Exclusive to Voice of America; Javid Rahman: The People of Iran Have the Courage to Resist the Islamic Republic

The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, in his first detailed exclusive interview with the media in six years of holding this position, told Voice of America that his mission has no executive leverage but he is confident that the people of Iran will have the courage to resist the Islamic Republic. Javid Rahman responded to questions from the Persian section of Voice of America regarding the killing of protesters in the streets by government agents, numerous executions by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic, the detention of protesters and political and civil activists, solitary confinement, torture, forced confessions, the suppression of journalists, the violation of minority rights, and discrimination against women. In this detailed interview, Javid Rahman emphasized that he does not have a direct relationship with the UN Human Rights Office and therefore finds it difficult to express his views on the performance of this office. He explained that 'special procedures including my mission as the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran is an independent mission' and 'I do not work with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and have no direct relationship with that office,' stating that 'therefore it is very difficult for me to comment on what is happening in that office.' Javid Rahman, in a 'personal' remark, said that since the beginning of his mission in 2018, he has asked Iranian officials that 'I should be the first person' allowed access to Iran, as 'it is very sensitive and important to respect the text of the resolution that established' the Special Rapporteur's mission to be able to visit detention centers and meet with human rights defenders, victims of human rights violations, and connect with ethnic and religious minorities. He emphasized: 'Iranian officials were very happy to give my colleague who was allowed to go to Iran to assess the impact of unilateral sanctions on human rights access, and I thought I should have been given such permission as well.' The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran said: 'Iranian officials are very pleased to give me a red carpet visit to pretend that everything is great in the country.' He stressed the necessity of 'unrestricted and unimpeded access,' stating that it is 'very important for me to see all the places of concern' including 'detention centers and prisons' and to meet with 'human rights defenders.' Rahman added that 'it is very important that there be no retaliatory actions' as he regularly receives reports and complaints that individuals 'face retaliatory actions' from the Islamic Republic for 'reporting' to this UN official, 'are under very severe pressure and face very bad consequences.' Javid Rahman described the events that occurred during the nationwide protests after September 2022 in Iran as 'really distressing' and said: 'As the Special Rapporteur on human rights, I have been very active and raised human rights issues and concerns. In my report, I detailed the nature of the killings I have witnessed, including the killing of Mahsa Jina Amini.' Rahman emphasized the 'lack of any independent, transparent, and impartial investigations' into the killing of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police and 'the killing of over 500 people, including more than 70 children' by Iranian officials, leading to reactions such as 'expressing concern' as an 'urgent special procedure,' requesting 'an immediate independent investigation,' issuing 'a press statement,' and launching campaigns for the presence of 'independent investigators' in Iran to meet with at-risk individuals including Mahsa Amini's family and 'journalists who have been imprisoned and many human rights defenders and lawyers.' He added: 'We wanted an independent investigation into her killing. Then the Woman, Life, Freedom movement intensified and became a nationwide movement, and instead of acknowledging [the killing of Mahsa] and listening to the voice and concerns of the international community, the authorities went down the path of extreme brutal actions, including the unlawful use of deadly force, killing hundreds.' Javid Rahman further stated: 'We have evidence showing that women and girls have been specifically targeted and subjected to violence and cruelty, and I reported to the Human Rights Council that I have evidence and testimonies indicating that violence, including sexual violence, has occurred and sexual assault against men, boys, women, and girls has been perpetrated by the security forces of the government. There has also been systematic and organized violence against protesters, particularly targeting ethnic and religious minorities.' The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, referring to 'the killing of at least 95 protesters on Black Friday in Zahedan' on October 8, 2022, considered this issue a 'deep wound' for which 'no investigations have been conducted.' He emphasized that after the killing of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police, 'the government should have understood and allowed her family to mourn and hold a memorial for her,' but 'instead of this, they began to suppress the Kurds,' and 'we witnessed that hundreds of Kurds had their rights violated, were injured, killed, and we received reports that it seemed a state of military conditions had been created in the Kurdish provinces,' and 'this suppression and cruelty had an unprecedented nature.' This UN official, referring to efforts to form a fact-finding committee, emphasized cooperation with this committee within the framework of 'the requirements of resolutions' and said: 'We must wait for the Human Rights session next month to hear their report.' Javid Rahman also stated that 'with great care, I have collected all testimonies and evidence' and 'have contacted victims and human rights defenders inside and outside the country' and submitted his report to the Human Rights Council. He added: 'Despite the efforts of Iranian officials to prevent the transfer of information, including by blocking the internet and other mechanisms of information transfer, we were able to access and contact victims inside Iran and I was able to speak with many of those who fled Iran after the Woman, Life, Freedom movement.' Rahman announced that '834 people were executed in Iran last year,' calling this figure 'catastrophic' and emphasizing that 'I am completely opposed to the death penalty in any circumstances and cases,' stating: 'This is much more than when I took on this mission in 2018. In that year, 253 people were executed, and compared to 834, we see that executions have nearly quadrupled, and this is a catastrophe.' He emphasized that Iranian officials 'look to see what the political cost of depriving people of the right to life and executing them is,' and 'over the past years, especially last year, they have become bolder and thought they could execute more people because they believed the world's attention is now less focused on Iran.' According to him, based on this, the number of executions in Iran has been very high since October 7, coinciding with the attack of Hamas militants on Israel, as 'we had crises in other parts of the Middle East.' Javid Rahman considered this situation a 'great catastrophe' and 'really shocking' and added: 'We are not focused enough on the human rights violations occurring in Iran.' Rahman, referring to his previous report on 'crimes against humanity' by the Islamic Republic in Iran and cases of 'enforced disappearances, torture, sexual assault, persecution, and suppression' during the 'Woman, Life, Freedom' movement, stated that 'since the beginning of this movement, Iranian officials have become more repressive,' and one example of this is 'the new draft law regarding hijab,' which 'seems they are more determined than ever to be more repressive, and this is the only way they know how to respond to international criticisms.' He added: 'When we witness an increase in executions, Iranian officials do not understand international criticisms, and their only method is to become more repressive and look to see what the political cost is. The political cost has returned to them less directly and they feel it is not very high and there are not serious consequences, and for this reason, they are violating more human rights and committing very serious crimes.' The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran stated that 'almost 50% of those executed' in the past year were related to drug offenses, emphasizing that since 2017 the Islamic Republic had reduced drug-related executions, but suddenly increased the number again, as he stated 'most of the executed were from provinces with ethnic minorities and the cost of executing them is not high for the government' and the international community does not react. Rahman also referred to cases such as 'the execution of child offenders' and 'the execution of a large number of women and girls,' calling it 'completely unacceptable' and 'a great mockery of the law,' as he stated that these women and girls 'were themselves first victims of domestic violence and forced marriage and yet are punished.' This UN official considered Iran 'one of the largest executors of women' in the world and based on estimates said: 'Of the 22 women executed worldwide, 14 were executed in Iran. This is really concerning and shows what the situation of gender-based violence and repression is. I have called this gender apartheid that is taking place in Iran. It is evident that this violence against women and girls is perpetrated under the guidance of the government.' Javid Rahman identified 'the execution of peaceful protesters' as another concerning case of human rights violations by the Islamic Republic, stating: 'They were punished just for exercising their legal right to protest. The government cannot tolerate any protest and wanted to punish all those who came to the streets, and as far as we know, at least eight protesters have been executed so far, and now there is a very serious danger that more individuals will be executed.' He stated: 'There is a very widespread and enormous concern regarding the suppression of children, the execution of women and children, and protesters, and the disproportionate execution of ethnic and religious minorities such as Baluchis and Kurds and other minorities.' He also identified 'the violation of the right to a fair trial' as another concern regarding the human rights situation in Iran, stating that in addition to executions, this practice 'is seen in very repressive and unjust imprisonments as well' and 'we see human rights defenders, journalists, and lawyers being tortured and forced to confess because this is what the regime and its officials want.' Javid Rahman considered these actions a 'continuous violation of the constitutional law' of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which 'prohibits all forms of torture in Article 38, but we are witnessing the institutional acceptance of the torture of protesters and forcing them to confess. We are seeing that this type of confession is being used to punish human rights defenders and lawyers who work to promote human rights.' He also referred to 'the denial of access to legal counsel and lawyers' based on 'the note of Article 48 of the Criminal Procedure Code' as another case of human rights violations and continued operation of the Islamic Revolutionary Courts as another instance of this violation, which 'most executions and the majority of punishments against opponents of the Iranian regime occur through these Islamic Revolutionary Courts.' According to Javid Rahman, 'the situation of women and girls is another concern' and is in a 'catastrophic state.' He referred to 'what has happened since September 2022' in Iran, stating: 'The issue is still unresolved, Iranian government officials have become more repressive. If you see what happened to this 16-year-old girl Armita [Gharavand], who first lost consciousness and died three weeks later. What was the response of the authorities to her death? They completely denied any responsibility and no independent investigations have been conducted into what happened to her; therefore, my deep concern remains violence against women and girls, and at the same time, we must acknowledge that violence against women and girls is a reflection of this ongoing policy of violating women's rights and suppressing women through mandatory hijab.' According to him, in the Islamic Republic of Iran, 'women have no independence and their most fundamental human right has been violated through the law of mandatory hijab, and now another law is being finalized that is even more repressive and could unfortunately lead to imprisonment, fines, deprivation of social, educational rights, and all fundamental rights just because they refuse to accept this intolerant policy regarding mandatory hijab against women and they have risen up and want to show their independence and express themselves, but the government and regime are not willing to grant them even this fundamental human right, and this is a very big tragedy.' The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran also referred to 'the very catastrophic situation of ethnic and religious minorities,' including 'Bahá'ís' who 'have suffered from the most severe human rights violations over the past four decades,' stating that the rights of other minorities 'including Christian converts, Sufis, dervishes, and Yarsan' have been continuously violated. The perpetrators of widespread killings are at the highest levels of the Islamic Republic.