There is no Farsi text provided. Please provide the Farsi text to be translated. Mehran Mosadegh Nia

In this article, we aim to examine and analyze the legal rights of the entry of Sepah and Basij forces and the claims of some of the commanders of Sepah, including Sartip Mohammad Reza Yazdi, regarding the right of Sepah and Basij to enter the field of combating social harms, based on the current laws and regulations of the Islamic Republic.

What is taken from the explicit text of the current laws of the Islamic Republic, from the criminal procedure code to the constitution, is the entry of the Sepah and Basij organizations under the pretext of preventing social harms in the process of inspection, arrest, and detention of citizens, contrary to established regulations and laws, which we will discuss in detail the serious legal deficiencies. However, what is evident and should not be ignored is that Sepah, behind the scenes of this purely political plan, intends to create parallel systems with other official institutions and bodies of the country, such as the law enforcement force, and to enter the field of social harms, which in practice includes dealing with hijab, clothing, behavior of citizens, and confronting protesting groups in the streets. What is certain from a legal standpoint is that the entry and actions of Sepah and Basij organizations under the banner of judicial officers are also lacking legal and lawful authority, because only the law defines who can be considered a judicial officer.

Definition of rule.

An officer in the dictionary means providing and keeping something. The term “judicial officer” refers to an official who is responsible for discovering crimes, preserving evidence and signs, collecting evidence of the crime, identifying and preventing the escape and hiding of the suspect, conducting preliminary investigations, serving documents, and enforcing judicial decisions. It should be noted that the actions of judicial officers are carried out under the supervision and instructions of the prosecutor and in accordance with the law.

Are the forces of Sepah and Basij considered as judicial officers?

We must keep in mind that we have two types of regulations in the law; general regulations and specific regulations which are stated in Article 29 of the Criminal Procedure Code approved in 1992.

In explaining the examples mentioned, it has been stated that judicial officers are:

A- Comprehensive general officers, including commanders, officers, and rank holders of the law enforcement forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran who have received relevant training…

B- Special Officers include positions and officers who, according to special laws, are considered as judicial officers with assigned duties; such as chiefs, deputies, and prison officers in charge of matters related to prisoners, officers of the Ministry of Intelligence, the Intelligence Organization of the Revolutionary Guards, and officers of the Basij Resistance Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Other armed forces are also considered as officers when they are assigned all or some of the duties of officers according to the law.

As stated in detail and documented in the Criminal Procedure Code, the forces of the Sepah and Basij are only considered as special officers.

What are the limits of authority for the Sepah and Basij forces as special judicial officers?

Before anything else, we must address the main difference in the execution of duties between general and specific officers. The main difference between a general officer and a specific officer is that general officers have the authority to intervene in all crimes, even those that fall under the jurisdiction of specific officers. However, specific officers only have the authority to intervene in limited matters, as will be discussed. In order to be considered a specific officer, the legislator has set three conditions that, if met, allow the aforementioned forces to be considered as specific officers:

The first condition is that the crime must be evident. The definition of this type of crime is also stated in Article 45 of the Criminal Procedure Law: “Evident crime means that the crime must be witnessed by judicial authorities or the mentioned officers must immediately be present at the scene of the crime or immediately observe the traces of the crime after its occurrence.”

However, the second condition that has been mentioned for these individuals to be considered as enforcers is related to the circumstances and commission of a crime, and in other words, the absence of other enforcers. This means that the Basij and Sepah can intervene when the general enforcer or another enforcer – whose duty is to deal with the crime – is not present. In such a situation, the Basij can intervene.

The third condition is not taking timely action by other officers, meaning when the relevant officers are present, but do not take appropriate action. In this case, Basij and Sepah officers can intervene. Or it is announced that there is a need for other officers, meaning that despite the presence of other officers, there is a need for Basij officers to declare their need for help. In this case, there is also another major legal deficiency that Seyyed Salman Samani, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior, has officially announced regarding the statements of Sepah commanders, stating that the responsibility for dealing with social harms lies solely with the law enforcement forces as the general prosecutor, and so far we have not received any requests for cooperation and assistance from other institutions and agencies to fulfill this legal duty.

According to the description given, we can conclude that the judiciary only determines the law and its determination is not dependent on the opinions and preferences of individuals. The statements of officials and commanders of the Revolutionary Guards in the legal process show their interference in social harms, which is not only against the law, but even though the Ministry of Interior and the Provincial Security Council have not given legal permission for the presence of the Revolutionary Guards and Basij in the field of social harms, the entry of a military institution other than the main institution of the police and law enforcement – which is responsible for monitoring social harms – is against the law.