CAT/C/63/D/750/2016 residence permit.16 The complainant submits that he has never claimed to hold a leading political position or any other similar profile in the Islamic Republic of Iran, which led the State party to conclude that his activities could not be regarded as extensive or constituting a threat to the Iranian regime. However, the above-mentioned criteria for sur place activities does not require the complainant to hold a leading political position or similar, as long as the other two criteria are fulfilled. 5.5 The complainant submits that a simple Internet search for his name or that of his daughter brings up several pictures of him and his daughter and websites offering a download of the complainant’s book, as well as his interviews and articles. The complainant claims that his book has been downloaded several times and handed out by the public in the Islamic Republic of Iran. His Facebook page has received support from at least 1,199 people and contains several texts and photographs critical of the Iranian regime and Islam. Iranian government organizations, including the Basij “cybercouncil”, the cyberpolice and cyberarmy, which are presumed to be controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, monitor, identify and counter alleged cyberthreats to the national security of the Islamic Republic of Iran. In particular, those organizations target citizens’ activities on social networking websites that are officially banned by the committee in charge of determining offensive content, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, and reportedly harass those who criticize the Government or raise sensitive social problems. 5.6 The complainant refers to a report of the organization Freedom House17 that states that the Iranian authorities have increased their monitoring of social media and technical attacks against opposition voices. In a report on illegal exit from the Islamic Republic of Iran,18 the United Kingdom Home Office notes that passengers entering the country are checked against two watch lists issued by the Ministry of Intelligence and Security and the Revolutionary Guard. Those flagged are either arrested on the spot, allowed to pass through and surveilled while in the country, or have their passports confiscated and enter the Islamic Republic of Iran on the condition that they attend interrogation sessions at Ministry offices. The complainant makes reference to another report by the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board19 that states that rejected asylum seekers returning to the Islamic Republic of Iran are questioned, regardless of whether they have been politically active in the Islamic Republic of Iran or abroad, and are placed in detention for several days until the police have verified that they had not engaged in any political activities, after which they are released. The complainant concludes that it is evident from those reports that the Iranian regime has massive and effective surveillance mechanisms to identify individuals criticizing the regime and its values. Since the complainant has been involved in criticizing that normally arouses the regime’s interest and will have a rejected asylum application when he arrives in the Islamic Republic of Iran, he will be checked and questioned by the authorities. The summonses and the default judgment will most likely show up by a search of his identity and by a single Internet search the authorities will be able to find his Facebook page with his critical views of the regime and Islam, as well as his books and his interviews. State party’s additional observations 6. In a note verbale dated 15 August 2017, the State party noted that the complainant’s comments did not include any new submissions in substance that had not already been covered by its observations of 21 November 2016, and emphasized that it maintained its position regarding the admissibility and merits of the complaint. 16 17 18 19 See Swedish Migration Agency (Rättsligt ställningstagande angående den individuella prövningen av individer tillhörande minoriteter och andra grupper i Iran samt flyktingskap sur place för individer ur denna grupp. RCI 16/2012, 27/06/2012). Available from https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-net/freedom-net-2016. Available at https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/565 828/CIG-Iran-Illegal-Exit-v4-July-2016.pdf. Available at www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/pages/attachments/2015/12/07/irn105089.e.pdf. 7