Having Iran as its standard-bearer for women’s rights discredits UN

Finlay, L. (2014) Having Iran as its standard-bearer for women’s rights discredits UN. The Conversation, 15 May 2014 .

Abstract

In March, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon reported to the General Assembly on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Ban expressed concern that women in Iran “are subject to discrimination, entrenched both in law and practice”. The disqualification of all women candidates in the June 2013 presidential elections was one recent example cited.

But late last month, Iran was one of 11 countries elected by acclamation to the UN’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). The CSW is:

…the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women.
Iran was actually re-elected, having been a member of the CSW since 2011. It is putting it mildly to say that the election of Iran to the CSW significantly diminishes the credibility of this body.

Publication Type:	Non-refereed Article
Murdoch Affiliation:	School of Law
Publisher:	The Conversation Media Group
Copyright:	The Author
Publishers Website:	http://theconversation.com/au
URI:	http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/29748

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