“By adopting that resolution, UN member States definitely show their support to the vivid Iranian civil society, including persons who risk their life, freedom and security because they defend the rights of others”, said Karim Lahidji, President of LDDHI and Vide-President of FIDH.
Since the last presidential election, in June 2005, the human rights situation seriously deteriorated in Iran. All indicators converge to confirm the persistence of continuous, grave and widespread human rights violations.
2006 has been witnessing violent crackdowns on ethnic minorities, increasing discrimination against religious minorities, including the Baha’is, harsh repression against human rights defenders, lawyers defending sensitive cases, journalists, women activists.
In addition, persons who were minor at the time of the offence continued to be executed, in spite of a commitment by the authorities to put an end to the execution of juveniles and in violation of instruments binding upon Iran - the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Use of the death sentence in violation of international standards continued unabated. The very day before the adoption of the UN General Assembly resolution, three men condemned for terrorist acts in Khuzistan were publicly hanged.
The judiciary still remains totally dependent upon the Executive, while torture remains widespread. No progress have been accomplished either regarding equality between women and men, in spite of the launch by local women rights groups of a huge campaign calling for the elimination of all inequalities against women enshrined in the Iranian legislation.
“We hope that this resolution will induce the Iranian authorities to improve their record with regard to the respect of their obligations under international human rights law”, concluded Sidiki Kaba, President of FIDH. “This resolution is all the more important because the newly established UN Human Rights Council has remained silent on this situation to date”, he concluded.