UN Human Rights Council President Federico Villegas has announced the appointment of Sara Hossain of Bangladesh, Shaheen Sardar Ali of Pakistan and Viviana Krsticevic of Argentina as the independent members of the recently established Fact-Finding Mission on Iran.
Sara Hossain will serve as Chair of the Mission, said a media release of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The fact-finding mission will “investigate alleged human rights violations in the Islamic Republic of Iran related to the protests that began on 16 September 2022, especially with respect to women and children”.
The Human Rights Council at a special session on 24 November decided to establish an independent international fact-finding mission, to be appointed by the President of the Human Rights Council.
The three-person Mission was further requested to “establish the facts and circumstances surrounding the alleged violations and collect, consolidate and analyse evidence of such violations and preserve evidence, including in view of cooperation in any legal proceedings,” said the media release.
The HRC president sought recommendations from various stakeholders and expressions of interest to find highly qualified and impartial candidates to fill these positions.
In carrying out its tasks, the Mission is mandated to engage with all relevant stakeholders, including the Government of Iran, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, relevant UN entities, rights organisations and civil society.
The members of the Mission, who will serve in their personal capacities, were requested to present an oral update to the Human Rights Council during an interactive dialogue at its 53rd session in June 2023, and to present to the Council a comprehensive report on its findings during an interactive dialogue at its 55th session, in March 2024.