28th July 2025
Gender Justice in Iran: UN UPR adopts our key recommendations, but FGM is still ignored
8 min read
In its recent review of the human rights situation in Iran, several United Nations Member States gave bold and necessary recommendations to the government of Iran, many of which directly align with Equality Now’s submission to the 48th session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
Established in 2006, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a vital United Nations process that enables peer review of every member state’s human rights record, regardless of which treaties they have ratified. Unlike other mechanisms led by expert committees, the UPR allows governments to hold each other accountable based on evidence from official reports, UN bodies, and civil society submissions. A Working Group of 47 countries is established. It conducts the review and issues a report with recommendations for the country under review.
It is one of the few platforms where civil society voices like ours are formally considered, and where governments face collective international scrutiny for rights violations, including gender-based discrimination and violence.
In July 2024, Equality Now, in partnership with the Centre for Supporters of Human Rights and Femena, submitted a comprehensive report to the UPR Working Group urging immediate action to address systemic violations of women’s and girls’ rights in Iran. We are encouraged that many of our recommendations were reflected in the final report of the UPR Working Group. Here are some of our key recommendations that were adopted:
We called for legislation to set the legal marriage age at 18 for both girls and boys, without exceptions. The final recommendations included a clear call to implement the legal age of marriage at 18 years, marking a critical step toward ending child marriage.
Our submission highlighted the brutal crackdowns following the death of Jina Mahsa Amini and called for the release of all those detained for peacefully protesting or defying discriminatory laws like the mandatory hijab. The UPR Working Group adopted several strong recommendations echoing this call, including:
We recommended amending or repealing laws that codify gender discrimination, including the mandatory dress code, the Population Rejuvenation Law, and provisions in the Civil and Penal Codes that strip women of equality before the law. The UPR report called on Iran to:
We urged Iran to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). The UPR echoed this recommendation, with several countries calling for Iran to ratify CEDAW and CAT without reservations.
Despite clear evidence of its ongoing practice and Equality Now’s explicit call for legal reform, female genital mutilation (FGM) was absent from final recommendations issued to Iran during the UPR process.
FGM continues to be carried out in several provinces across Iran, particularly in Kurdistan, West Azerbaijan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Lorestan, and Hormozgan, often under the guise of tradition and with minimal state intervention or public discourse.
Equality Now has long campaigned to end female genital mutilation in all its forms, everywhere. Our latest global report, “The Time is Now: End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, an Urgent Need for Global Response (2025 Update)”, highlights the alarming resurgence and persistence of FGM and the urgent need for coordinated, cross-border action.
We welcome these recommendations and urge Iran to provide a clear roadmap for reform. Iran must now act on these recommendations, especially those that reflect its obligations under international law.
We remain committed to holding governments accountable and to continuing our advocacy to ensure women and girls in Iran live free from violence, discrimination, and repression.
Read our full submission to the United Nations, or explore the UPR recommendations to Iran.
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