The Alliance for Lawyers at Risk joins other NGOs in condemning the systematic denial of access to legal representation for protesters arrested in Iran, as well as the arbitrary arrest and detention of lawyers for the legitimate of their professional duties in connection with the recent and ongoing uprising.
The statement calls on the Iranian authorities to
- Immediately ensure full, unhindered, and effective access to legal representation for all individuals detained in relation to the protests, from the moment of arrest and throughout all stages of detention and proceedings;
- Guarantee the right of detainees to freely choose their own lawyers and to communicate with them promptly, confidentially, and without interference, including during interrogation;
- Cease all forms of harassment, intimidation, prosecution, and reprisals against lawyers for the lawful exercise of their professional duties, including the defence of protesters and the documentation of due process violations;
- Immediately release all lawyers detained solely for carrying out their professional responsibilities, and ensure their physical and psychological integrity; and
- Repeal or amend laws, policies, and practices that undermine the independence of the legal profession, and bring domestic laws and practice into full compliance with Iran’s international human rights obligations, including fair trial guarantees and the right to an independent legal profession.
Further, the statement calls on the United Nations – including the UN Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers – to actively follow up on cases of detained, persecuted, and killed lawyers, and to take appropriate measures within their respective mandates.
The full statement is available here: