A/HRC/40/24 may not have the financial means, 15 and again urges the State to permanently end the sentencing of child offenders to death. Economic and financial crimes 9. On 11 August 2018, the Head of the Judiciary proposed the establishment of special courts to “take swift and decisive action” against individuals referred to as “economic disruptors” in the context of an “economic war”, by way of a directive.16 The SecretaryGeneral is concerned that the directive excludes the right to have a conviction and sentence reviewed by a higher tribunal for all those convicted of economic corruption and sentenced to punishments other than the death penalty, in contravention of article 14 (5) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The directive also reduces the time allowed for filing an appeal in economic corruption cases from 20 to 5 days. It prohibits reductions or suspensions of punishment irrespective of mitigating circumstances and extends the aforementioned restrictions on legal counsel of one’s choosing to cases of economic corruption. 10. According to the judiciary, dozens of individuals have been convicted of economic corruption offences and been sentenced to prison terms ranging from 3 to 20 years 17 without the possibility of appeal. According to information received by OHCHR, five individuals have been sentenced to death under the above-mentioned directive, two of whom have been executed.18 Three individuals were reportedly also sentenced to death for “corruption on earth for disrupting the country’s economy”.19 The verdicts are subject to an appeal before the Supreme Court. Forty-seven flogging sentences for economic crimes were issued in 2018, compared to four in 2017. 20 Flogging, as well as stoning and amputation, remain prescribed as punishments for hudud offences under the Penal Code although the Human Rights Committee deems them incompatible with article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Right to a fair trial 11. OHCHR continues to receive reports indicating that death sentences are passed following proceedings that do not respect the guarantees of fair trial. Concerns in this respect have been documented more particularly in cases relating to child offenders, dual and foreign nationals, human rights defenders, journalists, those accused of economic crimes, and minorities.21 12. The Secretary-General is also concerned by restrictions on access to legal assistance of the defendant’s choosing during the pretrial phase, in contravention of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and article 35 of the Constitution. Article 48 of the Penal Code requires that individuals accused of crimes against external or internal security select their legal representation from a list approved by the Head of the Judiciary during the investigative phase – which is the period when confessions are often obtained. Such restrictions are all the more concerning in view of consistent reports that torture and other ill-treatment to compel confessions is most frequent during the initial investigative stage. This pattern has been reported particularly in the cases of foreign and dual nationals, minority groups, human rights defenders and child offenders, as outlined in the present report. In this respect, the State has stated that confessions extracted under duress or torture are prohibited by the Constitution22 and deemed inadmissible before the courts.23 However, 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 4 A/61/311, para. 60. See www.isna.ir/news/97052010719/. See www.iribnews.ir/fa/news/2240981/. See www.mehrnews.com/news/4437149/. See khabaronline.ir/news/822834. See www.irna.ir/fa/News/83050447, www.irna.ir/fa/News/83065377 and www.mizanonline.com/fa/news/454277/. See the report of the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran available from www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/RegularSessions/Session37/Pages/ ListReports.aspx; and A/73/299. Constitution, art. 38.