LOC20:08
17:08 GMT
GENEVA, Oct 26 (KUNA) -- A UN human rights expert acknowledged Thursday encouraging signs in "deeply concerning" human rights situation in Iran.
"There are encouraging signs of progress in Iran's human rights picture," Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, said in a press statement.
However, these render the reports of violations all the more painful and the need for institutional reform all the more pressing, she noted.
The current human rights situation in Iran is deeply concerning in many respects. "But, I also believe that there are some encouraging signs, which I hope will be realized in the near future," she added.
"I continue to hope that the human rights situation will improve in the country through the efforts of the Government."
This will require an enabling political environment both at national and global levels, she added.
Presenting a full report to the UN General Assembly, the expert said positive developments included a high turnout in presidential and local elections, positive statements on human rights made by President Hassan Rouhani, and the Charter on Citizen's Rights unveiled by the President last December.
However, she said numerous other concerns over civil and political rights remained, including restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, opinion and information.
People working in the media, including journalists working abroad, are being interrogated and placed under surveillance and other forms of harassment and intimidation, she said.
Moreover, human rights defenders were suffering "harassment, intimidation, and prosecutions. Some prisoners of conscience were on hunger strike, and some dual nationals had been arbitrarily deprived of their liberty."
Jahangir called for progress to protect the rights of women "in practice, and in legislation," to ensure the independence of the judiciary, and to ensure remedy, reparation and truth for victims of rights abuses, she said.
Iran's ethnic and religious minorities continued to face challenges, including the unabated discrimination against and targeting of the Baha'i community, which threatened their right to a livelihood, she added.
Jahangir said Iran's use of the death penalty was another cause of concern, adding that a new anti-narcotics law could reduce its use and some delay executions, but she highlighted the execution of four juvenile offenders over the past year.
"I urge the Iranian authorities to urgently abolish the sentencing of children to death, and to engage in a comprehensive process of commutation of all death sentences issued against children, in line with juvenile justice standards," the Special Rapporteur said.
However, Jahangir praised all those working for human rights in Iran, including those sharing information with her.
Hailing from Pakistan, Jahangir was appointed as Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran in September 2016 by UN Human Rights Council.
As a Special Rapporteur, she is part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council.
Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council's independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. (end)
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