other basic services.30 A new rule proclaimed in January 2020, will only allow citizens to register
as one of the country’s recognized religions to the state-issued National Identity Card—which is
required for almost all government and other transactions. 31
While it is technically possible to file discrimination complaints with the Administration of Justice
Court, the Article 90 Commission in the parliament, and the Oversight Bodies for the exercise of
Citizenship Rights in the country’s provincial courts, there is no evidence that judicial
actions are taken in response to complaints.32 Hate crimes, such as motivated killings and
desecration of cemeteries, particularly against Baha’is, have not been investigated by the Iranian
authorities.33 34
In the context of a State that considers itself Shia by law, such measures imposing restrictions on
the basis of religion or belief may well amount in practice to coercion to renounce or to convert to
a minority faith and as such are incompatible with the prohibition of discrimination based on
religion or belief under Article 18 of the Covenant. The Human Rights Committee stipulated that
the “recognition of a religion as a State religion should not result in any impairment of the
enjoyment of any of the rights under Article 18, nor in any discrimination against adherents of
other religions or non-believers, since the right to freedom of religion and belief and the prohibition
of discrimination do not depend on the recognition as an official religion or belief.” 35 Iranian penal
sanctions, policies and practices instituted against religious minorities may well amount to
attempts to compel believers or non-believers to adhere to their religious belief and congregations,
to recant their religion or belief or to convert. The Human Rights Committee has stated that such
conducts are inconsistent with Article 18 of the ICCPR.36
30
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
31
Center for Human Rights in Iran, https://www.iranhumanrights.org/2020/01/bahais-unrecognized-minorities-in-iran-must-nowhide-religion-to-obtain-government-id/
32
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 Documentation
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
33
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 Documentation
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
34
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
35
Human Rights Committee Concluding Observations, 3 August 1993, CCPR/C/79/Add.25
https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CCPR%2fC%2f79%2fAdd.25&Lang=en
36
CCPR General Comment No. 22: Article 18 < https://www.refworld.org/docid/453883fb22.html>
5