dealing with Baha’ís”. He stated that people “should avoid any association and dealings with this
perverse and misguided sect.”5
While Iranian law theoretically forbids the investigation of individual beliefs, discrimination in
access to employment is institutionalised through the practice of gozinesh, a mandatory
screening process that anyone seeking employment in the public sector must
undergo.6 The gozinesh criteria not only bar adherents of non-recognised religions from
seeking employment, but also disadvantage anyone who holds views contrary to the
official values of the Islamic Republic. Baha’is, for instance, continue to be categorically barred
from public sector employment, and they also face serious restrictions in the private sector. For
example, authorities sometimes refuse to issue commercial licenses to Baha’is and have shut
down scores of Baha’i-owned businesses for closing on Baha’i holy days.7 Since 2013 until
2019, there have been more than 803 incidents of violations of economic rights of the Baha’is,
including arbitrary shop closures, unfair dismissal from employment and actual or threatened
revocation of business licenses.8
In terms of access to education, the Iranian government continues to bar Baha’is from Iran’s
state-run university system. Baha’is are either not allowed to enroll or are expelled subsequent to
registration. In fact, Iran’s Court of Administrative Justice has ruled that the 1991 memorandum
by the Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution prohibits admission of Baha’is to Iran’s
universities.9 In 2019, as of June 2019, 17 Baha’i students have been reportedly expelled from
Iranian universities.10 In 2018, 50 Baha’i students were reportedly expelled.11
While it is technically possible to file discrimination complaints with the Administration
of Justice Court, the Parliament’s Article 90 Commission, and the Oversight Bodies for the
exercise of Citizenship Rights in the country’s provincial courts, there is no evidence
5
Baha’i International Community, https://www.bic.org/sites/default/files/pdf/iran/the_bahais_of_iran__a_persecuted_community.pdf
6
Joint submission to the Human Rights Committee from All Human Rights for All in Iran, Association for Human Rights in
Kurdistan – Geneva, Association for the Human Rights of the Azerbaijani People in Iran, Iran Human Rights Documenttion
Center, OutRight International, Siamak Pourzand Foundation, Small Media, Impact Iran, 2020,
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CCPR/Shared%20Documents/IRN/INT_CCPR_NGO_IRN_42317_E.pdf
7
Joint submission to the Human Rights Committee from All Human Rights for All in Iran, Association for Human Rights in
Kurdistan – Geneva, Association for the Human Rights of the Azerbaijani People in Iran, Iran Human Rights Documenttion
Center, OutRight International, Siamak Pourzand Foundation, Small Media, Impact Iran, 2020,
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CCPR/Shared%20Documents/IRN/INT_CCPR_NGO_IRN_42317_E.pdf
8
Baha’i International Community, www.bic.org/sites/default/files/pdf/iran/overview_of_persecution-0119_2.pdf
9
Joint submission to the Human Rights Committee from All Human Rights for All in Iran, Association for Human Rights in
Kurdistan – Geneva, Association for the Human Rights of the Azerbaijani People in Iran, Iran Human Rights Documenttion
Center, OutRight International, Siamak Pourzand Foundation, Small Media, Impact Iran, 2020,
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CCPR/Shared%20Documents/IRN/INT_CCPR_NGO_IRN_42317_E.pdf
10
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, 18 July 2019,
https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N19/222/62/PDF/N1922262.pdf?OpenElement
11
Center for Human Rights in Iran, https://iranhumanrights.org/2018/09/in-just-six-months-iranian-universities-expelled-50bahai-students-for-their-religious-beliefs/
2