On January 24th, Iranian lawyers were recognized by United Nations human rights experts for their “unwavering and courageous commitment” to the rule of law. The commendation comes ahead of the International Day of the Endangered Lawyer, which marks the challenges and dangers faced by legal professionals globally.
The Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Margaret Satterthwaite, and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Javaid Rehman, issued a joint statement commending Iran’s legal professionals. They underscored the courage of lawyers who have continued to fight for human rights in the face of government-imposed penalties, including imprisonment, torture, and disbarment.
The constitutional right to counsel, enshrined in article 35 of the Constitution of Iran, is a core principle of modern jurisprudence. However, recent amendments to the Code of Criminal Procedure in Iran have imposed limitations on defendants charged with ‘national security’ crimes. They are restricted to choosing lawyers from court-approved rosters only and the amendment also allows judicial authorities to delay legal assistance for the accused.
Despite Iran being a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), it has been criticized for its inability to comply with Article 14 of the ICCPR, which advocates for equal legal proceedings and access to legal aid.
The Iran Parliament’s move to ‘investigate’ the Iranian Bar Association, has been perceived as an attempt to further target and persecute human rights lawyers. This scrutiny of the bar association follows protests, termed “Women, Life, Freedom,” that were triggered by the custodial death of Jina Mahsa Amini. Many lawyers working on protester’s cases have since been detained.
The legal community has voiced opposition to a recent law mandating bar associations to follow the orders of the Ministry of Economy’s Regulatory Board. This new statute reduces the avenues for challenging board decisions and grants the power to issue, renew and revoke attorney licenses to the Ministry of Economy.
The Endangered Lawyer Report’s fourteenth edition significantly underlines the precarious conditions Iranian lawyers face if they dissent from government policies. Despite the challenges, the UN experts applauded the courage of Iran’s lawyers, their commitment to the rule of law and their ceaseless fight for human rights.