Iran

Iran needs to amend its laws and legislations to guarantee the right of freedom of expression for all Iranians and cease the censorship of the media and internet in line with international human rights standards.

Islamic Republic of Iran with a population of 83 million, is an Islamic theocracy. Although it has elected president every four years, the ultimate power remains with the ‘Supreme leader’, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. ​​ Iran has one of the worst rankings in the freedom of press list (174 out of 180) and is increasingly censoring online media, and using new methods of surveillance on its citizens. With plans to cut off the country from the global internet completely, digital rights like freedom of expression online, data protection, access to information online are currently under attack in Iran. The Computer Crimes Law, the Islamic Penal Code, and the Press Law, need to be amended to ensure that the rights of journalists, human rights defenders, and all Iranians to freedom of expression and privacy is guaranteed.

  • Households icon

    70%

    Households with internet access in 2017

  • Households icon

    84%

    Individuals using internet in 2020

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    12.4

    Fixed Broadband Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in 2020

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    178/180

    Press Freedom Ranking in 2022

Upr cycle

Iran was last reviewed in November 2019. Their next review is in 8 months, which is scheduled for November 2024. It is currently in the Drafting period phase of its UPR cycle. To find out more about the UPR lifecycle click on the Uproar Tools button

Digital Rights and Free Expression Recommendations

Cycle 1
06
46
Cycle 2
08
18
Cycle 3
01
19
Cycle 4

Resources

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      Partner organisations

      Over a hundred local and international human rights organisations are part of the wider Uproar programme. You can find them listed here.

      Iran cluster

      The country clusters are a local working group in each Uproar target country made up of our partner organisations. The clusters are organised by local lead organisations, who then coordinate local civil society and human rights defenders with digital rights expertise to engage in national-level advocacy and campaigning.