour to inform the Special Rapportuers that according to information received from the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ms. Nazanin was born in 1986. She, along with her niece, has committed murder about 9 months ago, when she was over 19 years of age. According to the records of the court, the crime has been committed based on personal .reasons and not in self defense as it has been reported to the Special Rapporteurs.
She has gone through due legal proceeding and the Criminal Court of the province bas reached its verdict, but the sentence must be presented to the Supreme Court and upon confirmation of the latter, it must be signed by the Head of the Judiciary. Therefore the case is still open and under consideration.
Follow-up letter dated 17 march 2006 to the urgent appeal dated 10 February 2006
I wish to refer to you letter dated 22 February 2006 in response to my communication of 10 February relating to the case of ms. Nazanin in which you mentioned that this person was born in 1986 and that “she has committed murder about 9 months ago, when she was over 19 years of age”. I greatly appreciate the information which your Excellency’s Government has supplied in this particular case. Because of the importance attached to the issue and the need to accuracy and certainty, I would be most grateful if you could provide me with a copy of her birth certificate, passport or other official document confirming that she was over 18 at the time of the crime.
Additional response of the Government of Islamic Republic of Iran dated 16 May 2006 to an urgent appeal dated 22 Feburary 2006 With reference to its note verbale No. 3865 dated 22 February 2006, the Islamic Republic of Iran has the honour to inform the Special Rapporteurs that the court has ruled out self defense and sentenced Ms. Nazanin to retaliation. The sentence has been referred to the Supreme Court for final decision. Should the Supreme Court endorse the verdict, the case will be referred to an
ad hoc commission of reconciliation to acquire the consent of the victim’s heirs to commute the verdict to financial compensation. This is a lengthy process; therefore the legal process is not yet completed and the verdict stays for the time being.
Islamic Republic of Iran: Death Sentences of Khaled Hardani, Shahram Pour Mansouri, and Farhang Pour Mansouri
Violation alleged: Non-respect of international standards relating to the imposition of capital punishment
Subject(s) of appeal: 3 males (1 juvenile offender)
Character of reply: No response
Observations of the Special Rapporteur
The Special Rapporteur regrets that the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has failed to cooperate with the mandate that he has been given by the General Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights.
Urgent appeal dated 13 March 2006
I would like to draw the attention of your Government to information I have received regarding Khaled Hardani and his two brothers-in-law Shahram and Farhang Pour Mansouri who have been sentenced to death for their attempt in hijacking an aircraft in January 2001. Reports indicate that at the time of hijacking, Shahram Pour Mansouri was aged 17. According to the information received, Khaled Hardani was one of 11 members of an extended family who attempted to commandeer a scheduled flight between the southern Iranian cities of Ahvaz and Bandar Abbas, and force it to fly to Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. Security guards already on board ended the hijack attempt by shooting Khaled Hardani while the plane was still on the runway at Ahvaz. Khaled Hardani had persuaded Shahram and Farhang Pourmansouri’s to board the plane without telling them his plans, and they reportedly only intervened to help him as the security guards opened fire. The three men were sentenced to death on charges of “acts against national security” (eqdam ‘aleyhe amniyat) and Moharebeh, or enmity with God, rather than charges relating specifically to hijacking an aircraft. The death sentences have been upheld by the Supreme Court, while the Amnesty and Clemency Commission (Komisyon-e ‘Afv va Bakhshoudegi) has rejected an application for a pardon from their lawyer.
The Head of the Judiciary ordered the executions of all three men to be stayed because of
Shahram Pour Mansouri’s age. In this context, I urge your Excellency’s Government to ensure that because of his age at the time of the offence the death sentence is commuted in conformity with the relevant international human rights obligations undertaken by your Government. The execution of a person for a crime committed while a juvenile would clearly violate the terms of both the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It is my responsibility under the mandate provided to me by the Commission on Human Rights and reinforced by the appropriate resolutions of the General Assembly, to seek to clarify all such cases brought to my attention. Since I am expected to report on these cases to the Commission, I
would be grateful for your cooperation and your observations. I would appreciate a response on these matters before any irreversible steps are taken in relation to the fate of the accused individuals. I undertake to ensure that your Government’s response is accurately reflected in the reports I will submit to the Commission on Human Rights for its consideration.