Iran: Extension of Ahmad Shahid's Mission Lacks Legal Necessity and Justification

Hosseini Jaberi Ansari, spokesman for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, criticized the extension of Ahmad Shahid's mission as the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran on Thursday, April 5, stating that this action is politically motivated. According to IRNA, Hosseini Jaberi Ansari said, "Iran does not consider the extension of Ahmad Shahid's mission to have any legal necessity or justification and views its approval as politically motivated and solely based on hostility towards Iran; therefore, it does not feel obligated to accept and comply with the provisions of this resolution." The UN Human Rights Council extended Ahmad Shahid's mission for the sixth consecutive year on Wednesday by a vote of 20 in favor, 15 against, and 11 abstentions. Since Ahmad Shahid was appointed as the Special Rapporteur in 2011, Iran has not allowed him to travel to the country and has not complied with the UN Human Rights Council resolutions in this regard. The spokesman also criticized the composition of the countries supporting the extension of Ahmad Shahid's mission, stating that some countries, such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, voted in favor of this resolution while committing "systematic and institutionalized human rights violations regarding women's rights, migrant rights, and the political and fundamental rights of their citizens, especially their critics." Hosseini Jaberi Ansari further clarified that the Islamic Republic of Iran considers the promotion of human rights, based on religious teachings and the constitution, as one of its commitments and has thus maintained clear and ongoing cooperation with UN human rights mechanisms, including the UPR (Universal Periodic Review) process, and has collaborated with UN treaty bodies. He added that Iran has also accepted seven UN special rapporteurs and is working on accepting several others. Jaberi Ansari did not provide further details regarding these UN special rapporteurs. In this context, Abdolkarim Lahiji, president of the International Federation for Human Rights, previously stated regarding Iran's approach to Ahmad Shahid's mission and the UN Human Rights Council to Radio Farda: "Not only does the special rapporteur not have the opportunity to travel to Iran, but thematic rapporteurs and representatives of the global prison monitoring organization also do not have the opportunity to travel to Iran." The UN had previously appointed special representatives for Iran from 1984 to 2002. Since 2011, Ahmad Shahid has been designated as the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran. Before the transformation of the UN Human Rights Commission into the Human Rights Council, Reynaldo Galindo Pohl served as the special rapporteur on human rights in Iran from 1986 to 1994, and Maurice Capiton served from 1995 to 2001; however, as Mr. Capiton told Radio Free Europe, after the publication of his first report on Iran, "the leaders of the Islamic Republic became so enraged" that they no longer allowed him to travel to Iran.