UN Special Rapporteur in Iran to Assess Effect of Sanctions
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Alena Douhan, the UN Special Rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures on the enjoyment of human rights, has visited Iran to gather information on the impact of sanctions, an Iranian official said.
Douhan began her 11-day visit to Iran, where she is due to meet the country's human rights officials and members of non-governmental organizations, on Saturday.
Kazem Gharibabadi, the Iranian Judiciary chief’s deputy for international affairs and secretary of the High Council for Human Rights, said that Douhan’s mission does not involve investigating matters apart from sanctions imposed unilaterally on Iran.
“Nations hit by sanctions should use all available resources to hold the countries calling for and enforcing unilateral sanctions liable,” he said.
With regard to the continuing hostility towards Iran, the senior Iranian judiciary official said, “Naturally, any plans (to relieve sanctions), with due considerations, will be put into action.”
The Special Rapporteur’s mandate was established by the UN Human Rights Council in September 2014 in response to concerns about the negative impact of unilateral sanctions on the rights of civilian populations around the world, Press TV reported.
Gharibabadi said since the establishment of the mandate, the US and the Europeans have voted against the resolution to extend the mission of the Special Rapporteur, as they do not believe in being accountable to the international community and countries hit by sanctions.
His comments came after criticism voiced by the Western media accusing Iran of exploiting the visit to avoid accountability and "deflect attention" from its alleged human rights violations.
In a statement on Thursday, Douhan said she hoped to “gather first-hand information on the impact of unilateral coercive measures on the full realization of all human rights in the country.”
She said she will “pay particular attention to the adverse effects on the most vulnerable segments of society, including in the current context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and will explore good practices as well as mitigating and coping initiatives and policies.”
So far, Douhan has attempted to steer clear of politicization of the rights issue, which is frequently used by the West as a leverage to pressure world countries at will.