Joint Statement: 21 Iranian Human Rights Lawyers Urge UN to Stop Child Killings in Iran

CHRI – In a joint statement obtained by the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) and translated into English, 21 Iranian human rights lawyers have called on UN officials and agencies to take immediate steps to end child killings in Iran, where at least 50 children have been killed since September 2022, when state forces began deploying lethal force to repress nationwide, anti-state protests.

Following is the complete statement.

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UN Secretary-General

Members of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child

Members of the UN Human Rights Council

Executive Director of the UN Children’s Fund

During the course of the popular “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement in Iran, which has been ongoing since September 2022, more than 50 children have been killed by the Islamic Republic’s repressive forces while many more have been injured and some detained. This is despite Iran being a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which in accordance with Article 9 of the Civil Code and Article 77 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, carries the force of law and therefore obliges the government’s commitment and compliance. In addition, under the Law for the Protection of Children and Young Adults, ratified by the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Parliament) in 2020, any violence against children is prohibited.

Despite these domestic and international commitments, the extent of the human tragedy against children in Iran during the past two months has been widespread and systematic. Unfortunately, the state of the Islamic Republic of Iran has done nothing to investigate, prosecute and punish those responsible, or compensate the victims’ families and prevent similar incidents.

Therefore, considering the urgency of this matter, we appeal to you to take these necessary and effective steps as soon as possible:

1. Fully condemn the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran for killing, injuring and detaining children against the law, and hold them accountable for violations of the fundamental rights of the child, as asserted in domestic and international laws.
2. Demand the government of Iran immediately investigate, prosecute and punish those responsible, compensate the victim’s families, and take steps to prevent such atrocities from repeating.
3. Initiate immediate and effective international mechanisms to document violations of human rights during the crackdown on recent protests in Iran to enable the realization of justice through international bodies in the future.
4. UNICEF in particular should use its full authority to compel the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to comply with its international and domestic obligations towards children and stop the current critical situation.

The signatories declare their readiness to provide more information and evidence.

Mehrangiz Kar, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Giti Pourfazel, Mohammad Seifzadeh, Hossein Ahmadiniaz, Mohammad Oliaei-Fard, Moin Khazaeli, Mohammad Moghimi, Saeid Dehghan, Sara Ghoreishi Shahraki, Payam Derahshan, Elham Yousefian, Mousa Barzin, Shirin Maleki, Mostafa Ahmadian, Masoud Shamsnejad, Hossein Mehrandish, Amin Rad, Ahsan Hassanpour, Nina Mokhtarian, and Hossein Raisi