高清福利片

The Iranian government has attempted to brutally suppress the widespread protests sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody in September 2022.聽

Central to Iran鈥檚 response have been the country鈥檚 鈥渞evolutionary courts鈥�. They have conducted heavily-criticised trials resulting in聽, while over 100 protesters are in considerable danger of imminent execution.聽

Criminal trials in these courts often occur behind closed doors presided over by clerics, with none of the standard guarantees of criminal procedure such as allowing time and access to lawyers to prepare a defence.

Submissions to the United Nations聽聽report that lawyers are routinely denied access to clients, and that coerced confessions, often obtained by torture, are used as evidence.

Tara Sepehri Far, senior Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch,聽聽as 鈥渁 total travesty of justice鈥�.

Criminal trials that are聽聽have been a feature of the Iranian legal system since the 1979聽.

The courts聽聽to try opponents of the regime who face ill-defined national security charges that carry the death penalty. Such聽聽include waging war against God (鈥淢oharebeh鈥�), corruption on Earth (鈥淚fsad fel Arz鈥�), and armed rebellion (鈥渂aghi鈥�).

The courts are integral to the consolidation of Islamist power which began within a few months of the revolution. As is apparent from the聽, the courts complement the role of para-state organs such 补蝉听.

The Basij is a paramilitary organisation formed very soon after the revolution. It supports the聽, known colloquially as the morality police.

The Basij is essential to the Iranian authoritarian state. It sits under the command of Iran鈥檚 Revolutionary Guard Corps, and is fiercely loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The United States Treasury has imposed sanctions on senior members of the Basij, and on a聽聽it believes is financing the organisation.

The revolutionary courts鈥� secret trials, vague charges, denial of lawyers, and evidence obtained by coercion and torture have focused attention on Iran鈥檚 flagrant and persistent breaches of its international human rights obligations.

In 1975, Iran ratified the聽, which guarantees the right to life and the right to live free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The United Nations Human Rights Committee聽聽the death penalty is not consistent with these guarantees, putting Iran in breach of its international human rights obligations.聽

The guarantee of a right not to be tortured is repeated in the聽, which Iran has not ratified. It鈥檚 the only country in the Middle East to not have done so, and聽.

In a periodic review of Iran鈥檚 human rights compliance, the UN聽聽that Iran ratify the treaty, end the use of torture, and credibly investigate and prosecute all allegations of torture.聽聽these recommendations.

罢丑别听聽the executions are 鈥渁 prelude to more state-sponsored murders of young people in the absence of a strong and coordinated international response鈥�.

Hangings such as these have been characterised by聽聽as desperate efforts to forestall the inevitable overthrow of the regime, and by the US Department of State聽efforts to intimidate Iranians and suppress dissent.聽

Australia鈥檚 response to two executions late last year was to聽, issue a聽聽with Canada and New Zealand, and聽聽Iran鈥檚 morality police and the Basij to international sanctions.

Despite widespread聽, Iran is聽聽to continue to crackdown on the protests.聽

We can condemn the country鈥檚 conduct and enact sanctions, but sadly, Iran is free to persist despite sanctions if it wants.

At the very least, what international sanctions and global outrage may do is give heart and hope to the protesters, and help signal to them that the world is watching and standing with them.聽

This article was originally published in The Conversation 补蝉听. Professor Simon Rice is a Professor of Law and the Kim Santow Chair of Law and Social Justice at Sydney Law School. His research interests include human rights law, access to justice and law reform.聽

Professor Rice would like to acknowledge聽an Iranian-born colleague who requested anonymity for their contributions to this article.

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