The Hana Human Rights Organization expresses deep regret that, during the recent “Forum on Minority Issues” at the United Nations Human Rights Council, several members of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Parliament were introduced and allowed to speak as representatives of Kurds and Baluch communities. Among these individuals was Kamal Hosseinpour, the government-appointed representative of Sardasht and Piranshahr in the Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who introduced himself and spoke as a “representative of the Kurds.”
This approach by the UN Human Rights Council and its subsidiary working groups constitutes a clear disregard for independent human rights institutions, as well as a neglect of the political and social realities and the severe human rights violations in Kurdistan.
We have lodged a strong objection with the Secretariat of this Forum, requesting a written and well-reasoned explanation as to why, despite extensive documentation of grave human rights violations in Kurdistan, a member of the Islamic Republic’s Parliament, who is himself part of this anti human rights system was granted a platform to speak.
The Hana Human Rights Organization strongly condemns the decision to allow Kamal Hosseinpour to speak at a UN human rights body. We firmly emphasize that under no legal standards concerning free and fair elections; whether in constitutional law or international human rights law, can he be regarded as a legitimate representative of the Kurdish people. He represents only the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Hana further notes that in Kurdish political discourse, individuals of this kind are referred to as “Jash.” Beyond its literal meaning in Kurdish, this term is commonly used to describe someone who collaborates with a central government against the Kurdish people’s struggle for freedom.
Hana Human Rights Organization
29 November