2023-09-13 01:01:00
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The international community must seek avenues for justice at the international level to address the systemic impunity of Iranian officials responsible for hundreds of unlawful killings of protesters and widespread torture, Amnesty International said today, one year after the uprising “Women, Life, Freedom”.
Over the past year, Iranian authorities have committed countless crimes under international law to eradicate any challenge to their iron grip on power. These are hundreds of unlawful killingsthe arbitrary execution of seven protesterstens of thousands of arbitrary arrests, torture widespread—including custodial rape— harassment widespread of relatives of victims who demand truth and justice, and reprisals against women and girls who question the discriminatory legislation that imposes the mandatory use of the veil.
“Iranian authorities have spent a year inflicting unspeakable cruelty on the people of Iran who bravely dare to question decades of repression and inequality,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa. Africa.
“One year after Mahsa Amini’s death in custody, not a single official has been criminally investigated—let alone prosecuted and punished—for crimes committed during and after the uprising.”
“The anniversary of the protests ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ starkly reminds countries around the world of the need to apply the principle of universal jurisdiction and initiate criminal investigations into the horrendous crimes committed by the Iranian authorities. Government statements calling on Iranian authorities to abandon the illegitimate use of firearms against protesters, stop inflicting torture in custody, and release all those detained for peacefully exercising their human rights remain critical. “These actions show victims that they are not alone in these dark times.”
In the last year, Iranian authorities have undertaken a ruthless attack on the human rights of women and girls.
Although the arbitrary detention and death in custody of Mahsa/Zhina Amini sparked protests against Iranian legislation imposing mandatory use of the veil that lasted for months, the authorities have reestablished the surveillance of “morality” and adopted a battery of other measures that violate the rights of women and girls who challenge the mandatory veil.
Among them are the confiscation of cars and denial of access to employment, education, health care, banking services and public transportation. Simultaneously, they have prosecuted and sentenced women to prison terms, fines and degrading punishments, such as washing corpses.
This attack on women’s rights comes amid a wave of hate-filled official statements in which the choice not to wear a veil is branded a “virus”, “social disease” or “disorder”, and equated to a “act of sexual depravity”.
The authorities are also drafting new legislation that will impose even harsher penalties for defying the obligation to wear a veil.
Blatant lies about hundreds of unlawful homicides
Between September and December 2022, security forces carried out a brutal militarized repression that ended with him unlawful killing of hundreds of protesters and bystanders, among them dozens of boys and girls. More than half of these unlawful killing victims belonged to oppressed ethnic minorities. baluchi y kurdish.
The authorities have not only failed to hold the alleged criminal perpetrators accountable, but have dedicated themselves throughout the year to blatantly lying to both public opinion and the international community, blaming the deaths on “troublemakers” and “unknown people.” or attributing them to suicides or accidents. In parallel, they have aggravated the suffering of the victims’ families, whom they subject to incessant harassment and intimidation.
Arbitrary arrests and mass summons
During the uprising and the following months, authorities arbitrarily detained tens of thousands of men, women and children, including protesters, human rights defenders and minority rights activists. Among them there were at least 90 journalists and other media workers, and 60 legal professionals, including representatives of families of victims of unlawful homicide. She was summoned for questioning by dozens of other lawyers.
Ahead of the anniversary, authorities have intensified their campaign of arbitrary arrests, including of relatives of people subjected to unlawful killings, and have forced thousands of university students to give a written pledge not to participate in the anniversary protests.
A tsunami of torture
During the uprising, security forces They illegally fired live ammunition and metal pellets to disperse and terrorize protesters, causing thousands of people injuries that amount to torture or other harm, such as blindness, loss of limbs, and mobility problems. Authorities have also overseen widespread torture and other ill-treatment of thousands of protesters in custody, including children.
Many survivors continue to suffer physical and psychological trauma long-term consequences of torture.
Execution of protesters
Over the last year, authorities have increased their use of the death penalty as a tool of political repression to instill fear in the citizenry, arbitrarily executing seven men in connection with the uprising following manifestly unfair mock trials.
Some were executed for alleged crimes such as damage to public property, and others in relation to the death of security forces during the protests.
They were all executed after Iran’s Supreme Court upheld their unjust convictions and sentences despite lacking evidence and without investigating their claims of torture.
Dozens of people run danger of being executed or sentenced to death in relation to the protests.
Impunity crisis
The authorities have refused to carry out thorough, independent and impartial investigations about human rights violations committed during the “Women, Life, Freedom” uprising and the aftermath, and have taken no steps to hold those allegedly responsible criminally accountable.
On the contrary, the authorities have applauded the security forces for suppressing the outbreak and have protected officials from accountability, including two officers who admitted to raping female protesters in Tehran. They have also dismissed complaints from victims or their families, who have been threatened with death or other harm if they continued with their complaints.
Amnesty International welcomed the establishment of a fact-finding mission on Iran by the UN Human Rights Council in November 2022although it considers that many other measures are required to combat the crisis of impunity for the serious crimes committed in Iran and to prevent new waves of bloodshed.
Amnesty International urges all States to consider exercising universal jurisdiction and other extraterritorial jurisdictions in relation to crimes under international law and other serious violations of human rights committed by the Iranian authorities, regardless of whether the accused persons are present on its territory or not. This includes initiate criminal investigations equipped with sufficient resources to clarify crimes, identify those suspected of responsibility —including commanders and other superiors— and issue international arrest warrants when there is sufficient admissible evidence. States must also contribute to ensuring that victims obtain repair.
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