More than 1,500 Iranian academics, human rights advocates, and activists have signed an open letter to Ambassador Dennis Francis, President of the United Nations General Assembly, urging the international body to reconsider plans to memorialize Ebrahim Raisi, the late president of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The group highlighted the human rights violations committed under Raisi’s government and his past roles in the Iranian judiciary, asking the UN not to ignore the findings of “respected human rights organizations and its own Fact-Finding Committee.”
The signatories highlighted the bleak human rights record of the former Iranian president who was killed in a helicopter crash on 19 May 2024 in their letter to Dennis Francis.
The United Nations has announced plans to hold a memorial ceremony for the late Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, this week. The announcement has been met with criticism from Iranian human rights advocates. Narges Mohammadi, the imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has also criticized the UN’s planned memorial ceremony for Raisi, calling it “a commemoration of the executions and mass killings.”
The signatories of the open letter to the UN described themselves as “a collective of Iranian human rights advocates, including some former political prisoners, family members and friends of the victims who have witnessed or documented the atrocities committed by Ebrahim Raisi or under his command.” Also, they called the planned memorial “a disservice to the countless victims of his regime.”
The group highlighted Ebrahim Raisi’s record of human rights violations to the UN, citing his role as a key member of the “Death Committees” responsible for the mass execution of over 4,500 political prisoners in 1988, his involvement in the 2020 downing of Flight PS752 as a member of the National Security Council of Iran, the unprecedented increase in the arrest and imprisonment of political and social activists during his tenure as Head of the Judiciary, the mass suppression of the Baha’i community, the surge in executions during his presidency with over 800 in 2023 alone, and the repression of peaceful protesters during the Woman, Life, Freedom Movement.
According to the organizers, the open letter was submitted yesterday by Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and Nayereh Tohidi, an Iranian-born American professor emerita. The letter was addressed to Ambassador Dennis Francis and sent to him, his deputy, the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran (FFMI), and the UN headquarters. The organizers made a clear request to cancel Ebrahim Raisi’s memorial at the UN, stating: “The request to cancel this ceremony by the United Nations was an adherence to the principles of human rights, which unfortunately was not accepted,” they added.
Read the full text of the open letter here:
Do Not Commemorate Human Rights Violator Ebrahim Raisi
Despite the fact that this letter was sent out for signature collection in less than 48 hours, more than 1,500 signatures have been gathered so far, including the initial names listed in the letter, and collecting of signatures is still ongoing.
Your Excellency, Mr. Dennis Francis, President of the UN General Assembly,
We, a collective of Iranian human rights advocates, including some former political prisoners, family members and friends of the victims who have witnessed or documented the atrocities committed by Ibrahim Raisi or under his command, are deeply concerned and profoundly indignant regarding the proposed commemoration for him.
As you might be aware, Ibrahim Raisi played a pivotal role in the execution of thousands of political prisoners over decades, as well as the brutal suppression of protests, women’s movements, freedom advocates, and minorities in Iran.
His tenure was marked by egregious human rights violations, including:
1. Being a key member of the “Death Committees,” which signed and ordered the mass execution of over 4,500 political prisoners in less than two months in 1988. (Report of Amnesty) and (Ministers of Murder: Iran’s New Security Cabinet (November 2005) Report of Human Rights Watch
2. His involvement in the shooting down of Flight PS752 in 2020 as a member of the “National Security Council of Iran”
3. The arrest and imprisonment of political and social activists during his time as Head of the Judiciary, which saw an unprecedented increase.
4. The mass suppression of the Baha’i community in Iran.
5. An increase in executions during his presidency, with over 800 executions signed in 2023 alone.
6. The repression of peaceful protestors during the Woman, Life, Freedom Movement.
Raisi has not denied his actions. “If a judge or prosecutor has defended the security of the people, he should be praised,” he told reporters about the massacre at his first press conference as president-elect on June 21, 2021. The United Nations called for an investigation into Raisi’s role shortly after his election. “I think it is time and it’s very important now that Mr. Raisi is the president-elect we start investigating what happened in 1988 and the role of individuals,” Javaid Rehman, the U.N. investigator on human rights in Iran, said on June 29. In March 2019, the United States condemned Raisi’s appointment as judiciary chief and highlighted his role in the Tehran Death Committee. The U. S. Treasury Department also noted Raisi’s involvement in the Death Committee and the crackdown on protesters after the disputed 2009 presidential election.
Additionally, the UN Fact-Finding Committee has classified the activities of Islamic Regime of Iran during the Woman, Life, Freedom Movement as “crimes against humanity.” These actions reflect a history of extreme violence and repression by him that should not be commemorated.
Raisi’s rise to power is widely regarded as the result of a manipulated and illegitimate election, designed to ensure his loyalty to the Supreme Leader. It is important to note that Raisi did not hold the highest political rank in Islamic Regime of Iran; that position belongs to the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which further questions the merit of his commemoration.
Memorializing such an individual contradicts the very principles of justice and human rights that the United Nations stands for. Honoring his legacy would be a disservice to the countless victims of his regime and an insult to freedom fighters and those family members of the victims seeking justice both in Iran and around the world.
We strongly encourage all members of the United Nations to read the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran at the link below: Letter by U.N. Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance to the Iranian government (September 2020)
We urge the United Nations to reconsider any plans to memorialize Ibrahim Raisi and not to ignore the findings of respected human rights organizations and its own Fact-Finding Committee. Doing so would lend unwarranted legitimacy to his actions and undermine the struggles of those who have suffered under his oppressive rule.
The United Nations, as a guardian of global human rights, should not endorse or celebrate a figure such as Ibrahim Raisi whose legacy is rooted in brutality and injustice. We urge you to stand in solidarity with the victims of Raisi and to uphold the principles of justice and human dignity by refraining from honoring him. Your decision in this matter will significantly impact the credibility of the UN’s commitment to human rights.
Thank you for your attention to this urgent issue.
Sincerely,
Please see the attached document for a list of some of the signatories of this open letter.
