Periodic Report from Iran to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

December 28, 1979

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          ; . Lt . .. . .. .
          CON fENT!ON c: i.
          OV THE ELIMINATION
          5 Jar. ary 1930
          OF ALL FORMS OF EI' LISH
          RACIAL DISCRIMINATION Ori inaU R CH
          I?TEE0NTI EL]ilflTATION U jJ / C( .L c :oN
          u' RACIkL DISCR]lviflL&TION
          T cnty—first session
          CO1TSIDtBAT jOlT OP REPORTS SIJB?IITTDD BY STATES PART ES
          TJ1 DER ARTICLE 9 OP T1fl CO1 ]VENT ION
          Sinth periodic reports of States Parties due in 1930
          Addendux:i
          fl A1
          [ 28 December 1979]
          The Iranian Revolution, ,hich led to the fall of the Pablavi dynasty in .
          February 1979, uas the formidable revolt of a 1)eOPlC united aGainst dictatorship,
          tyranny, corruption, exploitation of the people and subservience to im?erialist
          interests. Its slogan: “Independence, Liberty, an Islamic Republic” sums up
          the phfiosophy of the neu system in Iran4in all political, economic, social, and
          cultural fields, bpth in domestic policy and in e;:ternal relations.
          Hence, it is in terms of this ov r--al1' philosophy that the subject of this
          report, namely, the implementation of the International Convention on the
          Laimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, must be vie 'zed.
          The philosophy underlying the Islamic Republic of Irar. is Islam and the
          essential principles that determine social relations in Iran are to be found in
          the sacred book of Islam, the Koran. Verse 13 of Sura XLD Qf the Koran says:
          “0 men, verily ue have created you of a male and a female; arid have
          distributed you into nations and. tribes, that ye miGht biou one another. Verily
          the most bonourable of you, in the siGht of God, is the most pious of you: ‘and
          God is wise and kno ;ing”.
          J For the previous reports submitted by the Govermment of Iran and the
          summary records of the meetinGs at ,hich the Committee considered the reports, see:
          (i) Initial report — CERD/C/R.3/Add.1 (GDRD/C/SR.31, 33 arid 56);
          (2) Second periodic report — CERD/C/R.30/Add.3, Add.39 and id.45
          (cmw/C/SR.127 and 179);
          (3) Third periodic report — cEED/c/R.70/Acld.1 (cEED/c/sR.179);
          (4) Fourth periodic report — GERD/C/R.90/Add.2 (GERD/C/SR.279);
          (5) Fifth periodic report — CERD/C/20/Ac3d.l (CERD/C/SR.371).
          GE .80-.0201
          BP000674
          _________ A
          FEB 1 2 1980

S
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Lccorciingly, f itb alone besto z s ccial di nity on man, ana this verse
I 1r L iic scholars re 1i:c full ilell that t: :nslations are not capable of
rendering the uboic Of the philosophy embodied in the ! rab tc::t) condenr.s, iitb
an authority bey9nd that of any hunan lau, any kind of discrimination, regardless
of ubether it i bcsed on origin, colour ar race.
This divine 1 i is ref1octe in th Constitution of the Is1ex ic Republic of
Iran ado ted by the poopl in the Referendum of 2—3 December 1979. The
Constitution states in article 19 (chapter III, concerning the Rights of the
People) that: t All Iranians, irrespcctive of their origin (tribc or family),
enjoy ec'ual rights, an1 colour, race, language, etc. does not confer any .
privilege”. .
Noroever, as .announc.e.d by the Provisional Goverr)me t the Revolution,
all laus that have not been specifically rescinded remain force until a
decision is taken on them by the National Assembly elected in conformity uitb
the Constitution. heedless to say, the Iranian lays conderaning racism and racial
discrimination mentioned in previous reports by Iran are still in force and, in
vie : of the over—all Dhilosophy of the neu system, the te :t of the Constitution
and the many official declarations conceruin protection of the cause of the
UdisIIherited t and the special safeguards to uhich they are entitled, it is
obvious that any rev ieu of such laus uill b0 ndertoi:en simply in order to .
strenGthen then. . , . .
The Gc ernziert of tile Islamic Re h1ac of Iror 1so cn1)h s_:es ats cor lete
agreement yith the vieu e::pressed by the Committee in General Recommendation III,
of 18 August 1972, th :.t “measures odopted on be national lcvel to give effeQt to
the provisions of the Convention are int ra-elated uitb measures t en en the .
international level to encourage respect ever bere for the nrinciples of tb
Convention”; in this respect, the maintenance of diplomatic. end economic
relations ath t i:c st r gi. cs i e: Arico is highl mzceti e of the
good or ba faith of the t tc that claim to condemn racism, racial discrimination
and it most odious nifcstatten, namely, aoartoi. . .
Tron the ver .- 1 innings o the fl0:el.ltion., the Iranian coule ues auare of
this truth and ues useatcd by the hypocr!ay of a Gc vern ent. uhich cl:imed to
coride . n ra ism r. ui : . : rthe id but maint inc d di 1omatic relat ions ith .outb Africe
arid oven supviliad 9 er cent of its cii. In its rovolution:: : slogens, tiv
people tneroiorc u.:n'. d that Iraris di:lomatic rel:.tions /‘iti: South Africa.
sho' l be broken c i: :n that t e - :.1e of Iranian oil to that try -noul be.
‘eanne c i.
On . iia.rch the Provisicnal Gc ca'nmcnt of the Islamic Rerublic of Iran
officially ennounca that those .:ishes 0 f the people bad been met and, in
addition, that . dipleantic . relations uith Israel bac h been broken off and th sale
of oil to that ccu ry bad becn hanned. In this conno::ion, it. is sufficient at
the nrcsont time to cmpnasize that the Gevcrnnent of the L;lamic u lio of
Iran fully endorsco anora1 Assembly resolution 79 ( <), of 10 Tovembor 1975,
/:hich states that “:-ien!sm is form of racism end racirJ discrimination”.