Australia will impose sanctions on Iranian state media for broadcasting forced confessions, with the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, vowing to take tougher action before the anniversary of Mahsa Jina Amini’s death in custody.
Brushing off claims from the Coalition that the government has been slow to act, Wong will announce on Wednesday that she is introducing new sanctions against those linked to the oppression of women and girls.
Australian government sources said the three targeted entities included Press TV, because the state-backed channel had “broadcast the forced confessions of Iranians and dual-nationals who are detained and tried under politically motivated judicial procedures”.
The sources said the sanctions would also cover Iran’s cyber police, because that entity was “central to obstructing freedom of expression through restricting internet activity in Iran”. Four people are also being listed.
The targeted individuals include the spokesperson for Iran’s law enforcement forces, Saeed Montazer Al-Mahdi, who in July announced the return of patrols to respond to those who, according to him, had “extraordinary clothing” and “still insist on breaking the norms”.
It is not the first round of sanctions Australia has rolled out against Iranian individuals and entities, but it is the first time the government has used recently expanded criteria.
The new criteria – introduced in July – allow Australian travel bans and financial sanctions to be levelled against those implicated in the oppression of women and girls and other forms of oppression in Iran.
Wong said the government would “continue to take decisive and targeted action to hold Iran to account for its egregious human rights violations”.
“We’ve expanded the sanctions framework for Iran, and now the government is utilising this to target those who oppress women and girls in Iran,” Wong said.
“Australia stands in solidarity with the people of Iran, especially the courageous women and girls who continue to demonstrate immense bravery in the face of ongoing repression.”
Wong said the Iranian government must “hold those responsible for the death of Mahsa Jina Amini to account” – referring to the 22-year-old arrested by the regime’s “morality police” for allegedly failing to meet strict rules on women’s dress.
Saturday will mark the first anniversary of her death in custody, an event that sparked protests that were, in turn, suppressed by Iranian authorities.
The Coalition’s foreign affairs spokesperson, Simon Birmingham, had previously called on the government to announce “a tangible response to the human rights abuses in Iran that has seen the horrific treatment of Iranian women and girls”.
Saturday will mark 1 year since the brutal murder of Mahsa Amini. Iranians have bravely stood against their oppressors & fought for basic human rights. We continue to urge the Government to reflect the courage of the women & girls fighting & take strong action. #WomenLifeFreedom pic.twitter.com/dyPVse7L4A
— Simon Birmingham (@Birmo) September 12, 2023
“We welcomed and supported those Magnitsky-style sanctions that have been applied however, like the Iranian-Australian community, we note that Australia has consistently lagged behind like-minded nations in the application of targeted sanctions,” he said on Tuesday.
“Australia’s position should reflect the bravery and courage of the women and girls fighting for basic human rights. We join with the diaspora community in urging the government to take stronger action and reiterate our bipartisan support for doing so.”
The Coalition had also questioned why, seven months on from a Senate inquiry into human rights abuses in Iran, the Australian government had yet to formally respond to the report. This response is expected to be released soon.
Wong has previously announced three rounds of sanctions on Iran, including in December, February and March.
The previous sanctions targets included 27 individuals linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) and 21 IRGC-linked entities.
In February the home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, said Australian security agencies had disrupted a foreign interference plot by Iran that was targeting an Iranian Australian on Australian soil.
She said Asio had “disrupted the activities of individuals who had conducted surveillance of the home of an Iranian Australian, as well as extensive research of this individual and their family”.
At the time, the Iranian embassy in Canberra “strongly” rejected the claims, which it said had been “made without providing evidence”.
