Ahmad Shahid: Nearly One Thousand Executions in Iran in 2015

The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, Ahmad Shahid, announced on Thursday, March 10, that nearly one thousand people were executed in Iran in 2015, with half of them convicted of drug-related offenses. Shahid's report is released in the fifth year of his tenure as the UN's human rights representative in Iran and will be reviewed at the upcoming session of the UN Human Rights Council. According to the report, based on the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, 966 people were executed in Iran last year, with 500 of them convicted of drug-related crimes. A table included in the report shows that the total number of executions in Iran in 2004 was 91, which rose to 697 in 2012. The number of executions in 2015 was reported as the highest in the last decade. The report also mentions that the highest number of executions took place in Qezel Hesar Prison, which houses mostly drug-related offenders along with a few political prisoners. Regarding freedom of expression, Shahid's report states that Iran received eleven human rights proposals in 2014, accepting two fully and four partially. Under the accepted proposals, Iran agreed to take necessary steps to ensure that all citizens benefit from the rights and freedoms outlined in the Iranian constitution. However, the report notes that in 2015, six writers, artists, and musicians, along with 22 journalists and 23 social media activists, were arrested in Iran. The UN Special Rapporteur welcomed the release of Jason Rezaian, a Washington Post journalist imprisoned in Iran. Shahid also addressed the elections for the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the Assembly of Experts held on February 25. A chart analyzing the number of candidates in the ten electoral cycles shows that the number of interested candidates has quadrupled, yet the number of approved candidates has only doubled, while the number of disqualified candidates has increased nearly sevenfold. The report discusses disqualifications, controversies, and crackdowns, particularly the disruption of speeches by prominent individuals in the days leading up to the elections. In the section on women's rights, Shahid highlighted the case of Niloufar Ardalan, the captain of the women's national football team, who was banned from leaving Iran to participate in football competitions, noting that married women in Iran cannot obtain a passport or leave the country without their husband's permission. Other issues addressed include the denial of Iranian passports to children born to non-Iranian fathers, the family support bill and population increase, rewards for judges in divorce cases who manage to dissuade couples from divorce, and the issue of 'bad hijab' and criminalization of it. Shahid expressed serious concern over the violation of minority rights, stating that systematic discrimination against them and harassment of Baha'i families continues. The report also mentions the challenges faced by Christian converts who were previously Muslims. At the end of the report, it is noted that while the Iranian government's efforts to address domestic and foreign issues are commendable, the matters highlighted in the report require serious legal reforms and immediate attention. The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran urged the international community to remain committed to their obligations regarding human rights in Iran and called on Iran to facilitate the collection of information on the human rights situation. This marks the fifth consecutive year that Shahid has served as the UN Special Rapporteur, yet he has not been able to visit Iran to closely monitor the human rights situation. The UN Human Rights Council will soon decide whether to renew Shahid's position as Special Rapporteur, while Mohammad Javad Larijani, head of Iran's Human Rights Headquarters, announced on March 2 that the Islamic Republic opposes this appointment.