European Parliament resolution on Iran
Date: 2006-11-16
Institutions: European Parliament
Subjects: Iran, civil rights, human rights, political prisoner, protection of freedoms, rights of minorities

21.12.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 314 E/379

Thursday 16 November 2006

3.
Calls on the Bangladeshi Caretaker Government, led by President Iajuddin Ahmed, to take immediate
steps to reconstitute the Election Commission, so as to ensure that it can perform, and can be seen to
perform, its work in a truly neutral manner;

Calls on the Caretaker Government to create a climate in which all members of the electorate will feel
4.
genuinely free to use their right to vote, notably by disarming supporters of Islamist groups engaged in
actions and propaganda characterised by religious intolerance;

Calls on the Election Commission, in cooperation with domestic and international experts, to improve

5.
the quality and accuracy of the voter register;

6.
Calls on the BNP, the AL and all other political parties to reach agreement on all controversial electoral
issues, to avoid political violence and instability and to develop political programmes which will improve
the standard of the population's living conditions;

7.
Calls for a review of the trial, and for the acquittal, of Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, the charges
against whom run counter to all the standards of international law and the conventions against violations of
press freedom;

Calls on the authorities to put an end to the climate of impunity and to bring to justice the perpe-

8.
trators of violence and harassment directed towards journalists in Bangladesh;

Calls on the Council and the Commission to monitor carefully the human rights situation, the political
9.
situation and press freedom in Bangladesh and to draw up programmes in the framework of EU-Bangladesh
cooperation to promote freedom of the press and freedom of speech;

10.

Calls on the Caretaker Government to guarantee media balance during the election campaign;

11.
Reaffirms its commitment to Bangladesh's unique tradition of religious tolerance and secularism, as
enshrined in the country's longstanding cultural traditions and artistic heritage, and as endorsed in Parlia-
ment's previous resolutions;

12. Welcomes the recent conviction by a court of two Islamic militants for murdering a Christian con-
vert, but condemns the imposition of a death penalty;

13. Welcomes the Commission's decision to send an EU Election Observation Mission to observe the
forthcoming general election, and urges the rapid establishment of a short-term political Election Observa-
tion Mission by Parliament;

Calls on the Commission to use its good offices with other donors and with the Bangladeshi Govern-

14.
ment to promote the adoption of effective measures in line with the provisions of this resolution;

15.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Caretaker
Government of Bangladesh, the Election Commission of Bangladesh and the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.

P6_TA(2006)0503

Iran

The European Parliament,

European Parliament resolution on Iran

— having regard to its previous resolutions on Iran, notably those concerning human rights,

— having regard to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and
the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to all of which Iran is a party,

C 314 E/380

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

21.12.2006

Thursday 16 November 2006

— having regard to the EU-Iran Human Rights Dialogue,

— having regard to the 8th EU Annual Report on Human Rights (2006), adopted by the Council on

17 October 2006,

— having regard to the EU Presidency statement of 20 December 2005 on the EU-Iran Human Rights

Dialogue,

— having regard to the Council Conclusions of 10 to 11 April, 15 to 16 May and 17 July 2006, the
Council statement of 26 July 2006 on Freedom of Expression, the Council statement of 5 May 2006
on Human Rights in Iran, the Council statement of 24 August 2006 on the death of Akbar Moham-
madi and the imprisonment of Manouchehr Mohammadi and the Council statement of 5 October
2006 on Freedom of the Press,

— having regard to Rule 115(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

General situation

A. whereas the situation in Iran regarding the exercise of civil rights and political freedoms has deterio-
rated in the last year, notably since the presidential elections of June 2005, despite several commitments
by the Iranian authorities to promote universal values,

B. whereas Iran has undertaken to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms under

the various international instruments in this field,

Political prisoners

C. whereas the Iranian authorities have announced that a report prepared by the judiciary had produced
detailed evidence of human rights violations, including torture and ill-treatment of prisoners and detai-
nees in prisons and detention centres, but also had confirmed that measures had been taken to address
the problems identified,

D. whereas nonetheless the practice of torture and ill-treatment of prisoners, solitary confinement, clandes-
tine detention, cruel, inhumane and degrading punishment and impunity for State agents continue to
be widespread,

E.

concerned that the Centre for Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), co-founded by the 2003 Nobel peace
laureate Shirin Ebadi and provider of pro-bono legal defence to Zahra Kazemi, Akbar Ganji and
Abdoulfatah Soltani, was declared an illegal organisation by President Ahmadinejad in August 2006
and that the Ministry of the Interior has threatened those who continued their activities with prosecu-
tion,

Prosecution of juvenile offenders

F.

deeply concerned about the increasing reports regarding the sentencing to death and execution of
juvenile offenders, while noting that Iran accounts for the highest number of juvenile executions world-
wide,

Minority rights

G. whereas some minority rights are granted by the Iranian Constitution, such as the right of minorities to
their own language, but to a large extent such rights cannot be exercised in practice; whereas in recent
months minority groups have demonstrated, calling to be allowed to exercise such rights, which has led
large-scale imprisonment of participants,

H. whereas the Azeris, the largest ethnic minority in Iran, were openly offended by cartoons as an ethnic
minority grouping by a State-owned daily newspaper in May 2006; whereas other minorities continue
to be discriminated against and harassed due to their religious or ethnic background, such as the Kurds
and the inhabitants of the area around Ahwaz city, the provincial capital of the ethnic Arab-dominated
Khuzestan province, who are for example being displaced from their villages according to statements by
Miloon Kothari, UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, while some of them remain in detention
or have been sentenced to death,

21.12.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 314 E/381

Thursday 16 November 2006

Freedom of religion

I. whereas, apart from Islam, only Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Judaism are recognised as religions by
law, while those who practise unrecognised religions, such as Baha'is and Sufis, are discriminated
against and violently repressed; whereas notably the Baha'is cannot exercise their religion and are more-
over consequently deprived of all civil rights, such as their rights to property and access to higher
education,

J. whereas even members of the clergy opposing Iran's theocratic regime are at risk, as witnessed by the
case of Ayatollah Sayed Bouroujerdi, who was arrested with his followers in October 2006, and whereas
they are still detained,

Freedom of the press

K. particularly concerned about the increasing reports of arbitrary arrests of and threats against journalists,
cyber-journalists and webloggers; whereas at least 16 journalists have reportedly been arrested since the
beginning of the year, ranking Iran among the very worst countries in the world for the prosecution of
journalists and for its crackdown on press freedom by closing virtually all critical newspapers and
online magazines, in which connection family members are being harassed, travel bans imposed on
journalists and satellite dishes confiscated,

L. whereas, according to reports, the Iranian authorities are increasingly filtering internet sites and block-
ing access to several dozen online publications and political, social and cultural weblogs; whereas, by
preventing free use of the internet, the Iranian authorities are cracking down on the Iranian public's
only means of access to uncensored information,

Women's rights

M. whereas Iran is still not a party to the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of

Discrimination against Women,

N. whereas demonstrations for legal reforms to end discrimination against women have been broken up

and participants have been arrested, although later released again,

Violation of other rights

O. whereas in September 2006 President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad openly called for a purge of liberal and
secular academics in the universities, whereas the Iranian Government is increasingly barring university
students from pursing their higher education despite the fact that they have passed competitive entrance
exams, and whereas the judiciary has prosecuted numerous students and sentenced them to imprison-
ment, fines or flogging during the past year,

P. whereas people are still imprisoned and at times executed for sexual offences, inter alia for adult con-

sensual sexual activity between unmarried persons and homosexuals,

Q. whereas in 2005 Iran accounted for the second highest number of executions worldwide, 282 sen-
tences of capital punishment being reported, of which 111 cases were executed between October
2005 and September 2006; highly concerned, moreover, that people are still being condemned to
death by stoning despite the moratorium on stoning imposed in December 2002, and notably in this
regard women for crimes of sexual misconduct,

R. having regard to the announcement by the Head of the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran in
April 2004 that torture would be banned and to the subsequent reform of legislation by the Iranian
Parliament, approved by the Guardian Council in May 2004,

S. whereas in December 2006 there will be elections to the Assembly of Experts, a pillar of the clerical
establishment which chooses and supervises the work of the supreme leader, as well as Council elec-
tions; whereas for the Council elections it has been reported that in the electoral districts of Rey and
Shemiranat nominees have been refused registration and for the Assembly elections the reformists have
threatened an election boycott if all nominees are not admitted,

C 314 E/382

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

21.12.2006

Thursday 16 November 2006

T.

deeply concerned at the failure to comply fully with international standards in the administration of
justice, the absence of guarantees of due process of law and the absence of respect for internationally
recognised legal safeguards,

Violation of international obligations

U. whereas Iran has not agreed to a further round of the EU-Iran Human Rights Dialogue that was estab-
lished in 2002 and whereas, after the fourth round held on 14 to 15 June 2004, Iran ceased participa-
tion, despite repeated efforts by the EU over the last year and the current year to offer dates for a fifth
round,

V. whereas EU relations with Iran have been based on a threefold approach, characterised by negotiations
on a trade and cooperation agreement, political dialogue and a human rights dialogue, and whereas the
political dialogue has been suspended because of the current Iranian position on its nuclear pro-
gramme,

General situation

Expresses its serious concern about the deterioration of the human rights situation in Iran since Pre-

1.
sident Ahmadinejad took office in June 2005;

2.
Calls upon Iran to grant all persons the right to exercise their civil rights and political freedoms and
hopes that the Iranian authorities will fulfil their commitments to promote universal values, which Iran is
also obliged to do by international conventions that it has ratified;

Political prisoners

Calls on the Iranian authorities to accelerate the process of investigation into the suspicious deaths and
3.
killings of intellectuals and political activists, to bring the alleged perpetrators to justice and to uncondition-
ally provide adequate medical assistance to those prisoners who are in poor health;

Calls on the Iranian authorities to unconditionally release all prisoners of conscience, notably Keyvan

4.
Ansari, Keyvan Rafii, Kheirollah Derakhshandi, Abolfazl Jahandar and Koroush Zaim;

5. Welcomes in this context the recent release of former Member of the Iranian Parliament Sayed Ali
Akbar Mousavi-Kho'ini, as well as the earlier releases of Ramin Jahanbegloo and Akbar Ganji; expects that
Mr Ganji, who was invited to the European Parliament in October, will be able to return to Iran freely and
without any obstacles;

Prosecution of juvenile offenders

Is appalled that there are still cases of executions of minors and sentences of stoning and that, despite

6.
government assurances, at least two sentences of stoning have been carried out;

7.
Strongly condemns the death penalty as such, condemns in particular death sentences passed against
and executions of juvenile offenders and minors, and calls upon the Iranian authorities to respect interna-
tionally recognised legal safeguards with regard to minors such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the
Child;

Minority rights

Calls upon the authorities to respect internationally recognised legal safeguards with regard to persons
8.
belonging to religious minorities, officially recognised or otherwise; condemns the current lack of respect
for minority rights and demands that minorities be allowed to exercise all rights granted by the Iranian
Constitution and international law; further calls upon the authorities to eliminate all forms of discrimination
based on religious or ethnic grounds or against persons belonging to minorities, such as Kurds, Azeris,
Arabs and Baluchis;

21.12.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 314 E/383

Thursday 16 November 2006

9.
Remains concerned about the fate of the lawyer Saleh Kamrani, who defended Azeri Turks in a law
suit and disappeared on 14 June 2006; calls on the Iranian authorities to immediately halt the imminent
execution of the Arabs Abdullah Suleymani, Abdulreza Sanawati Zergani, Qasem Salamat, Mohammad Jaab
Pour, Abdulamir Farjallah Jaab, Alireza Asakreh, Majed Alboghubaish, Khalaf Derhab Khudayrawi, Malek
Banitamim, Sa'id Saki and Abdullah Al-Mansouri;

Freedom of the press

10.
Reminds the Government of Iran of its obligations, as a signatory to the International Covenants on
Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, to safeguard fundamental human rights,
notably the freedom of opinion, and calls for the release of all
imprisoned journalists and webloggers,
including Motjaba Saminejad, Ahmad Raza Shiri, Arash Sigarchi and Masoud Bastani;

11.
Condemns the arrests and imprisonment of cyber-journalists and webloggers and the parallel censor-
ship of several online publications, weblogs and internet sites, as these are the most uncensored source of
news to the Iranian people; also condemns the wave of arbitrary arrests of journalists as well as the severe
restriction and, in particular, the closure of media in Iran;

12.
Calls on the Iranian Parliament to amend the Iranian Press Law and the Penal Code to bring them
into line with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and notably to repeal all criminal
provisions dealing with the peaceful expression of opinions, including in the press;

Freedom of religion

Calls on the Iranian authorities to eliminate all forms of discrimination based on religious grounds;

13.
notably calls for the de facto ban on practising the Baha'i faith to be lifted;

14.
Expresses its concern about the arrest of the two lawyers Farshid Yadollahi and Omid Behrouzi, who
received prison sentences while defending Sufis in Qom; expresses equally its concern for the safety of
Ayatollah Sayad Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi, who has been advocating for years the separation of reli-
gion from the political basis of the State and who has been rearrested, reportedly with more than 400 of his
followers;

Women's rights

15.
Expresses its concern about the continuous discrimination in law and in practice against women,
despite some progress; condemns the use of violence and discrimination against women in Iran, which
remains a serious problem; further condemns the use of violence by the Iranian security forces against
women who had gathered earlier this year to celebrate International Women's Day on 8 March 2006;
condemns furthermore the Iranian security forces' violent disruption of a peaceful demonstration on
12 June 2006 by women and men advocating an end to legal discrimination against women in Iran;

16.
Urges Iran to sign the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women, and moreover demands that the legal age of majority for women in Iran be changed to 18 years;

Violation of other rights

17.
Strongly condemns the open call by President Ahmadinejad for a purge of liberal and secular aca-
demics in the universities and calls for all those expelled to be allowed to return and to teach according to
the elementary rights of academic freedom;

18.
Deeply deplores the deaths of student activist Akbar Mahdavi Mohammadi and political prisoner
Valiollah Feyz as a result of their hunger strikes and calls for the release of Manoucher Mohammadi;
requests that students should not be barred from higher education due to their peaceful political activities;

C 314 E/384

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

21.12.2006

Thursday 16 November 2006

19.
Demands that adult consensual sexual activity by unmarried persons should not lead to prosecution;
further demands that people should not be imprisoned or executed on grounds of their sexual orientation;

20.
Calls on the Iranian authorities to give evidence that they are implementing their declared morator-
ium on stoning, and demands the immediate and strict implementation of the ban on torture as announced,
passed by the Iranian Parliament and approved by the Guardian Council; moreover demands that the Islamic
Penal Code of Iran be reformed in order to abolish stoning;

21.
Is deeply concerned that for the upcoming elections nominees once again have not been able to
register and that reformists will boycott the elections due to the undemocratic procedures for the listing of
candidates for the elections;

22.
Calls upon the Iranian authorities to make efforts to ensure the full application of due process of law
and fair, transparent procedures by the judiciary, to ensure respect for the rights of the defence and the
equity of verdicts in all types of court;

European initiatives

Calls on Iran to recommence the EU-Iran Human Rights Dialogue with the European Union and,
23.
further, calls upon the Council and the Commission to closely monitor developments in Iran and also to
raise concrete cases of human rights abuses as the basic condition for progress in EU-Iran economic and
trade relations;

Calls on the Commission, in close cooperation with the European Parliament, to make effective use
24.
of the new Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights in order to ensure democracy and respect for
human rights in Iran, for example by supporting uncensored media;

25.
Calls on the Council to examine the way in which Parliament may become involved in the regular
updating of Council Common Position 2001/931/CFSP of 27 December 2001 on the application of specific
measures to combat terrorism (1), taking into account developments from 2001 onwards;

26. Welcomes the first visit by a Majlis delegation to the European Parliament in October and expresses
its hope that these fruitful exchanges, as well as this resolution, will form part of a continuous dialogue
which will lead to a gradual rapprochement between Iran and the European Union on the basis of shared
values as enshrined in the UN Charter and Conventions;

*

*

*

27.
Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the High Represen-
tative for CFSP, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Secretary-General of the United
Nations, the UN Commission on Human Rights, the Head of the State Supreme Court of Iran and the
Government and Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

(1) OJ L 344, 28.12.2001, p. 93.