Member of Parliament: Current Laws Cannot Address Child Abuse

A member of the Women's Fraction of Parliament reported that several members of this faction have written a letter to the Speaker of Parliament, referring to the "increase" in child abuse in Iran and calling for a quicker review of the "Child and Adolescent Protection Bill." Masoumeh Aqapour Alishahi stated in an interview with the House of the Nation website, affiliated with Parliament, that "current laws cannot address the perpetrators of child abuse." According to this parliamentarian, in some cases, "legal gaps" have caused the handling of child abuse crimes to be prolonged and the "execution of sentences for child abusers to be delayed." She also stated without providing statistics that child abuse is on the rise. The Child and Adolescent Protection Bill was first presented to Parliament in 2011 during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency but was not reviewed in the ninth Parliament. Hassan Rouhani's government reintroduced this bill to Parliament. This bill includes punishments for physical and psychological abuse, trafficking, "exploitation," and "pornography" involving children and adolescents. However, the Parliament Research Center has reported that this bill not only fails to protect children and adolescents but also "unintentionally" leads to the "decriminalization" of child abuse or the "criminalization" of the children themselves. In recent months, the case of Saeed Tusi, a famous Quran reciter, regarding "sexual abuse of children," has made headlines. Several of his students have claimed that Mr. Tusi sexually assaulted them in recent years. Saeed Tusi is a well-known Quran reciter whose recitations are significant in the presence of the Supreme Leader and at government events such as the opening of Parliament. He was recently acquitted of the charges of child sexual abuse. Mahmoud Sadeghi, a member of Parliament, stated regarding this case: "It appears that the Quranic child abuser is supported by individuals who have influence in the residence of the Supreme Leader." This comes while Iranian judicial officials had previously denied any influence in Saeed Tusi's case. Additionally, the sexual abuse and murder of 7-year-old Atena Aslani from Parsabad Moghan in Ardabil province received significant media attention in Iran. Atena Aslani was murdered on June 18, and her body was found 20 days later in the killer's shop parking lot. The accused in Atena Aslani's murder was executed on Wednesday, September 20, on charges of "murder" and "sexual assault." This individual denied his previous confessions regarding the murder and "assault" in an interview with Tasnim News Agency, claiming that his earlier confessions were made "under pressure." The murder of 3-year-old Ahura in Rasht by his stepfather and the death of a 5-year-old girl named "Pariya" in Saveh after "physical abuse" and "head trauma" are among other reports of child abuse published in recent months. Meanwhile, Ahmad Khaki, the Deputy for Social Affairs of Tehran Welfare Organization, announced that the most common reason for contacting social emergency services in 2016 was "child abuse." Some government officials and child protection associations have repeatedly stated that there are no accurate statistics on child abuse in Iran, and many cases, especially abuse by parents, go unreported. The head of the country's social emergency services reported that based on reports submitted to this organization last year, 60% of child abuse cases were committed by fathers, and a total of 86% were committed by parents. Hossein Asadbigi announced on Sunday, October 24, that 1,642 cases, or 60% of reported child abuse cases to "crisis intervention centers," were committed by fathers, while only 1.5% of child abuse cases were committed by strangers. According to Mr. Asadbigi, among other reported cases, 739 cases, or 26%, were committed by mothers, 20 by brothers, and eight by sisters. He added that some families conceal the sexual abuse of their children and do not report it to the country's social emergency services. Siavash Shahrivar, head of the social office of the Tehran governorate, announced in June of this year that for the first time, a plan for "preventing sexual abuse of children" has been prepared in Tehran province and will soon be unveiled. Meanwhile, the issue of educating children to prevent sexual abuse has been criticized by some radical religious groups in Iran. While some government officials and members of Parliament say that part of the education in UNESCO's 2030 document is "aimed at preventing assault and protecting individuals' privacy," the implementation of this document was halted after protests from the Supreme Leader and his close associates.