Statement from Dozens of Human Rights Organizations Against Drug-Related Executions in Iran; Condition Cooperation with the Islamic Republic on Halting Executions

More than 80 Iranian and international human rights organizations have announced the "beginning of a comprehensive international campaign" in a statement demanding that the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime condition its continued cooperation with the Islamic Republic on halting drug-related executions. This statement, a copy of which has been provided to Voice of America, was finalized on Wednesday, April 22. The Iran Human Rights Organization, along with 80 Iranian and international organizations active in the field of human rights, called for the UN Office on Drugs and Crime to make its cooperation with the Islamic Republic conditional on the "halt of drug-related executions." The statement announced the "beginning of a comprehensive international campaign on this matter," emphasizing: "If we do not raise the cost of these executions for the Islamic Republic, there is a risk that hundreds of people will be executed in the coming months on drug-related charges. We urge all human rights organizations, activists, and political actors to participate in a special global campaign to stop drug-related executions." Mahmoud Amiri-Moghadam, director of the Iran Human Rights Organization, stated that the Islamic Republic executed at least 471 people on drug-related charges last year "with the aim of intimidating society and preventing protests," and that this occurred without any cost to the Islamic Republic. According to Amiri-Moghadam, the "goal of the joint action" of the signing organizations is to "sensitize the global community and public opinion regarding the execution of drug offenders in Iran and to raise the political cost of these executions for the Islamic Republic." He added: "The execution of more than one person a day under the pretext of drug-related crimes must become intolerable for the people and the global community." The statement emphasized that "government executions or extrajudicial killings are the most important tools of the Islamic Republic for instilling fear in society and maintaining power" and that "following the onset of the Women, Life, Freedom uprising, the Islamic Republic accelerated the execution of sentences and executed at least 834 people in 2023." The statement also reminded that "individuals arrested on drug-related charges constitute more than half of the executions in 2023," most of whom belong to impoverished and marginalized communities, with particularly high execution rates among Kurdish and Baluch citizens relative to their population in Iran. The signing organizations also stated that "drug offenders are sentenced to death without a fair trial and based on confessions obtained under torture by revolutionary courts, and they often do not have access to a chosen lawyer." The signatories emphasized that "the execution of drug offenders has not received an appropriate international response, and their daily executions are accompanied by media silence," which has allowed the Islamic Republic to increase drug-related executions 18 times compared to three years ago with minimal cost. The statement also noted: "The UN Office on Drugs and Crime, which collaborates with the Islamic Republic in combating drug trafficking, has not only shown no reaction to the sharp increase in drug-related executions but also signed a new cooperation agreement with the Islamic Republic last year. This cooperation legitimizes the government’s executions and leads to more executions through financial and material assistance." The signing organizations have called for the formation of a "special global campaign to stop drug-related executions" and warned that "if we do not raise the cost of these executions for the Islamic Republic, there is a risk that hundreds of people will be executed in the coming months on drug-related charges." The aim of forming this campaign is described as "reflecting the voices of the most silent victims of the execution and intimidation machine of the Islamic Republic." Organizations such as the Iran Human Rights Organization, the International Committee Against the Death Penalty, the Global Campaign Against the Death Penalty in Iran, the Human Rights Defenders Association, the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center, Kurdpa, the Iran Human Rights Campaign, the Alliance for Iran, and Hengaw are among the signatories of this statement.