UNITED NATIONS THIRD COMMITTEE: CHAIR OF THE INDEPENDENT FACT-FINDING MISSION ON THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN; INTERACTIVE DIALOGUE: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON THE ON THE SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Statement by Mr. Harry Aitken, Counsellor, Australian Mission to the United Nations
30 October 2025
Thank you Chair.
We remain deeply concerned by Iran’s ongoing and systemic human rights violations, including with respect to women and girls, and persecution of human rights defenders. We call on Iran to immediately repeal all laws that violate the human rights of women and girls.
We are alarmed by the dramatic escalation in Iran’s already-extensive use of the death penalty, with Iran likely to exceed 1,200 executions in 2025.
We condemn Iran’s ongoing use of executions, including of protesters, women and political opponents, and disproportionate application of the death penalty to religious and ethnic minorities. We call on Iran to establish a formal moratorium on the death penalty.
We remain deeply concerned by Iran’s violations of the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly – including through continued restrictions on access to information, violent repression of protests, and arbitrary arrest of political opponents. We reiterate our call for Iran to respect these rights.
We also condemn Iran’s attempts to silence dissent beyond its borders, including by threatening and intimidating Iranian diaspora communities and seeking to stoke social divisions.
Australia asks: how can States address transnational repression by Iranian authorities against the Iranian diaspora abroad?
Thank you.