Exclusive interview with Kazem Gharib Abadi, the Deputy Chief for International Affairs of the Iranian Judiciary and Secretary General of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights.
in order to better understand and address the various dimensions of human rights of the people in border areas and Kurdish regions of Iran, that have been victims of widespread human rights violations by armed and militia Kurdish groups, we interviewed with Kazem Gharib Abadi. Gharib Abadi emphasized that legal actions have been taken against military groups such as PJAK, Komala, and PAK within the framework of Joint Judicial Committee for Counter Terrorism between the Iran and Iraq. In addition, according to the agreement on the extradition of criminals between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraq, a request has been sent by the judiciary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to pursue the extradition of 118 key members of these paramilitary groups from the Iraqi government.
The complete text of this conversation is as follows:
Reporter: As you know, Kurdish opposition armed groups operating in the northern region of Iraq have been causing numerous problems for the lives of Iranian Kurdish people for several years, creating conditions of instability in those areas. What is your opinion regarding the widespread violation of children’s rights by the aforementioned groups (PJAK, PAK, Komala, etc.), which involves the recruitment of children under the age of 18 and their involvement in military activities, and of course, contradicts international conventions?
Gharib Abadi: Terrorists, insurgent groups, and terrorist organizations utilize any means necessary to achieve their personal, group, or organizational objectives. The recruitment of children, due to their vulnerability, is also one of these means for terrorist activities. Placing children in this situation results in widespread violation of their rights, which have been identified in numerous international conventions. In this context, children under special protection are subject to international human rights, human rights-friendly, and refugee rights. Countries in which these children are present are obligated to support and protect the rights of children and must be accountable in case of violation.
Reporter: Another action taken by these groups in violation of human rights is related to the female members. They endure strenuous conditions during training and afterwards (living in mountains and forests and using weapons), and this violation of women’s rights occurs when they resort to making false promises in their propaganda to attract recruits. What is your opinion on this matter?
Gharib Abadi: The situation of women also bears similarities to children in terms of vulnerability in these cases. There are numerous reasons for women’s involvement in cooperation with terrorist groups. False promises, media propaganda, conspiracy, obedience to spouse and family, and recruitment by groups are among these cases. However, women are both victims of terrorism and perpetrators of terrorist acts in this context. When they commit acts of terrorism, they must be held accountable. However, what should be given special attention regarding these women is their victimhood and the experience has shown that women are subjected to various forms of violence, including sexual violence, which even leads to their suicide. In cases where the woman’s family is involved in terrorist activities, issues such as domestic violence, deprivation of family visits, etc. are raised, which here also require special support and assistance from the government, as these violations occur within its territorial jurisdiction.
Reporter: Enforced disappearance is one of the challenges faced by the people in Kurdish-populated areas of Iran. Unfortunately, some families in those areas whose children have been or are members of the mentioned groups (group members are present in the northern region of Iraq) have been unaware of their children for years. This issue is to some extent that they even express ignorance about the survival of their children, which many cases of these individuals have sought assistance from the “Iranian Kurdistan Human Rights Watch” and we also follow up on their situation. The specific question is, given that many Iranian citizens are facing this problem and part of the issue is related to Iraq and the northern region of that country, what responsibilities do the various institutions of the country, including the three branches of power, have in order to solve this concern of Iranian Kurdish families, and what actions have been taken so far?
Gharib Abadi: Pursuit of terrorist crimes by these groups is being carried out by relevant authorities according to their jurisdiction. The Iranian judiciary has the duty to pursue and prosecute terrorists. Numerous judicial cases have been formed in several provinces based on the location of their criminal activities. Due to the terrorists’ hiding in Iraq, our demand from the Iraqi government is the extradition of the criminals residing in that country.
Reporter: Why do international human rights organizations not take any action against these blatant violations of children’s and women’s rights by the armed groups?
Gharib Abadi: The situation of international human rights organizations is clear; they operate politically and undoubtedly some leaders of terrorist groups in countries under the influence of these organizations reside or travel despite committing terrorist crimes.
Reporter: In your esteemed opinion, considering the legal dimensions of the actions of the mentioned armed groups, which have caused disruption in the normal lives of Iranian citizens in the western and northwestern regions, hindering progress and development in Kurdish-inhabited areas and leading to widespread dissatisfaction among the people, how should the leaders of these groups be held accountable for their actions?
Gharib Abadi: Regarding the legal actions against terrorist groups such as Democratic, PJAK, Komala, PAK, etc. within the framework of the Joint Committee for Legal Counter Terrorism between the two countries, military measures have been taken, In addition, according to the agreement on the extradition of criminals between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraq, a request has been sent by the judiciary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to pursue the extradition of 118 key members of these terrorist groups from the Iraqi government. During his trip in March, the Chief of the Judiciary of Iran made one of his serious demands from the Head of the Supreme Judicial Council regarding the extradition of terrorists.
Reporter: How should the criminal responsibility of Kurdish armed group leaders be attributed to them? What is the mechanism for this?
Gharib Abadi: The Iraqi government must fulfill its international obligations regarding the crimes committed by terrorists against children and women on its soil and extradite or prosecute the terrorists involved in crimes against the citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran on our territory.
Reporter: How can some European countries, which have accommodated the leaders of PJAK and… and now they can live freely in these countries and carry out some acts of mischief against Iran and Iranian Kurdish citizens from there, be pressured to cut off their support for them?
Gharib Abadi: Some European countries advocate counterterrorism, support human rights, and especially advocate for the rights of women and children. They are well acquainted with the terrorist behaviors of terrorist group leaders and understand how the rights of women and children are violated by these armed groups. However, their approach to human rights issues and counter Terrorism is always dualistic, as it involves supporting terrorists and violators of human rights who commit acts of terrorism and violate human rights in line with their own interests. The clarification of terrorist crimes, the support of certain European countries for these terrorists, including residency permits, travel, and financial activities, as well as legal and judicial pursuits, can be the best course of action for Europeans to respond.
