HL Deb 28 January 1998 vol 585 cc41-2WA
Lord Avebury

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether, following the United Nations General Assembly resolution of 12 December 1997 calling on Iran to stop executions for non-violent crimes, they will ask the United Nations rapporteur on Iran, Professor Maurice Danby Copithorne, to publish monthly lists of executions reported in Iran giving the name of the person executed, the date and place of execution, the method of execution, the offences for which the punishment was imposed, and whether the execution took place in public or private. [HL146]

Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean

The mandate of the special representative of the UN Commission on Human Rights is set by the Commission on Human Rights. It gives him authority to look into allegations of misuse of the death penalty in Iran. We will work with EU partners to ensure that this mandate is confirmed at the forthcoming session of the Commission on Human Rights. It would not be proper for the UK to influence his method of work within his mandate.