the principles, norms and laws stipulated in the Constitution. 28 Article 43 of the Charter provides that citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran “have the right to form, join and participate in political parties, societies, social, cultural, scientific, political and trade associations and nongovernmental organizations in compliance with the law”.29 In practice the mechanism does not resolve the absence of legal protection for religious minorities against discrimination. The charter mandates regular and periodic training of citizens and government officials. Hundreds of training courses have been held at the city and provincial level for government officials since the publication of the charter; however, because the charter is in effect confined to executive bodies, other state bodies including the judiciary and security forces have not been affected. Moreover, specific training on discrimination based on religion and belief does not exist. Recommendation status: This recommendation has NOT been implemented30 28 Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review Islamic Republic of Iran, 27 December 2019, https://undocs.org/A/HRC/43/12 29 Office of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Charter of Citizen’s Rights English translation, December 2016, http://president.ir/en/96865 30 For more, please see: Minority Rights Group, https://minorityrights.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Rights-DeniedViolations-against-ethnic-and-religious-minorities-in-Iran.pdf 5