UN Experts Urge Iran to Halt Execution of Abused Baluch Woman Goli Kouhkan

“Kouhkan’s case exemplifies the systemic gender bias faced by women victims of child marriage and domestic violence within Iran’s criminal justice system,” the experts said.

 

United Nations human rights experts have urgently appealed to Iran to halt the execution of Goli Kouhkan, a 25-year-old undocumented Baluch woman facing imminent execution this month. The experts warn that carrying out the sentence would constitute a grave violation of international human rights law and highlight deep systemic discrimination within Iran’s criminal justice system.

“Kouhkan’s case exemplifies the systemic gender bias faced by women victims of child marriage and domestic violence within Iran’s criminal justice system,” the experts said. “Her execution would represent a profound injustice.”

A Life Marked by Child Marriage, Abuse, and Vulnerability

Goli Kouhkan was forced into marriage at just 12 years old to her cousin. Years of severe physical and psychological abuse followed, during which she worked long hours as a farm labourer. At age 13, she gave birth at home, without medical care—an indication of her isolation and lack of basic rights.

Attempts to escape her abusive marriage repeatedly failed due to her undocumented status, cultural barriers, and lack of family support. As a Baluch woman without citizenship papers, she was systematically excluded from legal protections, education, and essential services.

The Incident Leading to Her Death Sentence

In May 2018, when Kouhkan was 18, her husband reportedly beat both her and their five-year-old son. A relative intervened, and during the confrontation, her husband was killed.

Despite her background as a survivor of years of violence, Iranian courts did not consider the prolonged abuse or the immediate circumstances of self-defence. Instead, the conviction was based largely on a confession extracted under psychological pressure while she was detained without legal representation. Illiterate and isolated, she had no understanding of her rights or the legal implications of her statements.

Discriminatory Use of the Qisas System

Kouhkan was sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind), a punishment the UN experts say disproportionately affects women, particularly those from poor or marginalised backgrounds.

Her husband’s family has agreed to halt the execution only if she pays 10 billion tomans (about USD 90,000) in “blood money”—an amount dramatically above typical guidelines and utterly unattainable for an undocumented, impoverished woman who has been rejected by her family.

“We have repeatedly conveyed to the Government of Iran that the qisas system creates discriminatory sentencing based on gender and socioeconomic background,” the experts said. “Kouhkan faces execution not based on justice, but because she cannot afford to pay for her life.”

A Broader Pattern of Gender and Ethnic Discrimination

The experts highlighted that Kouhkan’s case is not an isolated one. Between 2010 and 2024, at least 241 women were executed in Iran, 114 of them under qisas for homicide. Many of these women were victims of domestic abuse, forced marriage, or acted in self-defence.

In documented cases of women executed for killing husbands or intimate partners, most had experienced years of violence. As an undocumented Baluch woman, Kouhkan faces compounded discrimination—gender-based, ethnic, and socioeconomic.

“This is a woman who was sold into marriage as a child, brutalised for years, and then abandoned by her family and the justice system,” the experts said. “Her case starkly illustrates how gender discrimination and ethnic marginalisation intersect to create profound injustice.”

Call for Urgent Action

The UN experts have formally contacted Iranian authorities, urging immediate action to suspend the execution, ensure fair legal protections, and comply fully with international human rights standards.

Human rights organisations worldwide are now amplifying calls for Iran to reconsider the sentence, protect survivors of gender-based violence, and reform discriminatory legal practices that leave vulnerable women at risk of execution.