A/HRC/16/75 45. The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has agreed in principle to a number of visits by special procedures, including the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances,48 the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions49 and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.50 To date, however, the visits have not been scheduled. 46. The Special Rapporteur on torture first requested an invitation in 2005, and yearly reminders have been sent ever since, most recently in December 2010. Requests for visits were also made by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, in February 2010, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, in 2006 (reiterated in her communication reports of both 2009 and 2010), and the Independent Expert on minority issues, in 2008 (who sent a reminder in October 2010). A reminder was sent by the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions in 2008. All the requests remain outstanding. 47. Special procedures mandate holders sent a total of 38 communications to the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2010, of which 36 were urgent appeals; two were allegation letters. The Iranian authorities responded to six communications in 2010, although several replies have been received since. D. Cooperation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights 48. On 24 February 2010, the Islamic Republic of Iran officially invited the High Commissioner to visit the country, which the High Commissioner accepted for 2011, but requested that a working-level mission be allowed to visit the country to prepare for her visit . On 24 January 2011, the Secretary-General of the High Council for Human Rights, Dr. Larijani, wrote to the High Commissioner to invite such an advance mission. 49. On 1 and 2 December 2010, OHCHR and the judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran conducted a judicial colloquium in Tehran. The event developed out of ongoing contacts between OHCHR and the judiciary since 2007. The High Council for Human Rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran co-chaired the event, and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran were also present. 50. The colloquium was attended by three international experts – Dr Kamal Hossain of Bangladesh, Professor Walter Kaelin of Switzerland and Judge Aisha Shujune Muhammad of Maldives – together with OHCHR staff. OHCHR encouraged the participation of 35 judges and prosecutors on the Iranian side, including judges of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals and the Revolutionary Courts, as well as officials from the prison system and correctional institutions. Regrettably, however, a large number of Iranian judges could not participate and benefit from the experience of the international experts. The authorities explained that a number of invitees could not participate owing to a holiday declared on account of smog pollution, but added that the judges who attended the event had organized in-house seminars to share their experiences with their colleagues. 51. The topics of discussion at the colloquium were human rights issues related to the administration of justice, in particular safeguards for persons upon arrest and in pretrial detention, fair trial and due process rights during the trial phase, and conditions of 48 49 50 A visit was agreed to for July 2004, but was postponed. Follow-up reminders for setting dates were sent in 2008, 2009 and August 2010. Initial request sent in November 2004;follow-up requests were sent in February 2005, October 2005, November 2006, December 2008 and September 2010. Visits were agreed to in principle in November 2003. Several follow-up requests and reminders were sent, the latest in November 2010. 15