Iran intensifying efforts to repress women and girls on second anniversary of nation-wide protests, UN Fact-Finding Mission says

GENEVA – Two years after the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests began following the unlawful death in custody of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini, the Government of Iran has intensified its efforts to suppress the fundamental rights of women and girls and crush remaining initiatives of women’s activism, the UN’s Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran warned in an update released today.

Jina Mahsa was arrested by Iran’s “morality police” in Tehran on 13 September 2022 for alleged non-compliance with Iran’s laws on mandatory hijab. Her death in custody on 16 September that year triggered a wave of protests that spread nationwide.

In the two years since, although mass protests have subsided, the unabated defiance of women and girls is a continuous reminder that they still live in a system that relegates them to “second class citizens.” Since April 2024, State authorities have “increased repressive measures and policies through the so-called “Noor” Plan (noor meaning “light” in Persian), encouraging, sanctioning and endorsing human rights violations against women and girls flouting the mandatory hijab,” the update said.

Security forces have further escalated pre-existing patterns of physical violence, including beating, kicking, and slapping women and girls who are perceived as failing to comply with the mandatory hijab laws and regulations, as evidenced by scores of videos reviewed by the FFM. In parallel, State authorities have enhanced surveillance for hijab compliance in both the public and private spheres including in vehicles, through the increased use of surveillance, including drones.

Amidst this escalation in violence, a “Hijab and Chastity” Bill is in the final stages of approval before Iran’s Guardian Council and is likely to be finalized imminently. The Bill provides for harsher penalties for women who do not wear the mandatory hijab, including exorbitant financial fines, longer prison sentences, restrictions on work and educational opportunities, and bans on travel.

The update also expressed deep concern about an apparent new pattern of sentencing to death of women activists, including some belonging to Iran’s ethnic and religious minorities, following their convictions for national security offenses. Over the last two years, the death penalty and other domestic criminal law provisions, in particular those related to national security, have been used as instruments to terrorise and deter Iranians from protesting and expressing themselves freely. This has impacted families of victims of the protest violence, journalists, human rights defenders and others critical of the Government. 

“Meaningful accountability for gross human rights violations and crimes under international law, including crimes against humanity, remains elusive for victims and survivors, especially for women and children,” the update said.

“With no deterrence for the State regarding the increasing violations against women and girls, there is no realistic hope that victims and survivors could fully and meaningfully access the fundamental rights and freedoms to which they are entitled, and which the Islamic Republic of Iran has obligations to respect and ensure.”

The Mission reiterated its call to the Government of Iran to immediately halt all executions of protesters and put in place a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, with a view of its abolition; immediately and unconditionally release all persons arbitrarily deprived of their liberty in the context of the protests, especially women and children; and end all repressive policy and institutional measures taken and designed to repress women and girls and perpetuate violence and discrimination against women, including the “Hijab and Chastity” Bill.

Given the Government’s failure to hold perpetrators accountable and the widespread impunity that prevails across Iran for gross human rights violations and crimes under international law, including crimes against humanity, the Fact-Finding Mission called on UN Member States to scale up efforts to ensure the rights of victims and their families to justice, truth and reparations.

“States must continue to place the situation of women and girls in the Islamic Republic of Iran high on the international agenda,” the update said. “As we mark the second anniversary of the September 2022 protests, the Mission calls on States to investigate, prosecute and punish those responsible for crimes against women and girls committed in the context of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, before their respective domestic courts including under the principle of universal jurisdiction and without procedural limitations.”

The Mission further urges States to accelerate asylum applications, and provide humanitarian visas to victims of human rights violations, particularly those with life-changing injuries or those facing severe persecution, especially women and children.

ENDS

Background: The UN Human Rights Council mandated the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran on 24 November 2022 to investigate alleged human rights violations in the Islamic Republic of Iran related to the protests that began there on 16 September 2022, especially with respect to women and children. On 20 December 2022, the President of the Human Rights Council announced the appointment of Sara Hossain (Bangladesh), Shaheen Sardar Ali (Pakistan) and Viviana Krsticevic (Argentina) to serve as the three independent members of the Mission and appointed Sara Hossain as its Chair.

More information on the work of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran can be found here.

For more information and media requests, please contact: Todd Pitman, Media Adviser for the HRC’s Investigative Missions, at todd.pitman@un.org, Cell: +41 76 691 1761, or Pascal Sim, Human Rights Council Media Officer, at simp@un.org.