UN Reporters and Experts Call for Immediate Release of Prisoners in Iran
Twelve United Nations reporters and experts issued a statement calling for the immediate release of prisoners of conscience, dual nationals, and foreign citizens detained in Iran.
These reporters and experts, among whom is Javaid Rehman, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, on Friday, April 18, issued the statement and, referring to the latest statistics from Iran’s Ministry of Health regarding one death every ten minutes from coronavirus, called on Islamic Republic officials to immediately and unconditionally release prisoners of conscience and dual nationals in Iranian prisons who are at risk of contracting COVID-19.
These experts also, by calling the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran urgent amid the spread of this virus and referring to the non-release of prisoners such as Nasrin Sotoudeh, Narges Mohammadi, Arash Sadeghian, Ahmad Reza Jalali, Morad Tahbaz, Kamran Qadri, and Masoud Mousavi despite unfavorable conditions of detention, announced that currently most prisoners of conscience, human rights defenders, environmental activists, dual nationals, and foreign citizens remain in prison, and some of these individuals are at risk of contracting this virus due to their age or physical conditions.
The statement also noted that Iranian prisons have long faced health problems, overcrowding, and lack of health care for prisoners. These reporters and experts further called on Iranian authorities to take measures in accordance with their obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to treat those deprived of their freedom humanely.
Javaid Rehman, UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, along with other signatories of this statement, concluded by calling on Iranian authorities to independently and impartially examine cases related to arbitrary detentions and immediately and permanently release all prisoners who have been arbitrarily detained and deprived of their freedom.
The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran had previously, on Tuesday, March 10, called on the Islamic Republic to temporarily release all prisoners. He emphasized that continuing to hold political prisoners amid the coronavirus outbreak is “regrettable and concerning.”
Meanwhile, Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, said on Wednesday, March 27, at a press conference: “Not only from Syria, but we have also asked the Islamic Republic of Iran to release not only American citizens, but all those who have been unjustly imprisoned in these circumstances. This is a humanitarian act and aside from the fact that these individuals have been illegally imprisoned, humanitarian principles dictate that they should be released from prison under these conditions.”
Source: Voice of America
