General Assembly, Department of Public Information, November 21 – The General Assembly would express serious concern at the continuing harassment, intimidation and persecution of human rights defenders, political opponents, ethnic and religious minorities and other groups in Iran, as well as the country’s persistent failure to comply fully with international standards in the administration of justice, by the terms of a draft resolution approved today by the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural).
The draft would have the Assembly call upon the Government of Iran to ensure full respect for the rights to freedom of assembly, opinion and expression and to eliminate the use of torture and other cruel forms of punishment, as well as discrimination based on religious, ethnic, linguistic and gender grounds.
The draft, one of six measures approved by the Committee today, passed by a vote of 70 in favor to 48 opposed, with 55 abstentions (See annex II).
Prior to the vote on the Iran draft, the representative of Iran tabled a motion of no action on the draft. That motion was rejected by a vote of 75 in favor to 77 against, with 24 abstentions. (See annex I).
The representative of Finland, on behalf of the European Union, said that the international community could not be silent in situations where the violation of human rights was continuous, grave and widespread and where countries did not show a willingness to address those issues and engage in meaningful dialogue. The situation in Iran met those criteria. He added that the European Union would vote against any motion to close the debate on an item under discussion in the Third Committee, as such motions aimed at denying Member States their sovereign right to bring before the Assembly any concern they deemed worthy of its attention.
The representative of Canada, which sponsored the draft, said that he supported a cooperative approach, but when a country did not engage its own citizens, cooperate with the international community or address serious situations, then the international community had no choice but to express its views. Procedural manoeuvres should not be allowed to thwart the Third Committee’s efforts to engage in debate.
Action was set to be taken on a draft resolution on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran (document A/C.3/61/L.41). It would have the Assembly welcome the standing invitation extended by the Government of Iran to all human rights thematic monitoring mechanisms, its dialogue with a number of countries on human rights, and the release of some prisoners who had been held without due process of law. However, the Assembly would express serious concern at the continuing harassment, intimidation and persecution of human rights defenders, non-governmental organizations, political opponents, religious dissenters, webloggers and union members, among others.
Further to the draft, the Assembly would also voice serious concern at a persistent failure in Iran to comply fully with international standards in the administration of justice — including the absence of due process of law, the refusal to provide fair and public hearings, and the denial of the right to counsel by detainees. It would also express similar concern at the continuing use of flogging, amputations and other forms of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as well as the ongoing use of public executions, continuing violence and discrimination against women and girls, and increasing discrimination and other human rights violations against ethnic and religious minorities.
By the draft, the Assembly would call upon the Government of Iran to ensure full respect for the rights to freedom of assembly, opinion and expression, and for the right to due process of law, to eliminate the use of torture and other cruel forms of punishment, to abolish public executions, and to eliminate discrimination and violence against women and girls, as well as discrimination based on religious, ethnic or linguistic grounds. It would encourage the Human Rights Council and various Special Rapporteurs to pursue their work regarding Iran, and for the Assembly to continue its examination of the situation at its sixty-second session.
