Justice For Iran invites all those who themselves or their loved ones were victims of severe and widespread violations of human rights by the Islamic Republic of Iran to, by documenting their evidences and information, help in completing our data bank on human rights violators. In our data bank, every actor or agent of human rights violation will have an open case file prepared based on reliable documents and evidences and in accordance with the international law. Information on how to participate in this call to action can be found further below.
Within the last decade and after the founding of the International Criminal Court, international human rights law has been ever more focused on the command responsibility of individuals without whose participation, the crime would not have occurred. This means that every individual, from the policy makers to the person carrying out the orders of his or her superior, if involved in illegal arrest, torture, assassination, execution, persecution, genocide, forced migration, massacre, etc., can be found culpable for the crime. In effect, international law not only finds the respective governments responsible for the human rights violation, but also it holds individuals who played a role in the carrying out of the violation accountable. Based on this principle, none of the actors and agents of the human rights violation should be spared from being held responsible for their crime.
Meanwhile in the Iranian society, a shocking absence of records, documents and evidences pertaining to human rights violations continues to persist amongst the victims of the human rights violations and their family members as well as the civil organizations and groups. A group of victims and civil activists believe that as the Islamic Republic has been founded on the basis of human rights violation, in place of looking for a few authority figures within the regime as the culprits, we must look for a way to topple and demolish the regime as a whole. The experience of other countries who have already undergone the transition or are presently in transition to democracy clearly demonstrates that mere toppling of a dictatorship in no way guarantees achievement of democracy unless the society can face its horrific past and successfully complete an adequate process for healing the maladies of those victimized by human rights violations in the dictatorship period. On the path to healing and curing the society, one primary step is making public the names of the oppressors and criminals. This must not be done for the purpose of vengeance and organizing revolutionary tribunals and cleansing and purging the society, as was done post 1979 revolution, but to shed light on the truth. It is imperative that this step be taken in order to create a collective memory and prevent a repeat of those crimes in the future.
However, documenting and recording of the information pertaining to the violators of human rights does not have to be limited to the future; it holds invaluable meaning and purpose today. Publicizing the documents exposing the crimes of individuals who have so far sheltered themselves behind pseudonyms will shame them in the face of their families and the society. The policy of naming and shaming the violators of human rights will have a preventative affect on the aforementioned violators as well as others such violators whose crimes have not yet been public; the fear of having their secrets exposed will prevent such violators from committing their crimes with impunity. It will stop them from hanging innocent people secretly and oppressing the most basic rights of individuals. Meanwhile, documenting the information about the violators will inadvertently publicize the crimes committed against the victims and thereby, make their pains and sufferings official, no longer to exist within their minds alone. Furthermore, although there are limitations on bringing forth case files for such individuals on the international level, there are many other way to hold such individuals responsible of their crimes. Such efforts include adding those individuals to lists of human rights related sanctions (by barring their entry into certain countries or blocking their assets outside of Iran), bringing forth legal action against them in civil and criminal courts of countries outside of Iran as well as various agencies of the United Nations. None of such actions can be performed without having in hand a court pleasing case file.
During a year long research on the topic of sexual torture of political prisoners, Justice For Iran set on recording, documenting and completing the collection of information about the actors and agents of crimes of rape and sexual violence against female political prisoners. Many of the actors are known to have also violated other rights. Some of them have a thirty year experience of violating the rights of others while holding different offices. The completed profiles that have been compiled through informations gathered while researching “Crime Without Punishment” are available at the address below:
http://justiceforiran.org/human-rights-abusers-persian-database
While compiling, recording and completing the case file of those who committed the crimes mentioned, we encountered names of many individuals the completion of whose case file require further witness testimony. Furthermore, we know that the the list of those involved in widespread and severe violations of the rights of the people by the Islamic Republic is not limited to the names and information we have in hand. For this reason, we are resolved to invite all of those who themselves or their loved ones were victims of widespread and severe human rights violation to aide us in preparing and completing our data bank about the human rights violators.
By going to the page, you can enter the information of the individual responsible for violating your rights as well as send us any photographs, films, and documents such as judgements and letters. Naturally, any information sent to Justice For Iran will only be published after their veracity has been researched and affirmed. Furthermore, to protect yourself and in case of security concerns, you can fill the form using a pseudonym.
Human Rights Violators Information Form
http://justiceforiran.org/human-rights-abusers-persian-database
If you wish to provide us with more information by granting us an interview, please contact us via email at the address below. One of our colleagues will get in touch with you to coordinate and set up an appointment for the interview.
Even if you are not personally a victim of human rights violation, by sending this call-to-action to your friends and acquaintances, help us further enrich our data bank of human rights violators.
06 Jan 2012
