Guidelines for Assessing the 'Mental Maturity' of Offenders Under 18; 'Uniform Procedure' in Executions

The 'Human Rights Headquarters of the Islamic Republic', which is part of Iran's judiciary, has published a report on the 'guidelines for determining the mental maturity and rationality of individuals under 18 years of age in crimes punishable by Hadd or Qisas' and claims that its implementation will reduce the execution of Qisas; a claim that the government's performance contradicts, suggesting that this guideline is more about establishing 'uniformity in executions'. This guideline was issued by Gholamhossein Mohseni Eje'i, the head of the judiciary, on November 7, claiming it aims to prevent delays in proceedings caused by 'deficiencies in investigations or violations of issued rulings' based on Article 91 of the Islamic Penal Code ratified on April 20, 2013. Article 91 states that 'in crimes punishable by Hadd or Qisas, if individuals under 18 years of age do not understand the nature of the crime or its prohibition, or if there is doubt about their mental maturity, they shall be punished according to the provisions of this chapter, taking their age into account.' In recent years, Iranian officials have introduced this change in the Islamic Penal Code as one of their responses to widespread international criticism regarding the execution of minors in Iran. While this change may initially seem beneficial for defendants under 18, a review of how mental maturity is assessed reveals that judges can issue rulings based on personal opinions, referred to in law as 'judicial knowledge', regardless of age. Accordingly, Article 2 of the 'guidelines for determining the mental maturity and rationality of individuals under 18 years of age' states that the assessment of the accused's mental maturity can be conducted based on the judge's discretion, and inquiries from forensic medicine can be made. The first clause of this article allows the judge to make individual and interpretative assessments without referral to forensic medicine, merely stating that the judge's reasoning must be documented in the case. This grant of authority to judges occurs while Article 3 of these guidelines stipulates that the forensic medical opinion 'must be reasoned, documented, clear, and include a summary of the results' obtained from the investigations conducted. Article 4 also practically allows judges to reject forensic medical opinions and, upon receiving the case file from forensic medicine, to record their own interpretation of the case. Judges in the Iranian judiciary refer to Islamic rulings and consider the legal age of individuals, which is set at 9 years for girls and 15 years for boys in Islam. The subjective judgment of the judge, the absence of a jury in court proceedings, and the susceptibility of judges to influence from the government and security institutions are among the concerns that have fueled worries about the future of these cases. Consequently, despite the Islamic Republic having joined the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1993 and being obligated to implement it, it remains one of the few countries that executes offenders under 18 years of age. According to the annual report of the Iran Human Rights Organization based in Norway, Iran is one of the few countries where individuals under 18 are sentenced to death; moreover, Iran executes more minors than any other country. Based on the organization's figures, at least 68 individuals under the age of 18 have been executed in Iran since 2010. Kazem Gharibabadi, the Deputy for International Affairs of the Judiciary, justified the execution of 'child offenders' on December 18, 2021, stating, 'If an individual under 18 commits a crime punishable by death, such a punishment is not illegal and does not contradict our international obligations.' The U.S. State Department has repeatedly condemned the continuous and systematic violations of the rights of Iranian citizens by the ruling regime in Iran. Javaid Rehman, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, has consistently condemned the execution of minors in Iran in his annual reports and called for the abolition of death sentences in Iran. A football coach in Iran was sentenced to death for sexually abusing 'eight teenage boys'. U.S. religious freedom organizations have called for the referral of the Islamic Republic's case to the International Criminal Court. The annual 'Human Rights Situation' report; Blinken: The world will continue to support Iranians. Student organizations warned Neda Al-Nashif: 'The criminal government of the Islamic Republic will exploit you.' Reactions to the executions of Mohammad Ghobadlou and Farhad Salimi: 'The Islamic Republic's revenge against the Iranian people.' Exclusive | Qazalhessar as narrated by eyewitnesses; from the execution suite to punishing political prisoners with chains.