Views of the Human Rights Committee of 8 November 2017 in the case of Merhdad Mohammad Jamshidian v. Belarus (communication No. 2471/2014).
In 2014, the author of the communication was assisted in the preparation of a complaint. Subsequently, the complaint was communicated to Belarus.
Subject matter: deportation to the Islamic Republic of Iran; death penalty; torture; right to family life; conversion to Christianity.
A matter of substance: administrative detention and detention; the rights of foreigners - expulsion; the death penalty; extradition; freedom of religion; family rights; inadmissibility of forced return; the right to life; prevention of torture.
The Committee's assessment of the factual circumstances of the case: The Committee notes that the State party has acknowledged that the Iranian authorities provided sufficient information to substantiate the murder charges against the author and that it rejected his application for asylum and additional protection, partly because he is accused of committing a serious non-political crime before his arrival to the territory of Belarus and that, therefore, in accordance with the provisions of domestic law, he cannot be granted international protection. However, the Committee notes that during the examination of the author's initial asylum application filed in 2014, the local authorities recognized that murder is one of the crimes punishable by death in the Islamic Republic of Iran, that there is practically no protection mechanism and that torture is used in Iranian prisons exclusively in cases of crimes, related to national security. However, the national authorities did not consider the possibility that the author's case would be considered a national security case in the Islamic Republic of Iran, given the interest shown by the authorities in the revolutionary activities of the author's brother, and that in this regard the author might be in danger of being subjected to torture (paragraph 9.3 of the Views).
The Committee notes... The 2017 report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, in which the Special Rapporteur draws attention to the lack of adequate independence of lawyers, especially in cases of crimes punishable by death. In view of the information that raises serious doubts about the independence and quality of the mechanism for providing legal assistance to persons charged with a criminal offence, as well as information indicating the possible use of torture in cases of crimes punishable by death in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Committee considers that the State party has not taken sufficient measures measures to ensure that the author is not in danger of being executed in the Islamic Republic of Iran... The Committee concludes that, in the event of the author's expulsion to the Islamic Republic of Iran, the State party would violate article 6 of the Covenant (paragraph 9.4 of the Views).
The Committee notes that article 7 of the Covenant and the principle of non-refoulement arising from it are absolute and that no one should be deprived of the protection provided in this regard, even if the person concerned poses a threat to national security. In the light of the information available to it, in particular the reports mentioned by the author, as well as recent reports from United Nations bodies, the Committee concludes that various forms of torture and ill-treatment continue to be used in penitentiary institutions of the Islamic Republic of Iran, mainly for the purpose of obtaining confessions. The Committee considers that the State party has not taken sufficient measures to ensure that the author does not face a real risk of being tortured in prison if he is deported to the Islamic Republic of Iran and subsequently detained on charges of murder, especially if this charge is related to national security issues. Consequently, the Committee concludes that in the event of the author's expulsion to the Islamic Republic of Iran, the State party would violate article 7 of the Covenant (paragraph 9.5 of the Views).
The Committee's conclusions: In the event of the author's expulsion to the Islamic Republic of Iran, the State party would violate articles 6 and 7 of the Covenant (paragraph 10 of the Views).