This document is a report of the Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Page 23 refers to the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.: “On 11 January 2001, the Special Representative joined the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Human Rights Defenders in sending an urgent letter to the Minister for Foreign Affairs concerning the arrest of Nasser Zarafchan, a human rights defender and lawyer. Mr. Zarafchan, the lawyer for the families of the intellectuals murdered in 1998, was allegedly arrested on 16 December 2000 owing to his comments implying that the killings were part of a campaign by death squads aimed at silencing the opposition. Reference was made to the fact that he was the second lawyer for the families of intellectuals against whom legal action had been taken. It was alleged that these actions were aimed at impeding the lawyer’s free exercise of their responsibilities and to disadvantage their clients. In the letter, the signatories referred to the fundamental principles set forth in the Declaration on the Rights and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognised Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and to the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.”
This document is a report of the Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Page 23 refers to the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.: “On 11 January 2001, the Special Representative joined the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Human Rights Defenders in sending an urgent letter to the Minister for Foreign Affairs concerning the arrest of Nasser Zarafchan, a human rights defender and lawyer. Mr. Zarafchan, the lawyer for the families of the intellectuals murdered in 1998, was allegedly arrested on 16 December 2000 owing to his comments implying that the killings were part of a campaign by death squads aimed at silencing the opposition. Reference was made to the fact that he was the second lawyer for the families of intellectuals against whom legal action had been taken. It was alleged that these actions were aimed at impeding the lawyer’s free exercise of their responsibilities and to disadvantage their clients. In the letter, the signatories referred to the fundamental principles set forth in the Declaration on the Rights and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognised Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and to the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers.”
