Crumbs of human rights

Co-operating with the Iranian authorities to guarantee basic human rights to all is not an easy job. The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Dr Ahmed Shaheed has experienced it very often. Since the creation of the mandate (in 2011) by the United Nations Human Rights Council, Dr Shaheed hasn’t been allowed to visit the country and undertake field research and make reports with the locals. Although many countries called on Iran to co-operate with the United Nations Special Procedures , and follow up on the requests of visits of Special Rapporteurs, the country still continues to refuse any kind of partnership or support.  (Source: shaheedoniran.org)  Therefore, Dr Shaheed has followed the evolution of human rights in Iran with the help of his Special Rapporteur colleagues and other sources and means. This was also the case in relation to his latest report, released in early March. As he highlights, “ information for th

There is nothing new about the Islamic Republic ranking second for number of executions , after China. But the fact that the official number almost reached 300 (to be precise: 289) in 2014 is harsh.  It is also obvious that this number and the statistics shown in previous years are certainly below reality, since there are no publicly available data on capital punishment carried out in the country. Reliable sources informed Amnesty International that the figure might be even bigger than 740. According to some ethical principles, all, but only guilty people deserve to be punished, and of course, in proportion to the severity of their crime .  And what does the international law say about the death penalty? It calls on states to guarantee that “Every human being has the inherent right to life. This right shall be protected by law. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life .”   The law also provides that “In countries which have not abolished the death penalty, sentence o

What doesn’t work throughout the year is possible for one day: every year, on 21 March the fragmented Iranian nation unites. Male and female, young and old, ethnic Iranians, Kurds and Azeris among others celebrate the ancient festivities of Nowruz.  This festival marks the beginning of the solar year as well as that of the New Year on the Iranian national calendar. Now, we have entered into the year 1394. (Source: irantraders.net)   People inside and outside the country come together with their family and friends and gather around the table, which is set with special treats: delicacies for offering to guests to eat, such as baklava and other Persian sweets and some things, which hold symbolic meaning, such as garlic (symbolising health) or apples (symbolising beauty and love).    As President Rouhani put it in his new year message, Nowruz is an “ancient heritage” that Iran and the regional states share in their culture . Beside the Islamic Repub