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Summary: This report extracts mentions of children's rights issues in the reports of all UN Treaty Bodies and their follow-up procedures. This does not include the Concluding Observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child which are available here: http://www.crin.org/resources/treaties/index.asp
Please note that the language may have been edited in places for the purpose of clarity.
- UN Human Rights Committee
- UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
- UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
- UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- UN Committee against Torture
- UN Committee on Migrant Workers
- UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- UN Committee on Enforced Disappearance
(CCPR/C/IRN/3)
Last reported: 17 / 18 October 2011
Concluding Observations issued: 2 November 2011
Issues raised:
Death penalty for minors: The Committee is gravely concerned about the continued execution of minors and the imposition of the death penalty for persons who were found to have committed a crime while under 18 years of age, which is prohibited by article 6, paragraph 5, of the Covenant (art.6). (Paragraph 13).
The State party should immediately end the execution of minors, and further amend the draft juvenile crimes investigation act and the Bill of Islamic Criminal Code with the aim of abolishing the death penalty for persons having committed a crime while under the age of 18. The State party should also commute all existing death sentences for offenders on death row who had committed a crime while under the age of 18.
Corporal punishment: The Committee is concerned about the continued imposition of corporal punishment by judicial and administrative authorities, in particular amputations and flogging for a range of crimes, including theft, enmity against God (mohareb) and certain sexual acts. It is also concerned that corporal punishment of children is lawful in the home, as a sentence of the courts and in alternative care settings (art. 7). (Paragraph 16).
The State party should amend the Penal Code to abolish the imposition of corporal punishment by judicial and administrative authorities. The State party should also explicitly prohibit (all forms of) corporal punishment in childrearing and education, including by repealing the legal defences for its use in article 1179 of the Civil Code, articles 49 and 59 of the Penal Code and article 7 of the Law on the Protection of Children.
Trafficking: The Committee is concerned about the persistent trafficking in women and children, particularly young girls from rural areas, often facilitated by temporary marriages ("siqeh")(art.8). (Paragraph 20).
The State party should take steps to combat and prevent the trafficking and sale of persons under 18 years of age. The State party is also requested to provide the Committee in its next periodic report with statistics, on an annual basis, on the number of arrests and convictions under the 2004 law to combat trafficking.
Early marriage: The Committee is concerned that the minimum age for marriage is too low and that it differentiates on the basis of sex. It is also concerned about the practice of forced, early and temporary marriages of young girls (articles 23, 24). (Paragraph 28).
The State party should eliminate discrimination on the basis of sex in the minimum age of marriage. It should also ensure that the minimum age complies with international standards and should adopt active measures preventing forced, early and temporary marriage of girls.
Education and minority groups: The Committee is concerned about the restrictions and conditions placed on the enjoyment of cultural, linguistic and religious freedoms of minorities in the State party, such as the Kurds, Arabs, Azeris and Baluch, including the use of minority languages in schools, and publication of journals and newspapers in minority languages (art.27). (Paragraph 30).
The State party should ensure that all members of ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities enjoy effective protection against discrimination and are able to enjoy their own culture and use their own language in media and schools, participate in public affairs and are provided with effective remedies against discrimination.
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UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
E/C.12/IRN/CO/2
Last reported: 1 May 2013
Concluding observations issued: 10 June 2013
Issues raised:
Education: The Committee is concerned that members of the Baha’i community face widespread and entrenched discrimination, including denial of access to employment in the public sector and institutions of higher education, as well as to benefits of the pension system (art. 2). Para 8.
The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to ensure that members of the Baha’i community are protected against discrimination and exclusion in every field, including denial of employment and benefits of the pension system. The Committee also recommends that the State party take steps to guarantee, in law and practice, the unhindered access of Baha’i students to universities and vocational training institutions, and to prevent refusals of access and expulsions of students from such institutions based on their belonging to the Baha’i community.
The Committee is concerned about the restrictions placed on access to university education, in particular affecting women (art. 2). Para 9.
The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to lift all restrictions on access to university education, including bans on female and male enrolment, limited quotas for women in certain fields, and gender segregation in classrooms and facilities.
Health: The Committee is concerned that a significant portion of the population is not covered by any health insurance scheme (art. 9). Para 16.
The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to ensure universal access to health insurance, providing for coverage for a minimum essential level of benefits to all individuals and families, including access to health facilities, goods and services on a non-discriminatory basis; provision of essential drugs; access to reproductive, maternal (prenatal as well as post-natal) and child health care; and immunization against the major infectious diseases occurring in the community.
Early marriage: The Committee is concerned that the minimum age for marriage, namely 13 years for girls and 15 years for boys, is inconsistent with the requirement under the Covenant that marriage be entered into only with the free consent of the intending spouses (art. 10). Para 18.
The Committee calls on the State party to raise the minimum age of marriage to 18 years for both boys and girls, and to ensure that marriage can be entered into only with the free consent of the intending spouses.
Street children: The Committee is concerned that a very high number of children are living and/or working in the street, in particular in Tehran, Isfahan, Mashdad and Shiraz, and that these children have limited access to health services and education (art. 10). Para 19.
The Committee recommends that the State party take urgent and effective steps to address the very high number of children living and/or working in the street, address the root causes of the phenomenon, and provide all street children with access to health services and education.
Child labour: The Committee is concerned that child labour is prevalent, in particular in rural areas, including in carpet weaving and other traditional family businesses. The Committee is concerned that domestic legislation does not consistently determine the minimum age for employment, and that child labour is permitted in agriculture, domestic service, and some small businesses. The Committee is also concerned that child labour legislation is ineffectively and inadequately monitored and enforced (art. 10). Para 20.
The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to strengthen its national legislation prohibiting child labour in accordance with international standards, in all sectors, including in agriculture, domestic service, and clay/brickmaking. The Committee also recommends that the State party ensure that the implementation of legislation pertaining to child labour is effectively monitored and enforced, including through labour inspections in agriculture and the informal sector, ensuring that employers exploiting child labour are held accountable and that victims of child labour are rehabilitated and are ensured access to education. The Committee recommends that the State party undertake awareness-raising campaigns with a view to eradicating child labour.
Child mortality: The Committee is concerned that theprovinceofSistanand Baluchestan is characterized by the State party’s worst indicators for life expectancy, access to water and sanitation, and infant and child mortality. It is also concerned that there has been insufficient investment by the State party in the province’s health clinics and other facilities in remote rural areas (art. 12). Para 25.
The Committee recommends that the State party take urgent steps to increase the allocation of public funds to improve the health situation of inhabitants of the province of Sistan and Baluchestan, in particular focusing on the health infrastructure and the provision of adequate water and sanitation.
Education: The Committee is concerned about: (a) the high drop-out rates of girls in rural schools upon reaching puberty and of indigenous Arab children; (b) the high illiteracy rates among Ahwazi Arabs as well as Azeris; (c) the lack of female teachers in rural areas; and (d) the stark differences in teaching staff capacities and material equipment between schools in urban and rural areas (arts. 13 and 14). Para 27,
The Committee recommends that the State party address the high drop-out rate of girls in rural areas and of Ahwazi Arab children. The Committee recommends that the State party take measures to address the high illiteracy rates among Ahwazi Arabs and Azeris. It also recommends that the State party take steps to improve the quality of instruction in and physical infrastructure of schools in rural areas, and to increase the number of female teachers in rural areas.
The Committee is concerned that ethnic minorities face severe restrictions in practice with regard to education in their mother tongue, including Azeri, Kurdish, and Arabic, despite policies protecting the use of non-Persian languages (arts. 13 and 14). Para 29.
The Committee recommends that the State party take steps to ensure that ethnic minorities have the opportunity to receive education in their mother tongue, in addition to Farsi.
Birth registration: The Committee is concerned that many children, in particular those in rural areas, are not registered at birth, creating an obstacle to school enrolment. It is concerned that refugee children have reduced access to primary education due to the lack of personal documents and the non-registration of their parents with the authorities, as well as the imposition of enrolment fees. The Committee is also concerned about the lack of access to education of children with disabilities and children of nomadic communities (arts. 13 and 14). Para 28.
The Committee recommends that the State party intensify its efforts to ensure that all children receive birth certificates and that the lack of such a document is not an impediment for school enrolment of a child. It recommends that the State party take measures to ensure that refugee children have access to education, regardless of whether their parents have registered with the authorities, and that primary education, including enrolment thereto, is offered free of charge. The Committee also recommends that the State party intensify its measures to guarantee an inclusive education for children with disabilities, including through the Organization for Special Children and the Seven-Point Guideline for Universal and Consolidated Education for Children and Students with Special Needs, and to ensure that all children of nomadic communities have access to primary education, including through the establishment of mobile schools.
E/C.12/1993/7
Last reported: 18 / 19 May 1993
Concluding Observations: 9 June 1993
Child Labour: The Committee notes that the rate of unemployment, which had risen to 15 per cent as a result of the war with Iraq has, in the four years since the end of the war, fallen to 10 per cent; that under new labour legislation annual leave has been increased from 12 to 30 days and that the minimum age for employment has been raised from 12 to 15 years; that the Ministry of Labour has established a countrywide network of labour inspectors whose task is to ensure compliance with Labour regulations and who have the authority to shut down part or whole of an enterprise in which safety measures are considered inadequate. (Paragraph 3).
Minority groups and education: [......] The Committee draws again the attention to the following concerns expressed at its fifth session in 1990 about the situation of certain minority groups, which have not been satisfactorily answered in the course of the present session:
(c) Discrimination on religious grounds in the educational system;
(d) Insufficiency of the education offered to the children belonging to the Kurdish minority;
(g) The situation of the Kurds and the disparities that exist between the different ethnic and economic groups in the enjoyment of their rights to education, to work, to travel, to housing and to the enjoyment of cultural activities. (Paragraph 5).
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UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
CERD/C/IRN/CO/18-19
Last reported: 4 / 5 August 2010
Concluding Observations issued: 27 August 2010
Issues raised:
Education and minority groups: While the Committee notes that, according to the State party, measures are being taken to promote minority languages, and the teaching of minority languages and literature in schools is permitted, it expresses concern over the lack of sufficient measures to enable persons belonging to minorities to have adequate opportunities to learn their mother tongue and to have it used as a medium of instruction. It would have appreciated more information on the literacy levels of ethnic minorities. (Art. 5). (Paragraph 12).
The Committee recommends the State party continue its efforts to implement measures to enable persons belonging to minorities to have adequate opportunities to learn their mother tongue and to have it used as a medium of instruction. It requests the State party to provide more information on the literacy levels of ethnic minorities.
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UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
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UN Committee on Migrant Workers
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UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
CRPD/C/IRN/CO/1
Last reported: 20 December 2013
Concluding observations issued: 12 April 2017
Issues raised and recommendations given:
Positive aspects: the Committee welcomes the State party measures to develop a policy framework for implementing the Convention, including the “Comprehensive Plan of Action on the Rights of the Child and Juvenile on the horizon of 2025” adopted in 2014, which set-up measures for children with disabilities.
Children with disabilities (art. 7): the Committee observes with concern the absence of mechanisms for children with disabilities to express their views and opinions regarding all matters affecting them; the lack of information on measures to prevent abandonment, and mistreatment of children with disabilities; the absence of strategies to promote the best interests of the child in actions concerning children with disabilities; and the lack of disaggregated data about girls and boys with disabilities’ access to health, education, an adequate standard of living including social protection, and enjoyment of sports, leisure and cultural activities (para. 16).
The Committee recommends that the State party set-up guidelines aimed at consulting with children with disabilities through their representative organizations, ensuring support according to their age and disability, in relation to issues affecting them; adopt a strategy to sensitize families and communities about the respect of the evolving capacities of children with disabilities, combat stereotypes against them and prevent isolation and neglect; and provide community-based services and support for children with disabilities with a view to eliminating institutionalization (para. 17).
Freedom of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (art. 15): the Committee is concerned about the enforcement of mutilation as a form of criminal sentence, and the stigmatization against persons who have impairment as a consequence of such punishment; and it recommends that the State party enact legislation to prohibit all corporal punishment of children with disabilities and to protect them from such practice (para. 32 and 33)
Education (art. 24): the Committee is concerned about the: prevalence of the model of special education in the State party, the low number of children in the mainstream school and the gap between girls and boys with disabilities attending mainstream education; lack of measures to train teachers, education personnel and parents concerning inclusive education; lack of information on the provision of reasonable accommodation and support for students in the mainstream setting; and absence of measures to improve access to education for children with disabilities living in rural communities (para. 46).
The Committee calls upon the State party to: establish a time frame for the transition process from segregated to inclusive and quality education and ensure availability of budgetary, technical and personal resources are available to complete the process; collect disaggregated statistics by age, sex, gender, ethnic background, migrant, asylum seeker and refugee status, on the advancement of the inclusive education system; ensure and enforce non-rejection of students with disabilities from mainstream schools and introduce reasonable accommodation for students with disabilities as an obligation at private and public mainstream schools; take measures to employ teachers with disabilities at all levels of education; undertake measures, including by encouraging public-private partnerships, to ensure the provision of assistive technologies in classrooms; and ensure the training of all teachers in inclusive education (para. 47).
Health (art. 25): the Committee observes with concern the lack of information about coverage of early identification programmes among children with disabilities in rural and urban areas; and recommends that the State party ensure that all persons with disabilities, including women, girls and boys with disabilities have access on an equal basis with others to affordable, accessible, quality and culturally sensitive health services, in urban and rural areas; introduce a data collection system based on international standards on the health status of persons with disabilities, including identification and follow-up mechanism for children with disabilities (para. 48 and 49).
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UN Committee on Enforced Disappearance