Situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran A/RES/74/167 disproportionate to the nature of the offence, in conformity with amendments to the Penal Code, the constitutional guarantees of the Islamic Republic of Iran and international obligations and standards, including but not limited to the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules); 7 13. Urges the Islamic Republic of Iran to cease the widespread and systematic use of arbitrary arrests and detention, including the use of th is practice to target dual and foreign nationals, to release those who have been arbitrarily detained and to uphold, in law and in practice, procedural guarantees to ensure fair trial standards, including timely access to legal representation of one ’s choice from the time of arrest through all stages of trial and all appeals, the right not to be subjected to torture, cruel and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and consideration of bail and other reasonable terms for release from custody pending trial, and calls upon the Islamic Republic of Iran to ensure that it meets its obligations under article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 8 in relation to communication with and access to nationals of sending States who are in prison, custod y or detention; 14. Calls upon the Islamic Republic of Iran to release persons detained for the exercise of their human rights and fundamental freedoms, including those who have been detained solely for taking part in peaceful protests, to consider rescin ding unduly harsh sentences, including those involving the death penalty and long -term internal exile, and to end reprisals against individuals, including for cooperating or attempting to cooperate with the United Nations human rights mechanisms; 15. Also calls upon the Islamic Republic of Iran to address the poor conditions of prisons, to end the practice of deliberately denying prisoners access to adequate medical treatment, which creates a consequent risk of death, and to put an end to the continued and sustained house arrest of leading opposition figures from the 2009 presidential elections despite serious concerns about their health, as well as the pressure exerted upon their relatives and dependants, including through arrest, and calls upon the Islamic Republic of Iran to establish credible and independent prison oversight authorities to investigate complaints of abuse; 16. Further calls upon the Islamic Republic of Iran, including the judicial and security branches, to create and maintain, in law and in practice, a safe and enabling environment in which an independent, diverse and pluralistic civil society can operate free from hindrance and insecurity, and urges the Islamic Republic of Iran to end widespread and serious restrictions, in law and in practice, on the right to freedom of expression and opinion, including in digital contexts, and the rights to freedom of association and peaceful assembly, and to end its harassment, intimidation and persecution of political opponents, human rights defenders, women’s and minority rights defenders, labour and trade union activists, students ’ rights defenders, environmentalists, academics, film-makers, journalists, bloggers, social media users and social media page administrators, media workers, religious leaders, artists, lawyers, including human rights lawyers, and their families and persons belonging to recognized and unrecognized religious minorities and their families, wherever it may occur; 17. Strongly urges the Islamic Republic of Iran to eliminate, in law and in practice, all forms of discrimination and other human rights violations against women and girls, to take measures to ensure protection for women and girls against violence and their equal protection and access to justice, to address the concerning incidence of child, early and forced marriage, as recommended by the Committee on the Rights __________________ 7 8 19-22299 Resolution 70/175, annex. United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 596, No. 8638. 3/6