Javed Rahman's report: Women and girls in Iran are treated as second-class citizens

In a report, referring to the high rates of child marriage and domestic violence in Iran, Javed Rahman, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, said that gender discrimination has penetrated almost all areas of law and that Iranian women are treated as second-class citizens. Iranian women are also restricted in various areas of their lives, including marriage, divorce, employment, and culture, or require the permission of their husbands or paternal guardians, which deprives them of their inherent human independence and dignity. Such a structure is completely unacceptable and must be reformed. On the other hand, Mr. Rahman called for the government to clarify the serious human rights violations in Iran, including the high rate of death sentences, especially the execution of children and civil activists, and the violation of the rights of religious, ethnic, and gender minorities, regarding the suppression of the November 2019 protests.

According to HRANA News Agency, Javed Rehman, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, in a report, referring to the high rate of child marriage and domestic violence in Iran, called for further reforms to the bill to protect women against violence before its approval and for the expansion of support services for women.

The full text of this report follows:

A UN expert in a report to the Human Rights Council says that women and girls in Iran continue to be treated as second-class citizens, citing domestic violence, thousands of marriages of girls between the ages of 10 and 14 each year, and continued deep-rooted discrimination in law and practice.

One of the most concerning issues regarding the rights of women and girls in Iran today is the issue of child marriage.

Javed Rehman, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, stated in a report he will present to the 48-member body of the Human Rights Council on March 9:

The government and other leaders of the country should immediately raise the age of marriage and introduce more policies and programs to reduce this practice in the country.

According to Iranian law, girls can marry at the age of 13, and even younger girls can legally marry with parental consent and judicial permission. In the first half of this year, more than 16,000 girls between the ages of 10 and 14 were married in Iran, according to official government statistics.

"The current legal age for marriage is unacceptable," Rahman said. "It is clear that child marriage is detrimental to girls' development and well-being, including in terms of education, employment, and a life free from violence. While I note previous efforts to reform the law, there must now be pressure to raise the age of marriage in line with Iran's obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child."

The report also highlighted serious concerns about domestic violence. Some positive measures, such as the anti-acid-throwing law, are noted, but the Special Rapporteur urges the Iranian government to take further action.

Rahman says: "Existing protections against violence are not sufficient to comprehensively protect women and children. I acknowledge that the bill to protect women against violence submitted to parliament offers some positive measures, but as my report explains, its support is not sufficient and I call for further amendments to the bill before its passage and for the expansion of support services for women and children experiencing domestic violence."

While listing progress, including in education and citizenship rights, her report describes how gender discrimination permeates almost every area of ​​law and practice, and Iranian women are treated as second-class citizens. She makes recommendations to the government to improve these issues, including ratifying the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Iran is one of the few countries that has not acceded to the convention.

"There is blatant discrimination in law and practice in Iran that must change," she says. "Iranian women are either restricted or require permission from their husbands or paternal guardians in various areas of their lives, including marriage, divorce, employment, and culture, which deprives them of their inherent human independence and dignity. Such structures are completely unacceptable and must be reformed now."

The Special Rapporteur also called on the Government to take concrete measures to end the culture of impunity for serious human rights violations and to hold those responsible accountable for this failure. Rahman specifically raised the Government’s failure to properly investigate the bloody crackdown on protests by security forces in November 2019, which resulted in the deaths of more than 300 people. He remained concerned about the high rate of executions, particularly the continued use of child offenders and those executed in connection with protests and freedom of expression, such as Navid Afkari and Ruhollah Zam, as well as reports of the widespread use of torture to extract forced confessions.

Rahmon expressed concern that sanctions have hampered Iran’s response to COVID-19. He echoed the call by the UN Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights for governments to at least ease sanctions in support of the fight against COVID-19. However, the rapporteur said the government’s opaque and inadequate response to the coronavirus has led to more deaths, including among medical staff working without adequate protective equipment.

He also expressed his deep concern that human rights defenders, journalists and labor activists, dual and foreign nationals, and lawyers who were arbitrarily detained continue to be imprisoned despite the risks of COVID-19. The government’s targeting of individuals for exercising fundamental freedoms also continues, including Yasmin Ariaei, Monireh Arabshahi, and Mojgan Keshavarz, who were imprisoned for protests and mandatory hijab laws on International Women’s Day in 2019, and other women human rights defenders such as Nasrin Sotoudeh, Atena Daemi, and Golrokh Iraei.

The Special Rapporteur reiterated his regret at the human rights violations against ethnic, religious and gender minorities in Iran. Since the finalization of his report, there have been other disturbing incidents against minorities in Iran, including more than 20 executions of Baloch prisoners sentenced to death, the suspicious death of Darvish Gonabadi and Behnam Mahjoubi, the excessive use of force against protesters in Sistan and Baluchestan province, the arrest of more than 100 Kurdish activists, and the raids on the homes and confiscation of Baha’i land.

Source: HRANA