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A Government representative stated that his Government attached significant importance to the proper functioning of the ILO supervisory system and would continue to do so. While the Government had submitted an exhaustive report to the Committee of Experts, containing the requested documents and information it had not been duly taken into account. The Committee’s report stated that no action had yet been taken or reported on the measures to amend section 1117 of the Civil Code, to ensure equal family allowance and child benefit for men and women workers, and to review the Bill on early retirement of women. Contrary to the findings of the Committee, in order to give effect to the Convention, the Government had further strengthened its supervisory mechanisms, and in 2011 four technical bodies were established to amend the Labour Law, the Social Security Act, and the occupational safety and health regulations, and to promote social dialogue. The Government had provided the Committee of Experts with a full explanation on the above issues. In particular, the Government had submitted to Parliament several legislative amendments pertaining to female workers and was awaiting their final approval. In particular, the speaker referred to those ensuring equal pay for work of equal value for men and women workers, and prohibiting any type of discrimination based on the principles of the Convention; prohibiting termination of employment of female workers during the period of pregnancy and maternity (section 77 of the Labour Law); and prohibiting night work for women, except with respect to jobs exceptionally specified and authorized by the Tripartite Council on Technical Safety and Occupational Health.

Commenting on the Labour Law amendment, the speaker noted that the Council of Ministers had adopted a new bill incorporating, among other points, the views of the social partners. The proposed bill was submitted to Parliament on 22 October 2012. Prior to its final approval, the bill still could be subject to revision and amendment by the social partners who were constantly consulted by the parliamentarians on the matter. Commenting on the situation of social dialogue in the country, he indicated that contrary to the observation made by the Committee of Experts, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work had received rather special attention of the Government and the legislature. As a result, the number of provisions concerning social dialogue in the new Labour Law had increased from 18 to 29. Section 131(4) of the Labour Law had been amended in close consultation with the social partners. The new amendment had duly provided for the establishment of free trade unions and their confederations at the enterprise, and/or industry levels. Referring to the concerns expressed by the Committee of Experts in respect of the absence of an appropriate legal framework for freedom of association and social dialogue, the Government categorically rejected any such assumptions and reiterated its strong adherence to the principles of social dialogue. The Government interacted with social partners not only out of obligation, but also due to the necessity to ensure sustainable development and social justice. Institutions such as the High Tripartite Labour Council, the High Tripartite Employment Council, the High Tripartite Council of Safety and Occupational Health were just a few examples of the numerous national frameworks that practiced social dialogue in an environment of freedom of association. In addition to the above national tripartite structures, workers’ and employers’ associations were also consulted on the establishment of the National Tripartite Committee on the Labour Law Amendment.

With regard to the situation of women workers, the observation of the Committee of Experts underestimated both the realities of the Iranian developing society and the Government initiatives for the promotion of the status of women in the world of work. He also reiterated the Government’s earlier statement to the effect that the Family Protection Bill had been officially approved by Parliament in 2011 and had entered into force. Regarding the early retirement of women Bill, he recalled that based on the Civil Service Early Retirement Act adopted in 2007, the Government was only authorized to practice the retirement scheme for official and contractual employees with at least 25 years of service by granting them a maximum of five years annual incentives. Contrary to the finding of the Committee of Experts, there was no coercion in this respect. The Bill did not impose any age condition and it was only enforced provided that the employees applied voluntarily, irrespective of their age and gender. Furthermore, the Family Allowance Amendment provided family allowance for both male and female workers (even for a couple working at the same workplace). As per section 86 of the Social Security Act, the salary and fringe benefits specified in the Labour Law were paid based on the work value and irrespective of the gender of the worker. Hence, a husband and wife working at the same enterprise were equally and indiscriminately entitled to housing, food, and family and child allowances. With regard to section 1117 of the Civil Code, the speaker reiterated that this provision had been officially superseded by the Family Protection Bill that granted equal rights to both spouses to prevent each other from taking up a job or profession that may adversely affect the dignity, integrity and the interests of the family. Any such decision by a spouse could be appealed in court, pursuant to the new Family Protection Law. Accordingly, section 1117 of the Civil Code had been irrevocably repealed.

Regarding the alleged denial of access to top management positions to women, there was no legislation or procedure that could either explicitly or implicitly encourage such practice. To the contrary, women’s role in administrative and legislative decision-making positions, as in the Parliament, the Council of Ministers and the judiciary, showed significant progress in terms of women’s access to higher managerial positions, both in the public and private sectors. Nowadays, women occupied the position of advisors and vice-advisors to the President, Parliament, etc. Many of them were also members of parliamentary standing committees, government decision-making committees, chief executives of the Central Bank, chaired various city councils, High Council of Cultural Revolution, High Council of Employment, High Council of Health and the High Council for Youth, were deputy ministers and headed public and private organizations. Furthermore, with regard to the alleged failure to address the issue of giving women access to all positions in the judiciary, including those qualified to hand down judgments, the speaker stressed that all female and male judges were equally paid and women enjoyed the same position in the penal courts, family courts and juvenile courts. As sitting judges, together with their male judge colleagues, they could also deliver equally binding judgments. The Government pledged to genuinely partner with the ILO and the Committee of Experts on technical cooperation and looked forward to furthering collaboration with a view to ensuring the application of international labour standards.

The Worker members stressed that the Islamic Republic of Iran was among the countries with the widest gender gap in the world. They recalled that in 2010 this Committee expressed its deep disappointment that firm promises made by the Government in 2006 to take all appropriate measures to bring its legislation and practice into line with the Convention had not been fulfilled. While noting that the Government had submitted a report on the implementation of the Convention in August 2011, the Worker members found the content of the report unsatisfactory. They shared the Committee of Expert’s deep regret regarding the lack of progress in revising the legal framework and pointed out that none of the legal revisions requested by the Conference Committee in 2010 and before, had been put in place. Legislation prohibiting discrimination in employment and education had still not been adopted, a National Committee to Monitor the Application of International Labour Standards was still identifying its goals, and section 1117 of the Civil Code, which provided that a husband could prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession, as well as the obligatory dress code, had still not been repealed.

While recognizing that the Government had adopted several measures which, at first glance, appeared to be promoting women’s employment, the Worker members considered that these measures seemed to be intended to promote the role of women as mothers and housewives, rather than to support female participation in the workforce. They stressed that the newly proposed legislation might in fact deteriorate access to employment and education for women, in particular for single women. They also deplored proposals that, although not accepted, were indicative of the restrictive atmosphere in which women sought employment, such as the obligation for single women below the age of 40 to require permission from a tutor or an Islamic lawyer to apply for a passport. Moreover, the recent restriction in the access of women to certain university courses could reverse the trend in women’s access to higher education and further limit their access to higher level employment and decision-making positions. The Worker members reiterated their concerns with respect to discrimination in social security regulations that may favour the husband over the wife in pension, child and other benefits. Many women worked in the informal economy, and women tended to be employed in lower paid, less secure jobs.

The Worker members further addressed the issue of discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities and stated in particular that the Baha’i were not permitted to hold governmental jobs, either in the civil service, in education or in the legal system. In the private sector, business licences were often denied or revoked, and Muslim employers were warned against hiring or retaining Baha’i employees. The Worker members recalled that the Committee of Experts also addressed the issue of discrimination on the basis of political opinion. The Islamic Republic of Iran ranked among the four countries with the highest number of journalists in prison and, contrary to the Government’s claims that trade unions could freely be established in the country, the painful experience of workers who tried was that of serious repression, including long periods of imprisonment. Restrictions on the right to organize and lack of trade union freedom and independence were hindering effective social dialogue that could address the issue of discrimination in employment and education.

The Employer members noted with regret that no concrete results had been achieved even though for many years, both the Committee of Experts and this Committee had been raising concerns regarding the laws and regulations that discriminated against women. While the Committee of Experts had noted in 2009 certain improvements in the areas of education, vocational training and employment of women, it remained concerned about the lack of evidence of real progress regarding the situation of women in the labour market. The Employer members stressed that despite the Family Protection Act, section 1117 of the Civil Code, which provided for the right of a husband to object to his wife’s profession, still had not been repealed or amended. While the Employer members welcomed the Government’s indication that the number of female judges had increased, the Committee of Experts observed that the Government had not addressed the issue of giving women access to all positions in the judiciary, including those qualified to hand down judgments, as no steps appeared to have been taken to address these limitations set out in the 1982 Law on the selection of judges and Decree No. 5080 of 1979. The Employer members noted the Government’s indication that both men and women were not hired after the age of 40, with a possible extension of five years. In this respect, they pointed out obstacles for women being employed after the age of 30, and were concerned about the lack of information regarding women in the labour market. They also raised concerns about the legislation imposing a dress code and the discrimination in social security provisions. All these legislative measures had a negative impact on the employment of women. The Employer members urged the Government to take concrete steps to ensure comprehensive protection against direct and indirect discrimination on all the grounds enumerated in the Convention.

The Worker member of Canada indicated that Iranian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased by 2.5 per cent annually and was expected to double in the next five years resulting in a 45 per cent inflation rate. This meant that married women needed more than ever to work to satisfy the needs of their families. However, according to the Government’s report concerning the implementation of the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), only 16 per cent of women participated in the labour market. Only 3.5 million Iranian women, compared to 24 million men, received a salary, were entitled to holidays, maternity leave and pension. There were many more women in the informal economy in a wide range of jobs where they represented from 50 to 90 per cent of the workforce. In addition, working women still had the primary obligation for domestic responsibilities. Women were trapped between two conflicting trends: with some pushing for law reform to remove employment restrictions for women, while others preferred that women stayed at home as provided for in the current Civil Code, which empowered men to bar their wives from taking up work. Despite the high literacy rate for both men and women (90 per cent), women were restricted to some areas of education and excluded from the core industrial and economic sectors. While 60 per cent of students in medicine, humanities, arts and science were women, only 20 to 30 per cent of the students in technical or agricultural studies were women. Almost 25 per cent of women and 43.8 per cent of young persons were unemployed. In its report in the framework of Convention No. 122, the Government had referred to a five-year development plan providing for a massive privatization scheme, the establishment of private employment agencies, and self-employment. This approach had already been adopted by other Asian countries in the 1980s, leading to a rampant development of young female sweatshops. In addition, women, even in family enterprises, earned one third of men’s salaries. The supervisory bodies had already referred to the growing number of forced marriages and the increase in trafficking of women and young girls. Discrimination was deeply rooted in Iranian textbooks where the dominant role of men at home and work was emphasized.

The Worker member of Turkey indicated that due to the existing discrimination on the grounds of political opinion, ethnicity and religion, young people, academics, politicians, human rights defenders and journalists were fleeing the country in order to escape imprisonment or even death. Many came to Turkey. There were more than 15 refugee camps in Turkey, six of which provided accommodation mainly to Iranians. More than 150,000 young Iranians were currently studying in Turkish universities and were afraid to return to their country. Public employees and others with a different political opinion, religion or origin from that of the national regime suffered from discrimination. This situation mainly affected women, both in law and in practice: the rate of employment of women was very low; they needed their husbands’ permission to work and travel; they had to observe a strict dress code; there were honour killings and the minimum age for marriage was set at 13. Women were discriminated in all sectors of education, and 14 fields of education were altogether forbidden to women. In contrast, men had the right to polygamy and the unilateral right to divorce. The speaker called on the Islamic Republic of Iran to comply with the Convention, and change its discriminatory legislation, taking into account the ILO’s guidance.

A representative of the European Union, speaking on behalf of the European Union (EU) and its Member States, as well as Croatia, Iceland, Montenegro, Serbia, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Norway and the Republic of Moldova, expressed deep concern at the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, which continued to deteriorate. They called on the Iranian authorities to live up to the international human rights obligations that the Government had entered into. Alarmed by the severe discrimination against women and the pervasive gender inequality, they urged the Government to take concrete and immediate steps to ensure that laws and practices were fully in line with the Convention, including with a view to ensuring that women in temporary and contract employment benefited from all entitlements and facilities, and eliminating the discriminatory practices against women in recruitment and in job advertisements. Deploring the systematic discrimination against religious minorities, the speaker noted that the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran had reported that the Baha’i were subjected to severe socio-economic pressure and that in some cases they had been deprived of property, employment and education. They also deplored the reports of prosecution and persecution of teachers, students and trade unionists advocating for social justice, for equal rights, employment and for women’s rights. Recalling the recurrent lack of information during the discussions of this case, the Government was urged to cooperate fully with the supervisory bodies by providing the information requested on equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women, and the Government was invited to avail itself of ILO technical assistance.

The Worker member of France observed that with respect to discrimination based on political opinion, union membership and involvement in trade union or human rights activities, in particular, the Committee of Experts paints a disastrous picture of the prevailing situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is the reason the case had been placed before the Committee this year. However, the reality was far worse. Discrimination in employment was systematically directed against independent trade unionists, journalists, human rights defenders, teachers, lawyers and those who criticize the Government, as well as against their family members. The Islamic Republic of Iran was second among the countries with the largest number of journalists in prison, most for having expressed views that differed from those of the Government. Mr Ahmad Zaidabadi, for example, had been sentenced to six years in prison and banned for life from practicing his profession. Lawyers were also imprisoned for defending human rights and were banned from practicing their profession. Such was the case of Ms Nasrin Sotoudeh who had been awarded the Sakharov prize in 2012 and yet had been sentenced to six years in prison and banned from practicing for ten years. Many other human rights defenders and critics and opponents of the Government were being persecuted, dismissed, imprisoned or tortured simply for exercising their right of expression. Membership of a trade union such as a teachers’ union, also brought the risk of prison, exile or some other form of punishment. All demonstrations by teachers, students and trade unionists calling for social justice or equal rights in education and employment were met with extreme violence. Many trade unionists, such as Mr Rasool Bodaqi and Mr Mahmood Baqeri, were currently serving time in prison due to the denial of freedom of expression. There was reason to fear that such information, horrific as it was, offered but a glimpse of the reality facing thousands of Iranian workers, human rights defenders and trade unionists.

The Government member of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela stated that his Government had taken note of the fact that the Committee of Experts had welcomed the increase in the number of female judges in the Iranian judiciary. The rise in equal opportunities and treatment for men and women in the workforce, the decrease in unemployment, measures designed to improve women’s access to training and education, and the ongoing efforts of the Government to promote women’s entrepreneurship had also been noted. He stated that there was legal protection to prevent gender-based discrimination. His Government considered that the Committee should take those efforts into account in its conclusions.

The Government member of Canada expressed her Government’s disappointment at the continuing discrimination against women, religious and ethnic minorities in employment and occupation in the Islamic Republic of Iran and the lack of measures taken by the Government to address these issues. Despite the strong and sustained urging of this Committee in the past to amend or repeal the legislation, employment laws and regulations discriminating against women were still in place. Section 1117 of the Civil Code, the social security regulations and obligatory dress code continued to prejudice women. Job advertisements were regularly discriminatory; women also faced unequal access to education and job training. Religious minorities faced persistent and pervasive discrimination. Members of the Baha’i faith were discriminated against in access to education, universities and occupations in the public sector; they had been deprived of property, employment and education. The legislative and policy frameworks in place to protect workers against discrimination and sexual harassment had not proved effective or adequate. It was not sufficient for these frameworks to exist; workers must be aware of their rights and be able to access credible and effective avenues for pursuing redress. The Government’s continued failure to respect its obligations under the Convention in the face of repeated calls for change by the Committee demonstrated a lack of seriousness and good faith. Her Government urged the Government to take concrete and decisive action to end discrimination against women and ethnic and religious minorities in employment and occupation and to promote women’s empowerment and women’s entrepreneurship. Only true progress in these areas would ensure respect for the human dignity of women and ethnic and religious minorities. The Government should engage with the ILO in good faith to secure technical assistance in order to bring its legislation and practice into line with the Convention and the recommendations of the Committee.

The Government member of Pakistan expressed appreciation for the Government’s comprehensive reply to the questions raised by the Committee of Experts. The Government had established technical groups to address amendments to the Labour Law and the Social Security Act, issues of occupational safety and health, and the promotion of social dialogue. There had also been some improvements, including the increase in the number of female judges and the efforts made regarding the new bill incorporating, among others, the views of the social partners. While expressing hope for the further strengthening of such measures and legislation, he emphasized that there was always room for improvement on the other unresolved issues. His Government therefore encouraged dialogue and appropriate resolution in this regard.

The Government member of India expressed his Government’s appreciation concerning the efforts made by the Government for the better application of the Convention, including that several measures had been taken to strengthen its supervisory mechanisms, by establishing four technical groups in the last two years to address amendments to the Labour Law and the Social Security Act. Furthermore, the Council of Ministers had succeeded in adopting a new bill incorporating, among others, the official points of view of the social partners, and currently a bill was under consideration in Parliament. Only dialogue and cooperation would help in resolving the outstanding issues, and his Government called on all member States to extend their cooperation to the Government for the full application of international labour standards.

The Government representative stated that some of the views and topics addressed in the discussion did not fall under the mandate of this Committee, and that comments of a political nature unrelated to the matters under discussion could jeopardize the legitimacy of the Committee. More than 70 per cent of university entrants were women, and that his Government was not aware of any legislation that either explicitly or implicitly encouraged discrimination against women in top management positions. Women’s role in administrative and decision-making positions, as in the Council of Ministers and the judiciary, on the contrary, had shown significant progress in terms of women’s access to higher managerial positions, both in the public and private sectors, including as advisers to the President. All female and male judges were equally paid, and female judges enjoyed the same calibre and position in the penal courts, family courts and juvenile courts. As sitting judges, female judges could also deliver judgments in the cases before the courts. Currently, out of the 8,002 judges, 614 were female and there had been an increase of 16.2 per cent in the number of female judges since 2009.

The speaker strongly refuted that discriminatory employment advertisements were an existing practice, as constructive steps had been taken to address this. As a result of social dialogue, the Iranian Confederation of Employers’ Associations had agreed to assist with defining the tasks with a view to the implementation of the Convention, which would address discriminatory recruitment processes in the private sector. Moreover, the Government had abided by the comments of the Committee of Experts to repeal the discriminatory legislation and regulations. Concrete steps had been taken to ensure the repeal or effective amendment of legislation, regulations and instructions to further promote women’s equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation, including with respect to the amendment of section 1117 of the Civil Code and the Social Security Act. Regarding the early retirement of women, he indicated that this was voluntary and did not have a negative impact on women’s career paths, including access to higher level positions, or result in women receiving lower pensions. The Government did not allow for the promotion of discrimination, stereotypical attitudes or hatred against religious minorities. Despite false information in this regard, religious minorities were respected in the country. Religious minorities, including unrecognized religious minorities, were protected against discrimination and had equal access and opportunity to employment and education. In most provinces with religious or ethnic minorities, these groups had been assigned a proportional number of managerial positions in government, and the Government would provide information to the Committee of Experts on this subject on a regular basis to confirm its commitment in this regard. All measures taken to improve labour relations and conditions had been founded on a culture which favoured the promotion of social dialogue and the extension of social protection.

The Worker members stated that in spite of numerous examinations of this case, no real progress had been made to comply with the Convention. Furthermore, the information that had been provided was of a general nature and no substantive measures and targets had been indicated. The response of the Government to discredit the concerns and deny the problems raised by the social partners, added to the Worker members’ concerns. The lack of ability of the Government to repeal even the most patently discriminatory legislation and regulations was deeply regrettable. The new measures that were being proposed further restricted access to the labour market for women, instead of guaranteeing equal access to employment and education. Difficult access to information concerning discrimination in these areas hindered the discussions between workers and the Government. Moreover, the repression of independent trade unions was a major obstacle for assessing the situation on the ground and opening a process of social dialogue to address the issues at stake. The situation was so serious and the Government’s lack of cooperation so clear, that the Worker members found every reason to file a complaint on the basis of article 26 of the ILO Constitution, but had chosen not to do so this year. The Government therefore needed to take the issue seriously and take the necessary measures. While the Government’s acceptance of ILO technical assistance was to be noted, three conditions for such assistance were not met: (i) restrictions on trade union rights prevented meaningful social dialogue on the Convention; (ii) restricted access to independent information prevented a factual assessment of the situation; and (iii) technical assistance required clear and time-bound objectives and implementation plans in order to be effective. The Worker members proposed that a high-level mission visit the country, as soon as possible, before the forthcoming session of the Committee of Experts, based on a clear and wide mandate for fact-finding and for setting a time-bound action plan aimed at ensuring compliance with the Convention.

The Employer members expressed the hope that the information submitted by the Government concerning access of women to certain high-level positions, including judicial positions, and the statistical data regarding women’s participation in the labour market, would be provided to the Committee of Experts to allow this Committee to engage in more careful consideration. While measures were being taken, there remained significant barriers to women’s participation in the labour market, and discrimination against women in employment continued. This serious case had been considered before by both this Committee and the Committee of Experts. The tripartite partners had expressed concerns and the Committee of Experts had repeatedly urged the Government to take immediate action to ensure the full application of the Convention in both law and practice. The Employer members once again expressed regret regarding the lack of progress made in this regard, and expected that the issues relating to the employment of women would be addressed in the near future. In this respect, the repeal of section 1117 of the Civil Code was imperative. Moreover, legislation that restricted the role of female judges, imposed a dress code, restricted access to employment for women over 40 years of age and resulted in the discriminatory application of social security provisions was unacceptable. Recalling the long-standing issues concerning compliance with the Convention, the Employer members reiterated that they would be deeply disappointed if the measures taken or envisaged by the Government did not remove restrictions on women’s employment. It was now the moment to take proper and concrete action in this regard. Therefore, the Employer members expressed support for the Worker members’ request for a high-level mission.

Conclusions

The Committee took note of the oral information provided by the Government representative and the discussion that followed.

The Committee recalled that it had been raising concerns for a number of years including with respect to discrimination in law and practice against women, ethnic and religious minorities, and the absence of an environment conducive to social dialogue on the implementation of the Convention.

The Committee noted the Government’s indication that four technical groups had been established to address the amendment of the Labour Law, the Social Security Act and the Occupational Safety and Health By-laws, and the promotion of social dialogue, and that a number of amendments had been proposed. The Committee also noted the Government’s indication that more detailed information was provided in the report it had recently submitted for the Committee of Experts’ meeting in 2013.

The Committee expressed deep regret that no concrete results had been achieved since the Committee last examined this case in 2010. The Committee strongly urged the Government to move from promises to meaningful progress regarding the elimination of discrimination against women and ethnic and religious minorities. While welcoming the increase in women’s labour market participation and in the number of female judges indicated by the Government, the Committee noted that there remained significant barriers to women’s equality of opportunity in employment and occupation. The Committee also expressed continued and deep concern regarding the systematic discrimination against members of religious and ethnic minorities, and noted that discrimination against the Baha’i remained particularly serious.

The Committee urged the Government to take concrete and immediate action to end discrimination against women and ethnic and religious minorities in law and practice, to promote women’s empowerment and women’s entrepreneurship, to take decisive action to combat stereotypical attitudes underlying discriminatory practices, and to address sexual and other forms of harassment. It also urged the Government to ensure that any new measures would not further restrict access of women to the labour market and reinforce traditional roles and prejudices. Noting with deep concern discrimination in employment and education on the basis of political opinion, in particular with respect to journalists, teachers, students and trade unionists, the Committee urged the Government to take effective measures to ensure protection against discrimination on the basis of political opinion and respect for freedom of expression. It also regretted the continued absence of an environment conducive to freedom of association and social dialogue, and urged the Government to address this as a matter of urgency with a view to addressing the gaps in law and practice in the implementation of the Convention.

Emphasizing the seriousness of this case and the lack of progress, the Committee urged the Government to accept a High-level mission to examine all the points raised by the Committee of Experts and the present Committee concerning the application of the Convention. The Committee requested the Government to include in its report to the Committee of Experts due in 2013, complete information regarding all issues raised by this Committee and the Committee of Experts, for examination at its next meeting.

The Government representative considered that his Government had participated in the discussions of the Committee in a transparent and constructive manner. While his Government was fully prepared to clarify any further questions and to submit a detailed report to the Committee of Experts, he stated that the outcome of the discussions might have been different had this Committee taken into account the information recently submitted by his Government. His Government had always engaged in constructive discussions and submitted detailed information and welcomed that some of the social partners had highlighted some positive measures taken, as was duly reflected in the conclusions. However, it was regrettable that some of the improvements and reforms made by his country – which had been presented to this Committee – had not been adequately reflected by the Committee of Experts. Technical cooperation was the road to follow and his Government looked forward to engaging with the ILO in this regard. His Government would closely consider this Committee’s conclusions so as to address them in their entirety.

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A Government representative noted at the outset that his statement consisted of a brief summary of a full and extensive report submitted to the Office and he apologized for not submitting the report in time. The Government was striving to ensure the implementation of the fundamental principles and rights at work through positive interaction with the social partners and the International Labour Office. In order to bring existing laws and regulations into conformity with the provisions of the Convention, the Government had reviewed some of the controversial national legislation. With regard to the amendments to existing laws so as to promote freedom of association, the Ministry of Labour, together with the social partners, had reviewed the long disputed provisions in Chapter 6 of the Labour Law concerning workers’ and employers’ organizations, and a bill amending the Labour Law had been submitted for adoption to the Cabinet. The Bill focused on the promotion of free trade union rights and recognized the freedom of workers and employers to form their associations at the workplace or by profession, thereby removing some of the obstacles. With regard to amendments to the laws and regulations in contradiction with the provisions of Convention No. 111, the Ministry of Labour had introduced a bill to the Cabinet aiming to ensure close monitoring of the implementation of the respective ILO provisions by the three branches of Government. The Cabinet had issued a directive by virtue of which the Ministries of Justice and Labour were mandated with presenting to the Cabinet the national laws and regulations that were in contradiction with Convention No. 111. The directive also provided for the establishment of a committee to supervise the proper application of ILO standards.

With regard to the National Equality Policy, the Iranian Judiciary had embarked on a series of actions to counter discrimination and administrative malpractices in the workplace, which included: (1) a joint project with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the promotion of human rights and social justice among religious, racial and ethnic minorities through training workshops for provincial judicial authorities with considerable participation by minorities; (2) the establishment of Special Minority Courts and Dispute Settlement Councils to address the complaints and concerns of minorities in the context of their own religious laws and social values; and (3) the establishment of a Committee on “Women’s Legal Studies and Non-Discrimination”, which would assist in upgrading the skills of women judges, women in judicial positions and in the police force. As a result of holding regular training and empowerment courses for women judges, the contribution of women to the judiciary and its subsidiary organs had increased considerably and he provided a series of statistics on the distribution of women in the judiciary. Women’s participation in political life had also increased considerably. Women were Members of Parliament, occupied the post of Vice-President and Minister of Health and other high posts in numerous ministries, provincial and county administrations, and municipal authorities. The ratio of women involved in political positions in Government during the period ending in the first quarter of 2010 had increased by 3.25 per cent compared with the same period in 2008.

With specific reference to section 1117 of the Civil Code, the Parliament and the Judiciary had officially indicated that it was in effect null and void. On the issue of equal family benefit payments for men and women, he indicated that according to the Iranian Social Security Organization, section 86 of the Social Security Act had now been amended to ensure that both men and women enjoyed equal family benefits, even if a couple worked in the same workplace. In order to improve women’s employment, he noted that of the 1,180,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) projects which had been awarded bank loans and grants, 230,000 projects were SMEs initiated by women entrepreneurs. Based on an agreement between the Government and industry in 2009, over 48,000 women university graduates had been recruited upon completion of their vocational training programmes. The Government had also recently adopted a bill on home-based jobs providing for the access of women to credit and equipment to start home-based businesses. With regard to the protection of civil and citizenry rights, in recent years the Judiciary had attentively identified rules and regulations that expressly or implicitly contradicted such rights and had annulled them. In the years 2008 and 2009, 6,500 complaints concerning the infringement of citizenry rights had been addressed on their merits, in 412 cases of which the judges were found to be at fault.

With reference to the alleged discrimination against racial and native minorities, the Government wished to emphasize that no laws or regulations discriminated against or hindered the access of minorities to high government posts and the Government was ready to receive and examine any substantiated complaints in this regard. He provided the latest statistics demonstrating that high government positions in provinces with the highest number of minorities were always occupied by people from the same minority. Moreover, he informed the Committee that, with regard to the dispute among the Iranian employers’ associations, it had been agreed on 14 April 2010, with the good offices of the Government, to continue negotiations for the establishment of a Confederation of Employers’ Union encompassing all the various employers’ organizations existing in the country. The Government respected fundamental principles and continued to strive to meet the ILO’s recommendations and observations. However, to be successful, the Government’s efforts needed to be supported by ILO technical cooperation.

The Employer members recalled that this case had been discussed 14 times in the past 20 years. On a positive note, they indicated that they had just been advised by the Iranian Confederation of Employers’ Associations that the judiciary and the Government had recognized this organisation as the representative employers’ organization, in conformity with the principles of freedom of association.

They recalled that, while the Committee had noted in 2009 certain improvements in the areas of education, vocational training and employment of women, it had remained concerned about the lack of evidence of real progress regarding the situation of women in the labour market. The Employer members noted with regret that the Government had not submitted its reports in time for the Committee of Experts’ consideration. However, the Government provided a report for the Committee of Experts’ consideration in May 2010, which apparently provided a range of information regarding measures to implement the Convention. From the information provided today by the Government, it should be noted that a bill on the prohibition of discrimination in employment and education has been submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers for further consideration, a copy of which had been submitted to the ILO. Also, the Charter of Women’s Rights had been replaced by the Family Support Act, which was approved in 2009. Furthermore, a committee had been established in April 2010 which was in charge of identifying all legal regulations that could be in conflict with the Convention. Clearly a great deal of information had been provided by the Government representative before the Committee, which needed to be carefully considered by the Committee of Experts; it was not yet possible to determine whether the Government was making real progress in compliance with Convention No. 111. The Employer members were hopeful that the Government had repealed or amended all legislation restricting women’s employment, including regarding the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the right of a husband to object to his wife’s profession, the discriminatory application of social security legislation and the restrictions in law and practice on women being hired after the age of 40. Finally, they welcomed the fact that the Government was willing to accept ILO technical assistance.

The Worker members recalled the Government’s commitment in 2006 to review all relevant legislation that was discriminatory for women within a four year period and stated that it was now time to assess the results of the Government’s action. They also recalled the Committee’s midterm review in 2008 of the Government’s actions, which had noted with disappointment the absence of progress and had urged the Government to take urgent action on all outstanding issues. Against this background, the Worker members considered that having received some written information, though at a very late stage, was an improvement compared to previous years; however, they still regretted that, due to such late reporting, the Committee was not in a position to examine and evaluate the information provided.

While acknowledging that the Government had finally transmitted a copy of the Bill on the comprehensive prohibition of discrimination in employment and education, they observed, first, that they had not had an opportunity to examine the Bill in any detail, and second, that the Bill was said to have been submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers, which was exactly where it had been two years ago. In addition, it was difficult to know whether the Charter of Citizenry and other documents requested by the Committee had in fact been communicated to the Office. Similarly, no conclusion could be reached as to whether the replacement of the Charter of Women’s Rights by the Family Support Act meant an improvement in terms of the implementation of Convention No. 111.

With regard to section 1117 of the Civil Code, which permitted a husband to bring a case to court if he objected to his wife taking a job contrary to the interest of the family or to the wife’s prestige, the Government contended that by virtue of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, section 1117 had been automatically abolished and courts were no longer authorized to receive claims under this provision. The Worker members believed, however, that the situation had remained practically unchanged compared to the discussion in 2006 on the same point. The existence of this section continued to have a negative impact on the employment of women. With regard to the dress code, the existence of which the Government continued to deny, the Worker members considered that there had been no new developments.

Referring to the Government’s indication that in April 2010, a Committee was set up to identify all legal regulations potentially in conflict with the Convention, the Worker members had in principle no objection to a Committee studying legal provisions which were inconsistent with the requirements of the Convention. They considered, however, that the announced establishment of the new Committee could not replace actual efforts to amend existing laws and regulations that had already been identified as being in violation of Convention No. 111 for a long time.

Concerning women’s access to the labour market, and whilst it was not known whether the statistical information that the Government had provided showed any improvement regarding the access to the labour market, the Worker members maintained that the overall participation rate of women was still not more than 20 per cent, with women holding the most vulnerable and low paid positions. The legal barrier for women to be employed above the age of 35 – even if it had been increased to 40 – still existed, thus preventing women from working about half of their productive life. With respect to the over-representation of women in precarious and temporary jobs, gender discrimination in social security entitlements and access of working women to childcare facilities, they had hoped that the Government would present new information including measures taken to address these inequalities, and they were deeply disappointed not to have received such information.

Turning to the issue of discrimination of religious minorities, the Worker members expressed the view that the situation for the Baha’i was in fact deteriorating. Apart from the very specific instances previously presented, the Worker members now had a list of more than 30 cases of people being dismissed or being forced to close their shops. In a recent and particularly illustrative instance, in November 2009, officers from the Office of Health in Khomein told the owner of an optical store that he had two weeks to close his shop, following a nationwide order to eventually close all optical shops owned by Baha’i.

As for ethnic minorities, the Worker members shared the concern of the Committee of Experts regarding the employment situation of the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks. It was noted that those members of ethnic minority groups who criticized the discrimination against them risked losing their jobs, freedom and even their lives. This happened to 35year-old Farzad Kamangar, a Kurdish teacher and trade unionist who was executed one month ago.

Regarding the social dialogue situation in the country, the Worker members deplored that, instead of creating a safe environment for workers in which they could establish trade unions to defend their fundamental rights, the Government was creating an atmosphere of crisis that prevented a dialogue regarding issues related to Convention No. 111. Although they welcomed the recent release of four leaders of the Haft Tapeh Sugar workers’ union, the Worker members remained very concerned about the safety, health and well-being of other trade union leaders who were still imprisoned, including Mansour Osanloo.

In conclusion, the Worker members regretted that the Government’s late written submission could make no contribution to the Committee’s discussion and stated that, based on the little information that was made available, no real progress had been made.

The Employer member of the Islamic Republic of Iran updated the Committee concerning social dialogue in the country, which was referred to in the last paragraph of the observation of the Committee of Experts and on which the Conference Committee had expressed its deep concern in 2009. The Government had ordered the dissolution of the Iranian Confederation of Employers’ Associations (ICEA) in an effort to create a parallel organization of employers, despite the fact that such dissolution would be possible only through a judicial order. The ICEA therefore had taken the case to court for the annulment of the Government’s order. While the Government and the parallel organization had filed their petition, the court ruled that the dissolution order was annulled. She indicated that, despite this positive development, the ICEA was willing to create one inclusive employers’ organization through a nationwide election to be held in July 2010, as agreed during meetings with the Government, which were also attended by the parallel organization. She asked the ILO and the International Organization of Employers (IOE) to provide assistance to ensure a free and fair election. She looked forward to the establishment of an umbrella employers’ organization to defend legitimate rights and interests of all Iranian employers.

The Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran expressed the need for ILO cooperation and technical assistance for Iranian workers’ associations who were comprised of different ethnic, religious and tribal groups working in various sectors of the economy, in order to remove all forms of discriminatory practices. Due to the economic and financial crises, many enterprises had gone insolvent. As a result, workers were suffering from low wages, unemployment and underemployment. The country’s financial sector was also experiencing difficulties due to international pressure and sanctions causing the rise in transaction costs and the worsening of the living standards of workers. This resulted in capital shortage affecting the operation of SMEs. He urged the ILO and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) to examine closely the situation and for the ILO to provide technical cooperation and assistance. In doing so, he hoped that workers would not face discrimination for their cooperation with the ILO and relevant institutions. He appreciated the recent steps taken by the Government to amend the Labour Law concerning freedom of association. He wished to see further steps taken to amend legal provisions on temporary contracts and to extend the social safety net. He stressed that the workers’ organizations in the Islamic Republic of Iran pursued, by and large, similar objectives and they all deserved to be given legitimacy and opportunities to benefit from the ILO’s technical cooperation.

The Worker member of Zimbabwe expressed his deep concern over the continuing and extensive discrimination against women in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Women continued to face significant barriers in achieving equal access to the labour market and decent work. Although the Government had made some progress in recent years to reduce the gender gap in education, and women now outnumbered men in entering university, these achievements had not been translated into higher rates of female participation in the labour market. When women graduated from university, they were one third less likely to find work compared to men. Only 3.5 million Iranian women were salaried workers, compared to 23.5 million men. Increasing numbers of women were employed on temporary contracts, which meant irregular incomes, little or no job security or income security, and a lack of social protection. Women employed in small enterprises or in export processing zones were exempted from all protections afforded by national labour law. Women were also disproportionately represented in occupations perceived as “women’s work”, such as carpet weaving, teaching and educational assistance, agriculture, clerical work and health care. The UNDP’s Gender Empowerment Measure, which measured the extent to which women take an active part in economic and political life, ranked the Islamic Republic of Iran 103rd out of 109 countries. Despite the repeated requests by the Committee of Experts to provide detailed labour market statistics of women and men in different economic sectors and by level of employment, the Government had failed to provide this information. He urged the Government to provide these statistics, as well as the results of policies to achieve equality at work. The objectives of Convention No. 111 could not be realized without an environment in which workers were free to organize. He called on the Government to respect its obligations under the Convention and as an ILO member State, to guarantee the right of all workers to be free from discrimination and to end the marginalization of women at work.

The Government member of Canada regretted that the Government had not submitted a report on the application of the Convention in 2009. Her Government continued to be concerned with regard to discrimination in employment and occupation against women, and religious and ethnic minorities. National law continued to discriminate against women, and women’s participation in decision making was apparently decreasing. Women’s rights movement activists were harassed and often detained, including organizers of the “million signature campaign” and members of the “Green movement”. Despite international efforts, discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities persisted. Members of the Baha’i faith continued to be denied employment, government benefits and access to higher education. Seven members of the Baha’i leadership remained in detention and eight members of their community were detained in February 2010. For years, the Baha’i community had been subjected to persecution, discrimination and detention. The discussion of this case was marked by the recurrent lack of information requested from the Government. She urged the Government to bring its national legislation and practice into conformity with the Convention and to cooperate fully and respond substantively and in a timely manner to the numerous requests for information made by the supervisory bodies.

The Worker member of Pakistan indicated that upon ratification of the Convention, the Islamic Republic of Iran had taken on the obligation to bring its legislation into conformity with the Convention. The Government had acknowledged in its report that there remained a long way to go to empower women in practice. He noted the constructive dialogue between the Government and the Committee of Experts concerning legislative, administrative and other measures taken. In particular, he shared the view of the Committee of Experts that the principle of equality of opportunity for women in employment, wages and education had to be realized, especially in rural areas. He urged the Government to take measures to implement the recommendations made by the Committee of Experts, as women had a role to play in their families and with their partners, and their economic and social wellbeing was important for society as a whole.

The Government member of Belarus recognized the concrete measures reported by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran with respect to, for example, empowerment of women in their access to education and vocational training and the rights of ethnic and religious minorities. He invited the Committee to build on these positive developments and to support the country for its effort made in cooperation with the ILO.

The Worker member of France indicated that the Committee of Experts had recalled the commitments that the Government had made during the 2008 session of the Conference which had not been met to date. In 2006, the Government had committed itself to changing the laws that hindered women’s access to employment, despite their qualifications and academic training, in the fields where the access of women was not prohibited. Only 16 per cent of Iranian women were employed. Section 1117 of the Civil Code still allowed a husband to oppose his wife’s employment. The Government claimed that the section was repealed by section 18 of the Family Protection Law, but did not explain how this alleged abrogation was achieved in practice and failed to provide the requested documents. Women remained in a permanent situation of legal inferiority, and the numerous administrative rules (restrictive criteria of age) limited their right to access to employment or to perform certain functions in the judiciary. In the judiciary they were mostly called upon to be social assistants, or to be a judge on matrimonial cases or cases involving juveniles. He also noted that the Committee of Experts had referred to discrimination against women in the social security legislation. Finally, laws, rules and practices that discriminated against women in employment and occupation had to be effectively abrogated and abolished, and law and practice had to be brought into line with Convention No. 111.

The Worker member of Malaysia noted that regional ethnic groups in the Islamic Republic of Iran were poorer, less educated, less employed and less represented in decision-making positions than Persian citizens. The Government had to address this issue seriously. Many reports had shown that the Government had failed to provide equal economic, cultural and linguistic rights to ethnic and religious groups such as the Balochs, Southern Azerbaijanis, Ahwaz, Turkmen and Kurds. These populations were not minorities within their respective region and represented over 30 per cent of the total population. Failure to provide access to quality education to all ethnic groups resulted in discrimination in accessing decent jobs. Although provided by the Constitution, teaching in “tribal languages” was not carried out in practice. As a result, dropout rates were very high. The provinces of Balochistan and Khuzestan experienced low school enrolment, poverty, illiteracy and unemployment. Every Government should provide equal rights to education for all children and adults regardless of their ethnic or religious background. After the 2005 elections, thousands of ethnic minority civil servants were dismissed. Members of ethnic groups had been arrested and their rights to freedom of expression and assembly had therefore been violated. She regretted that organizations and individuals that aimed to promote the rights and interests of regional ethnic groups were often treated as criminal groups. Iranian teacher unionists had been intimidated and detained, mistreated and even executed after having protested against discrimination of teachers. Recently, the Iranian Kurdish teacher and unionist Farzad Kamangar, who advocated for the rights of Iranian Kurds, had been executed although his case had still not been reviewed by the Supreme Court. Mr Kamangar was a member of the Iranian Teachers’ Trade Association affiliated to Education International. His case had been decided in secrecy in two minutes and without his lawyer or himself being able to challenge the allegations. Teachers and all workers advocating for social justice, equal rights to education and employment, and rights for women should be heard, fairly treated and given the opportunity to address problems through proper negotiation channels.

The Government representative wished to clarify that certain statements with regard, in particular, to the geographical location of cited regions were not entirely correct. The national equality policy, which included the prohibition of discrimination based on ethnic origin or religious background, was of paramount importance for the Government, which was abiding by the requirements of ILO Conventions. The Iranian Constitution enshrined equal treatment, and no ethnic, religious or otherwise minority was discriminated against in law or in practice. The Baha’i presently enjoyed the best living conditions since their founding, and the Government assured that no segregation based on religion, ethnic origin or social background was taking place. The non-recognition of the alleged status of the Baha’i as a religious minority did not imply the denial of rights and freedoms. The Baha’i enjoyed full citizenry rights, were free to practice their religion and to conduct high-level educational courses, as confirmed by the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief.

The equal treatment of women was reflected by the fact that their participation rate in education had increased by 2,200 per cent since 1976 and that today 65 per cent of university students were women. In recognition of certain shortcomings, the Government had put into place empowerment and enabling programmes which had been described before. Social security coverage had been extended to women in rural areas. Forty per cent of the country’s highly specialized physicians were female, and women had established more than 7,000 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

Recalling the statement made by the Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who had indicated that the Minister of Labour had intervened in a dispute, which otherwise could have resulted in its consideration by the Conference Committee, he highlighted the importance that the Minister attributed to the principles of freedom of association and social dialogue. With regard to the imprisonment of union activists, the Government would do its utmost, for example, through the mechanism of pardon or amnesty, to enable their release. As to Farzad Kamangar, he contested the allegations that his case had been considered by the court for two minutes, and assured the Committee that the case had been heard for four years and all legal remedies had been exhausted.

The Employer members emphasized that they remained cautiously hopeful in this serious case, which had been considered for many years by the Committee of Experts and the Conference Committee had repeatedly expressed concerns about non-compliance with the Convention, urging the Government to take immediate action to ensure full application in law and in practice, and expressed regret regarding the lack of progress in this respect. The Employer members expected that the aforementioned issues in relation to the employment of women had already been or would be addressed in the near future, including the repeal of section 1117 of the Civil Code and the abrogation or amendment of legislation restricting the role of female judges, imposing a dress code, instituting discriminatory application of social security provisions and establishing barriers to the employment of women above the age of 40. The equal access of women to the labour market, including senior-level positions, should also be improved. The Employer members noted that the Government had provided detailed information in its report on all the issues raised by the Conference Committee and the Committee of Experts in its recent observation. Being aware of the longstanding difficulties of member States in respect of compliance with this Convention, the Employer members remained cautiously hopeful and would be deeply disappointed if the measures taken or envisaged by the Government did not remove the restrictions on women’s employment. The progress achieved in connection with freedom of association with regard to the recognition of workers’ and employers’ organizations was duly noted and the continuous engagement of the social partners encouraged. In conclusion, the Employer members welcomed the Government’s acceptance of an ILO tripartite technical assistance mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Worker members concluded that nothing had changed, four years after the Government’s commitment to bring national law and practice into conformity with the Convention. The information supplied by the Government was not convincing and could have been provided in writing at an earlier stage. The Worker members had little confidence that the Government would indeed revise the labour law so as to guarantee freedom of trade unions fully. They expressed their disappointment with regard to the lack of progress. Access of women and religious and ethnic minorities to the labour market had not improved, and their situation remained deplorable as they faced discrimination. Independent trade unions were unable to function, and their leaders were imprisoned. Despite the lengthy report supplied by the Government after the deadline for submission of reports, the Worker members were still of the view that the Government had not fulfilled its reporting obligations for the past four years and regretted that such demeanour rather illustrated its disrespect for the ILO supervisory mechanism. As regards the Government’s willingness to accept technical assistance in amending legislation and regarding other issues related to the implementation of the Convention, the Worker members believed that, under the current circumstances of restrictions in the functioning of trade unions and the absence of social dialogue, such assistance was not possible and could not be effective. Noting that the Government was prepared to accept a tripartite ILO mission to the country, they requested that its terms of reference should refer to the implementation issues relating to this Convention and that the mission take place in a time frame allowing for the mission report to be discussed at the next Conference. Finally, the Worker members requested that the conclusions of the Committee be included in a special paragraph of the Committee’s report.

Conclusions

The Committee noted the statement provided by the Government representative and the discussion that followed. The Committee noted that it had examined this case on numerous occasions, most recently in 2008 and 2009, and recalled the detailed conclusions it had adopted in this regard. It noted that the Committee of Experts, referring to the Conference conclusions, continued to raise a wide range of concerns, in particular regarding the situation of women in the labour market, discriminatory laws, regulations and practices, the situation of unrecognized religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, and ethnic minorities, dispute resolution, and the social dialogue situation in the country.

The Committee noted the information provided by the Government on the bills regarding the following: the revision of Chapter 6 of the Labour Law; monitoring of the implementation of ILO provisions; prohibition of discrimination in employment and occupation; and home-based jobs. Information was also provided on the establishment of a Committee mandated to identify national laws and regulations in conflict with the Convention, training of judicial authorities, establishment of special minority courts and dispute settlement councils and the establishment of a Committee on Women and Legal Studies and Non-discrimination. Information, including some statistics, was also provided on women in the judiciary, Parliament and government positions, and women entrepreneurs.

While noting that the Government had recently submitted a report for examination by the Committee of Experts at its 2010 session, it expressed disappointment that this report had not been submitted in time to be examined by the Committee of Experts during its session in 2009. The late submission of this report made it difficult for the Committee to assess whether any real progress had been made. The Committee hoped that the Committee of Experts would be able to find evidence of progress regarding the range of outstanding issues, including evidence based on detailed statistical information.

The Committee, while acknowledging that certain advances appeared to have been made, remained concerned that, despite the commitment made by the Government in 2006 to bring all the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by 2010, many outstanding issues raised by the Committee of Experts remained unanswered. The Committee urged the Government to amend the discriminatory laws and regulations, and to bring the practice into line with the Convention, including regarding the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the application of social security regulations, hiring of women over 40, and women’s access to the labour market, in particular to senior-level positions. Noting that article 1117 of the Civil Code had not been expressly repealed, and that there were indications that the provision continued to have a negative effect on women’s employment opportunities, the Committee requested the Government to take steps to repeal the article, and to promote public awareness of the right of women to pursue freely any job or profession. Further, the Committee urged the Government to implement policies aimed at promoting the inclusion of women in the labour market and decent work for women. The Committee also urged the Government to take decisive action to combat discrimination against ethnic and unrecognized religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i.

The Committee noted concerns regarding the imprisonment of trade union officials. The Committee and the Committee of Experts previously raised concerns that in the context of the lack of freedom of workers’ organizations, meaningful social dialogue regarding issues related to the implementation of Convention No. 111 would not be possible.

The Committee urged the Government to accept an ILO high-level mission. It hoped that in the context of that mission, the implementation of Convention No. 111 would be addressed as well as freedom of association principles. The Committee requested the Government to ensure that the Committee of Experts would have full and verifiable information before it to examine at its forthcoming session, and hoped that real progress in the implementation of Convention No. 111 could be recorded in the very near future.

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A Government representative welcomed the invitation to review the application of the Convention by his country. The judicious and constructive observations and recommendations of the Committee of Experts were a point of reference for appraising the implementation of international labour standards. He also expressed appreciation for the general indication by the Committee of Experts with reference to Article 2 of the Convention, that account should be taken of national conditions and practice in the implementation of the Convention. His Government had constantly strived to meet the objectives of the Convention and the national Constitution and other laws and regulations, such as article 101 of the Fourth Five-Year Economic Development Plan and the Charter of Citizenry Rights which provided a solid foundation for the implementation of the Convention. He added that until the ideal of full implementation of the provisions of the Convention could be achieved, greater coordination and closer cooperation between the various governmental bodies and the social partners was required. The Government had initiated a comprehensive scheme to raise the awareness of the relevant authorities and the administration concerning the urgent need to repeal and amend the legal and administrative provisions that were not in conformity with the Convention. However, this would be a time-consuming task and the Government looked forward to intensified ILO technical cooperation.

He acknowledged that despite the earnest efforts to provide a comprehensive mid-term assessment of the concrete steps taken to bring the law and practice into line with ILO Conventions, the Government had failed to discharge this undertaking the previous year. Efforts were also being made to submit as soon as possible the overdue comprehensive report of the latest measures with detailed figures disaggregated by gender, ethnicity and religion. In the meantime, the Government had continued its efforts to meet the objectives concerning a national equality policy, equal opportunities and treatment for men and women, and the newly emerging social dialogue and to address discriminatory laws and regulations and discrimination on the basis of religion and ethnicity.

Recalling that in 2006 the Conference Committee had requested the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues, the Government was committed to bringing the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by 2010. One of the main instruments was the Charter of Citizenry Rights which placed significant importance on the promotion, respect for and observance of human rights, especially of minorities. It provided for indiscriminate protection of individual, social and political liberties and religious and ethnic rights for all citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran, irrespective of their gender, colour, creed and social extraction, and called for the elimination of any type of ethnic and group discrimination in the legal and judicial fields and in practice.

With regard to violations of civil and legal rights, he indicated that the number of cases under investigation had decreased: 8,555 in 2003, compared with 8,966 in 2002. Information on cases of violations of the law and legal procedures between 2003 and 2008, disaggregated by sanctions imposed on judges at fault would be provided to the Office in the near future. He recalled that any infringement of constitutional law or any form of discrimination against nationals of the Islamic Republic of Iran was strictly forbidden. Irrespective of one’s social extraction, colour, creed, race or origin, punishment and penalties were equally applied. The courts addressed any such infringement immediately. The judiciary had held four training courses for judges and attorneys on citizens’ rights, in particular during the process of issuing judicial verdicts. In addition to those efforts, the judiciary had also amended or revoked some of the laws, regulations and instructions which contravened citizens’ rights in order to bring them into further compliance with the provisions of the Convention. These procedures involved nullifying administrative orders of various authorities, including the police, improving the right to judicial recourse and improving social security protection of disadvantaged rural groups. He was confident that the Committee would take note of these concrete steps.

Another issue taken up by the Committee of Experts concerned equal opportunities in the treatment of men and women in education. It had been alleged that quotas restricting women’s access to university had been secretly applied since 2006 in up to 39 fields of study. However, the college entrance examination for the admission of new university entrants had always been a measure for the planning of human resources. All practices in respect of human resources planning were extensively discussed in a highly specialized working group of the Cabinet of Ministers and the Parliamentary Commission of Education. In 1983, almost 32 per cent of university places had been occupied by women students; by 2007, this figure had more than doubled, and now stood at 65 per cent. This drastic increase could be attributed to many factors, including empowerment and capacity-building policies for women and their own aspirations to break out of traditional role models. Statistics on participation in entrance examinations and admission to university during the period 2001–08, disaggregated by gender, revealed that contrary to the alleged secret discriminatory quota system against women, there had always been a relative balance in the numbers of entrants admitted.

He openly admitted that there was a quota system in 39 different educational fields and indicated that the logic behind this seemingly controversial issue was the very essence of Article 2 of the Convention, insofar as it concerned the application of methods appropriate to national conditions and practice, to maintain an equitable equilibrium between entrants to develop gender-balanced human resources and ensure access to employment opportunities. The Government had decided to opt for a very fair and justifiable quota system to initially secure an even share of around 30 to 40 per cent open only to one gender. The remaining 20 to 40 per cent were filled solely on merits. The records showed that this had led to a significant surplus of one or other gender in certain professions in certain years, resulting in shortage, for example, of adequate numbers of male doctors or female engineers. When such gender-based shortages occurred, positive action was taken. Examples of fields of study where quota systems existed were textile engineering, mathematics, economics, natural resources engineering, computer engineering, law, journalism, education and political science. Positive action was taken to achieve a reasonable balance, particularly in disciplines where men would otherwise have a monopoly due to their superiority in such areas as mathematics and engineering. Through the quota system, women were therefore given a fair chance to compete, in disciplines where men were stronger, against other girls with more or less the same educational skills, academic background and personal inclinations.

With regard to the measures taken to bring law and practice into conformity with the Convention, he admitted that this had yet to be fully undertaken with respect to the criminal laws of the country. Nevertheless, two important initiatives had been taken to introduce the principles and contents of the Convention to the public, and especially to judges and attorneys, as well as into the channels for legal recourse against discrimination-related offences. The first focused on training, through the publication of educational pamphlets and brochures and the production of educational programmes for radio and television, preparing the ground for cultural orientation, while holding training courses for the public. Special training courses had also been held for judges and attorneys. Second, legal clinics had been set up to provide legal advice through a telephone helpline and an Internet page to persons whose rights had been infringed. Training had also been provided through a UNDP project for provincial judicial authorities in provinces inhabited by minorities, to combat discrimination amongst tribal, racial, religious and ethnic minorities. In the context of the project, the principles and application of the Convention were thoroughly discussed and ILO assistance had been sought. Further training measures for Iranian judges on international labour standards had also been agreed upon with the Office.

The establishment of the Supervisory Board on Discriminatory Conduct was another concrete step taken by the judiciary to ensure the implementation of the Convention. Based on the Law to Investigate Infringements of Administrative Rules, a Supervisory Board had been established, composed of one representative of the judiciary and three representatives assigned by the Cabinet of Ministers or heads of independent government bodies. The Supervisory Board scrutinized the verdicts issued by the committees and/or appeal bodies and was authorized to revoke such verdicts, where necessary. Among other complaints, the Board had recently addressed formal accusations from ethnic and religious minorities in the provinces of Khuzestan, Kurdistan, Sistan and Baluchistan. Those cases were a clear indication of his country’s determination to fulfil its obligations under the Convention.

Another Government representative, Deputy Minister for Parliament, Legal and International Affairs, added that his country was very diverse, both ethnically and linguistically, and that its population included Arab groups, Turkmens, Persians, Kurds, Baluchi, etc., without this having any negative implications in terms of peaceful cohabitation among Iranian citizens. There was no discrimination whatsoever with regard to access to university, to public administration or to ministerial and diplomatic posts. Equity was fully respected.

The Government representative who first took the floor, further observed that another means of protection was article 171 of the Constitution, which protected the rights of persons sustaining material and non-material damages due to errors committed by judges. Those who had committed the errors were liable for compensation for the losses. Otherwise, the State would be liable to compensate the losses and ensure the acquittal of the defendant to restore his or her credibility. The Government was committed to equality among all human beings and the restoration of justice. It had established the Women's Juridical Studies Committee in the judiciary, which was responsible for conducting studies on the current situation with respect to the implementation of the Iranian Constitution and human rights principles, and identifying best practices relating to the challenges ahead in respect of reform measures, existing, theoretical and practical issues and juridical, procedural and structural problems.

With regard to discrimination on the basis of religion, he referred to article 12 of the Iranian Constitution, according to which the followers of the officially recognized religions in every region of the country, where a religious minority existed, had the right to refer their disputes to special courts, which ruled according to their own religious beliefs. In order to strengthen and unify non-discriminatory legal procedures, a commission had been established composed of representatives of three bodies, minorities and women. The commission proposed plans on combating evident discriminatory practices, and where action was not taken to improve the situation, it was empowered to institute legal proceedings. Dispute Settlement Councils for Formal and Informal Religious Minorities had also been established composed of representatives of minorities, including Zoroastrians, Assyrians, Armenians and Saebin Mandani. In addition, the judiciary had indicated in a bill presented to the Islamic Consultative Assembly that any kind of discrimination related to tribal and group affiliations should be eliminated from judicial and legal proceedings.

Despite all these achievements, which demonstrated the Government’s will to comply with ILO standards and the comments of the supervisory bodies’ requests, he acknowledged that the issues that had arisen for over 25 years could not all be resolved in a short period of time. It was necessary to revise and repeal certain laws, doctrines and unjustifiable institutionalized behaviour. Any serious corrective approach always called for a conciliatory, collaborative and tolerant environment. He hoped that the tangible measures taken to revise laws and regulations would allow his country to meet its obligations. Albeit gradual, the progress achieved should be appreciated.

He indicated that, in view of the need for a comprehensive law prohibiting all forms of discrimination in employment and education to compensate for any misinterpretation and misapplication of the constitutional law, the Government had submitted a Bill on Non-Discrimination in Employment and Education, which guaranteed to all Iranian nationals, irrespective of their gender, colour, creed, race, language, religion, ethnic and social background, equal access to education, vocational training, and any other social service leading to productive employment. The Bill categorically prohibited any form of distinction, preference and discrimination and the imposition of any limitation in access to free and formal education at the different levels, including higher education. It required equal access to technical and vocational training and job and employment opportunities for all nationals. Once approved, the Bill would pave the way to better compliance with the terms of the Convention. Article 4 of the Bill required the Government to either amend or abrogate all administrative laws and regulations falling within its mandate, which contradicted the provisions of the Bill, within six months of its entry into force. Other laws and regulations, whose amendment or abrogation needed Parliamentary approval, would also be identified and submitted to Parliament for action. The Government urged the Office to provide technical assistance to raise awareness concerning the ILO’s objectives and particularly the application of standards and the need to bring national law into line with the provisions of Conventions, where appropriate.

With reference to the activities of the Centre for Women’s and Family Affairs, he indicated that, with a view to raising women’s status at all social levels and enabling them to play a more substantial socio-economic role in all spheres, it had undertaken various programmes throughout the country. Certain government organizations had also been specifically established to deal with the different aspects of women’s affairs, including the Women’s Socio-Cultural Council and the Center for Women’s and Family Affairs which were among the most renowned.

With a view to improving the socio-economic status of women and empowering them to break away from their traditional roles in society, the Government was investing heavily in the education of young women aged 15 to 24. The literacy rates of young men and women had reached 98 and 96 per cent, respectively, in 2005, thus closing the huge gap which had existed in the past. It was estimated that by the year 2009, young women’s literacy would reach 100 per cent. The imbalance in the number of boys and girls at school had now almost been redressed and stood at 51.82 and 48.19 per cent, respectively, in 2005. As for university students, the longstanding imbalance in favour of men had taken a totally different direction. In 2008, almost 65 per cent of university places had been taken by young women, leaving only 35 per cent of higher education opportunities for men. Educated women were also managing to enter into long-established male occupations, such as polytechnic schools, the engineering sector, the oil, gas and petrochemical industries, law, economics, commerce and computer and information technology. They had further established themselves in the world of business, and some had become well-known entrepreneurs.

The new generation of highly educated women had also ventured into politics, which had traditionally been regarded as a male world. The proportion of women parliamentary candidates had increased from 3.02 per cent in 1980 to 9.89 per cent in 2005, with 12 women being elected. Although their progress in Parliament was not as rapid as that in universities, it was still steady and steadfast. There also had been a very significant increase in the number of women in managerial positions, particularly in middle-ranking ones. Their participation in academia had increased from only 1 per cent in 1979 to almost 30 per cent last year. Almost 40 per cent of highly specialized medical doctors of the country were women, and in gynaecology the proportion of female practitioners was almost 98 per cent.

In addition, many women were now entering the judiciary, which had recruited 20 women applicants through open entrance examinations in the previous year. In 2006, another 29 women students had been admitted to the College of Judicial Studies. More women were due to be recruited as judges, directors and legal advisers in the judiciary, while hundreds of young women lawyers were working in courts all over the country. He indicated that the latest statistics on the situation of women workers would be provided in future reports on the implementation of the Convention.

He further recalled that substantial resources were also allocated for the protection of women, their empowerment and poverty elimination programmes. In almost all government agencies dealing with social protection and welfare, specific departments exclusively addressed women’s affairs. The National Welfare Organization, the National Organization for Youth, the Rural Women’s Cooperative, the Nomads Affairs Organization, the Imams Welfare and Relief Committee, the National Education Campaign Organization and the Red Crescent Organization were all active in dealing with women’s welfare and promotion.

Women were present at all levels of decision-making and public administration. All ministers were required to have a woman adviser on their management team, as a result of which over 40 women were vigilantly supervising women’s programmes throughout the administration. Special advisers exclusively addressing women’s affairs had also been appointed in all provinces, counties and townships to assist women’s empowerment and poverty alleviation programmes. Women’s promotion programmes also focused on: granting loans with low interest rates to women heads of household; promoting and extending support to women’s entrepreneurship programmes; establishing specialized job creation centres for women and training women trainers to administer them; providing training courses to prepare women to attend women’s assemblies and conferences; holding regular exhibitions for the promotion of women’s entrepreneurship; exempting women entrepreneurs and job creators from income tax; providing technical guidance and support and helping women entrepreneurs conduct feasibility studies on small and medium enterprise (SME) projects; conducting surveys on the balance between work and family; holding on-the-job training courses for women managers and directors; establishing specialized women entrepreneurs associations; establishing special technical and vocational training centres for women; providing special grants for women job-seekers; empowering female heads of household; conducting special training courses for women’s NGOs and providing legal assistance to women. In addition, to curb poverty among women, the National Welfare Organization had been entrusted with the responsibility of helping women heads of households and abandoned women integrate into the labour market through appropriate technical and vocational training programmes. Hundreds of women’s NGOs and other social welfare groups also supported those programmes.

One of the most successful welfare and relief organizations had been founded by Imam Khomeini. The Imam Relief and Welfare Committee, together with the Bank of Agriculture, had regularly provided microfinance credits to women workers and women heads of households for small business projects in such fields as agriculture, animal husbandry and food processing. Rural women comprised 12 million of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s population and thus played a very significant role in the national economy, especially in agriculture and handicrafts. However, as they were mostly active in the informal economy, they were very vulnerable to the effects of economic and social crises, and were particularly at risk of unemployment and underemployment. The Rural Women’s Cooperative Organization had been established to provide sustainable employment opportunities for rural women and over 170 women’s cooperatives now had 34,000 women members in 807 villages across the country. The Government had also recently launched further initiatives to expand women cooperatives.

With regard to the prevalence of discriminatory job advertisements, he referred to the circulars requiring all administrative bodies to ensure justice in employment and the selection of the most appropriate candidates. In particular, Circular No. 18326 required the inclusion of minorities in advertisements so that Iranian religious minorities could enjoy their constitutional rights to equal treatment and employment. The Labour Inspectorate under the Ministry of Labour also ensured that Iranian minorities had equal and indiscriminate access to employment opportunities.

Labour inspectors also addressed complaints of sexual harassment in the workplace. So far, no such case had occurred and no complaints had been lodged. Such cases seldom occurred in the workplace, due to the Islamic and national Iranian culture and the very negative social consequences of such harassment for the perpetrators.

With regard to amending discriminatory regulations on social security, which currently favoured the husband over the wife in terms of pension and child benefits, the Government, in collaboration with the social partners, had launched a global plan for social security, which also included the above amendment. However, he categorically denied the existence of administrative rules restricting the employment of wives of government employees. He also denied the unfounded information brought to the attention of the ILO mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran in November 2007 alleging the existence of legal barriers to the hiring of women above the age of 30. Neither the labour law nor other laws and regulations concerning recruitment and employment made any reference whatsoever to excluding women above the age of 30 from applications for jobs. Article 14(a) of the State Employment Law clearly limited the employment age to a minimum of 18 and a maximum of 40 years. The maximum age of employment could be exceptionally extended for a period of five years in cases where the Government recruited its staff for the second time.

He also referred to certain complaints that were reported to have reached the Office concerning the processing of cases of religious minorities in the judiciary. Among the eight complaints received in this respect, six concerned the Baha’i sect. With regard to the alleged non-admission of the members of the Baha’i sect to the Vocational Training Centre (TVTO), he noted that the circular issued by the Deputy Minister of Labour strongly forbade any such discrimination. Believers of the Baha’i faith, like other Iranian nationals, were therefore entitled to apply for training opportunities in the TVTO.

The Government ensured that members of religious minorities could learn about faith, practise their rituals and maintain their language and cultural values. In addition to having access to free education at all university levels, the members of religious minorities traditionally had their own primary and secondary schooling, although they could also attend public schools. They were provided with individual religious teaching, practised their specific cultural rules and more, and acquired their linguistic skills in absolute freedom. The Ministry of Education recruited and fully trained the most appropriate and academically qualified teachers among the minority candidates.

With a view to amending and repealing the laws and regulations limiting women’s access to judiciary posts, a Bill had been submitted to the Parliament in 2007 specifying the required qualifications of judges irrespective of their gender. Article 163 of the Iranian Constitution, defining the qualifications of judges, made no reference to their gender. Moreover, a Bill on the protection of the family that was before Parliament, provided that any court hearing related to a family dispute should be presided over by a minimum of one woman judge, and would automatically repeal Decree No. 55090. Currently, 459 women judges were assigned to different positions in the judiciary. Women also held positions as investigators and prosecutors. A few had been appointed directors of judicial administrations in provinces and presided over their male colleagues. Recalling the information provided to the high-level delegation in November 2007, he indicated that two women judges had been assigned to the court of appeal. In Tehran Province alone, there were 112 women judges.

Regarding the observations of the Committee of Experts on the situation of ethnic minorities, he emphasized that Iranian culture was the result of the integration and interaction of common interests and beliefs, customs and traditions and a common historical background of different ethnic minorities residing on the plateau of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This culture was symptomatic of the nation’s profound historical, cultural and ideological legacy.

The latest national statistics of managers in the provinces with ethnic minorities revealed that in the Turk-Kurd province of Western Azerbaijan, 83.7 per cent of managers were chosen from the two Turk and Kurd minorities. In Kemianshah Province with its mixture of Kurdish minorities, 86.7 per cent of managers were national Kurdish residents. In Kurdistan Province, 78.8 per cent of the managers were of different Kurdish minorities. In Sistan and Baluchistan Province, where two ethnic and religious minorities of Baluchi and Sistani had peacefully coexisted for thousands of years, 65.6 per cent of managerial positions were distributed among natives. This showed that the Government had done its best to promote the indiscriminate access of ethnic minorities to high- and medium-level managerial positions.

Regarding the observations of the Committee of Experts on the Baha’i and the concerns expressed in respect to their access to education and vocational training, he reported that a circular had been issued recently by the President of the TVTO re-emphasizing the free access of all Iranian nationals to vocational training. The circular had been issued in compliance with the government policy for the protection of the rights of all Iranian nationals, irrespective of their beliefs, colour, creed, religion and gender.

In conclusion, he emphasized that the non-recognition of a religious minority in the country did not imply the non-recognition of their rights or the existence of discrimination against them. He added that a more detailed account of the status of the Baha’i would be contained in the next report on the application of the Convention submitted to the Office. He added that, in view of the great importance attached by his Government to the Convention, he reaffirmed his country’s commitment to address concerns raised by the Committee of Experts and looked forward to further cooperation in this regard.

The Employer members noted the Government’s commitment to social dialogue with the social partners, last expressed in 2008. They voiced concern that despite these expressions of commitment the Government had interfered with the Iran Confederation of Employers’ Associations (ICEA), thus violating the principles of freedom of association. The Committee of Experts observed that there had been no improvement in the social dialogue situation in the country. The Employer members reminded the Government that without respect for the freedom of association of both workers’ and employers’ organizations, meaningful social dialogue was not possible. They also recalled that the Convention required member States to pursue a policy of equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment under its direct control, and that it should seek the cooperation of employers’ and workers’ organizations in promoting acceptance and observance of this policy. Since 2006, the Committee had also urged the Government to repeal or amend all laws restricting women’s employment, including regarding the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the right of a husband to object to his wife taking up a profession, the discriminatory application of social security legislation, and the barriers in law and practice to women being hired after the age of 30 or 40. The Government had committed itself to bringing all relevant legislation and practice in line with the Convention no later than 2010.

In this respect the Government had provided the Committee of Experts with information on five projects on legislation to address the discriminatory laws and practices mentioned above. While none of this draft legislation so far had come into effect, the Employer members expected that these laws would actually be enacted. In the past, the Government had been requested, both by the Committee of Experts and by the Conference Committee, to provide detailed reports on measures taken in law and in practice to prohibit discrimination, and to provide relevant statistics. So far, this had not happened and the Employer members urged the Government to provide all the requested information, to permit an evaluation of the situation in the country. Finally, concerning the situation of the Baha’i minority, they noted that the Government appeared to have taken no action on this matter, despite the urgency expressed previously by the Committee.

The Worker members emphasized that it would have been preferable for the Government to have communicated its information to the secretariat before the examination of the case by the Committee, so that a written document could have been prepared in advance.

In 2006, the Conference Committee had examined the application of Convention No.111 by the Islamic Republic of Iran. It had on that occasion regretted to note that no progress had been made in amending or repealing legislation that was contrary to the Convention. It had urged the Government to ensure that the laws and regulations restricting women’s employment, including those regarding the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the right of a husband to object to his wife taking up a profession or job and the application of social security legislation to women, should be brought into conformity with the Convention without delay.

The Committee had examined the case under discussion on several occasions. Moreover, the country had regularly been the recipient of ILO assistance. In 2008, the Committee had urged the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues, with a view to fulfilling its promises of 2006. In 2008, the Worker members had requested that the case be mentioned in a special paragraph in the Committee’s report, but that had not been accepted. The Government had been requested to supply comprehensive and detailed information on a number of issues to be taken up at the November 2008 session of the Committee of Experts. Those issues had again been raised in the Committee of Experts’ observation, which also included a double footnote.

As part of its Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan (2005–10), the Government had undertaken to take measures, notably in the legislative field, to implement the principles embodied in the Convention. The measures were to have been introduced before 2010. The Committee of Expert’s observation, however, showed that no such measures had been taken. The Committee of Experts had in fact on several occasions noted with regret that, despite its repeated requests, no progress had been made whatsoever, and that the Government had merely reiterated its commitment or indicated that there had been difficulty in obtaining the information that had been requested since 2006. Furthermore, the Committee of Experts noted with regret that no amendment had been made to the legislation and that no measure, aimed for example at combating discrimination against women, had been adopted, although a technical assistance mission had taken place.

The Worker members also referred to the issues raised by the Committee of Experts, namely legislative developments, the national equality policy, equal opportunities and treatment for men and women, and discriminatory legislation.

Regarding changes in the legislation, the Government had indicated that a comprehensive Bill prohibiting any form of discrimination in employment and education had been drafted. Infringements of the law were to be subject to very heavy fines and sanctions. However, the Committee of Experts noted that the Bill had not yet been forwarded to the Office. It was regrettable, moreover, that the Government had not made the Bill available precisely when the Conference Committee was examining the case.

As to the national equality policy, the Committee of Experts’ observation referred to the Charter of Citizenry Rights cited in article 100 of the Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan, and to article 130 of the Plan empowering the judiciary to take measures towards the elimination of all types of discrimination in the legal and judicial field. According to information supplied by the Government to the Committee of Experts, the Charter of Citizenry Rights had been approved by Parliament in 2007. Yet it had still not been communicated to the ILO, nor had the details of its application, notably with regard to any action taken against judges and public officials who did not comply with its provisions.

With regard to equal opportunity and treatment of men and women, the Committee of Experts’ observation noted that the statistics it had been repeatedly calling for on the unemployment rate of women, and on improved access of women to employment and occupation, through increasing access to university and technical and vocational training, had not been communicated. Moreover, an increasing number of women were working in temporary jobs and contract employment, and thus were not covered by legal entitlements and facilities, including maternity protection. The existing imbalance in women’s participation in the labour market in comparison with that of men, was a direct result of cultural, religious, economic and historical factors. The Government preferred to indicate that it was difficult for women to balance work and family responsibilities, rather than to take advantage of the outcome of various workshops that had been held at the provincial level with a view, among other things, to teaching Iranian women how best to do so. Finally, on the subject of discriminatory legislation, the Committee of Experts had for several years been stressing the need to repeal or amend discriminatory laws and regulations, such as the provisions of the Civil Code restricting women’s access to employment, certain provisions of the social security legislation, the provision concerning women’s access to the judiciary, the dress code and the age barrier to women’s employment. In June 2008, the Conference Committee had expressed deep regret that, despite the Government’s statements that it was committed to repealing laws and regulations that violated the Convention, progress in that regard had been slow and insufficient. In that respect, too, there had apparently been no progress.

In 2006 and 2008, the Committee of Experts had noted that the situation of recognized and unrecognized religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, as well as that of ethnic minorities, appeared to be very serious. Their situation was still serious, as the Government had taken no steps to eliminate discrimination against the Baha’i and had provided no statistics on the employment situation of the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks. In addition, the Committee of Experts had noted the absence of any social dialogue conducive to a constructive discussion on the elimination of all forms of discrimination referred to above.

In conclusion, the Worker members expressed the hope that the Committee’s conclusions would reflect the profound lack of confidence in the Government’s statements.

The Government member of Canada remained troubled by reports of continuing discrimination in employment and occupation against women and religious and ethnic minorities. Iranian laws continued to discriminate against women; and women’s participation in decision-making positions in the Islamic Republic of Iran was limited and, apparently, decreasing. Women’s rights movement activists, including organizers of the “million signatures campaign”, were routinely harassed and detained by Iranian authorities. Discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities, such as the Baha’i, persisted despite international efforts. Members of the Baha’i faith continued to be denied employment, government benefits, and access to higher education. Seven members of the Baha’i leadership group had been detained without charges, and without access to legal counsel, for more than a year. The Government did not provide the information requested on this question. It was hard to understand that basic statistics requested by the Committee were unavailable from a country as manifestly capable as the Islamic Republic of Iran. He asked the Government, first of all, to address the numerous requests for information in a timely manner, to bring its legislation and practice into conformity with the Convention, to cooperate fully and to respond substantively to the observation of the Committee.

The Government representative raised a point of order, requesting that the Government member of Canada not expand his intervention beyond the subjects raised by the Committee of Experts. Consequently, the Government member of Canada was asked by the Chairperson to limit his observations to the issue under discussion.

The Worker member of the Netherlands remarked that last year the Government was requested to provide three types of information: on existing and drafted legislation to prohibit discrimination against all citizens; on progress in amending specifically discriminatory elements in the legislation; and detailed statistics. The experts had received none of it. They had not received information on the elements of the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan, nor had they received a copy of the Charter of Citizenry Rights. It was now becoming all the more urgent to receive the statistical information requested, in order to be able to assess the situation, since there was reason to believe that the education and employment situation for women was actually deteriorating.

Last year, the Government had reported on progress with regard to access of women to universities and higher education, as well as programmes to provide vocational training to women. The Government had failed however to provide the requested statistical information. It was imperative that this statistical information was made available, as it appeared that quotas to limit female attendance at university had been imposed. These quotas would limit the proportion of women allowed to study, in some cases to 10 per cent. Any quota that would limit the participation of women by 10 per cent could not be considered as positive discrimination, as the Government was suggesting. Data on the vocational training programmes were also missing. The Government had furthermore failed to provide information on the number of women actually finding employment after their education or training. Last year’s employment figures were as low as 15 per cent.

The Committee needed to know how the current economic crisis affected the employment of women, and to receive information on the number of women employed and also their contracts and working conditions. Already, employees in workplaces with less than five workers or in export processing zones were not covered by law. If the draft legislation, which also excluded temporary workers, was adopted, up to 90 per cent of workers in the Islamic Republic of Iran, many of these women, might not be protected by the country’s labour law. Last year, the Government was criticized for limiting employment of women in the public sector to 30 years or in some cases 35 years. The Government was stating that the correct age was 40 or 45 years. But even then, women were prevented from being employed during the largest part of their potential working life. In 2008, the adviser to the Ministry of Industry and Mining made public that the Government was drafting a bill that would limit working hours for women with children by at least one hour per child. This would not only limit women’s access to the labour market, but also their earning capacity. A government policy or a legal limitation to working hours specifically for women would be highly discriminatory and in serious violation of Convention No. 111. Also, the Government had not reported on the access of workers to child-care facilities, and no information had been given on the financial support that workers received to make use of those facilities. In the online newsletter of the International Transport Workers’ Federation, Maysour Osanloo, President of the Tehron Bus Workers’ Union, explained how he negotiated US$40 per month for childcare for 200 women workers. She understood that this was exceptional. The speaker regretted that it was very difficult to find independent statistics, and that the organizations that might be able to provide information were facing extreme constraints in operating. The leaders of independent trade union organizations were in prison and women’s organizations were also not allowed to report freely.

There was equally a lack of information and reason for increased concern with regard to discrimination in employment and education of the non-recognized religious minority of the Baha’i. The Government had stated during the last meeting of this Committee that the Baha’i enjoyed full rights to higher education. In 2004 and 2005, the Baha’i had been allowed to take the national university entrance exams without having to denounce their religious affiliation. In 2006, over 800 had taken the exams, half of them had passed but only 300 had been admitted. By January 2007, 160 of those had been expelled. Expulsion of students from higher education for being identified as Baha’i continued in 2009. Students in primary and secondary schools were also reported as having been expelled from school. She knew of four cases in Karaj and Kashan and two cases in Tehran and Karaj. Baha’i continued to be restricted in their freedom to pursue a decent living. According to information received by the speaker, in Khorramabad, private sector employers had been summoned to the Intelligence Ministry and pressured to dismiss their Baha’i employees. Official instructions had been given to police headquarters in Rafsanjan to ensure that the number of Baha’i who engaged in any business and the amount of income earned by them was strictly limited. This atmosphere of discrimination had been worsened by the declaration of the Government that all Baha’i administrative arrangements were illegal. The informal structures (Yaran and Khademin), by which the Baha’i were represented and by which they could promote their participation in education and in the labour market, could no longer be in place. Reports had been received that members of these structures had been arrested and sentenced on the ground that these structures had been declared illegal. She urged the Government to repeal this declaration and promote a safe environment for Baha’i to participate in education and the labour market.

To send a clear message to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, to underline that the Committee took the Government’s promises of 2006 very seriously, and to recall that the Government had until 1 September 2009 to meet its promises, the speaker requested that this case be mentioned in a special paragraph of the Committee’s report.

The Worker member of Canada added his voice to the concerns expressed by other speakers over the discrimination of women in employment in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Between 1990 and 2003, GDP had grown annually by 2.4 per cent resulting in a 24 per cent inflation rate and requiring more married women to get a job, just to cover the gaps in family incomes. Fifteen per cent of the formal economy was now composed of women, meaning that only 3.5 million Iranian women compared to 23.5 million men were salaried workers entitled to holidays, maternity leave and pensions provided by the labour law. The situation was aggravated by the fact that women who left home to work were still legally obliged to provide day-care at the same time.

The speaker pointed out that a tug of war was taking place with some pushing for law reform to remove employment barriers, while others wanted more restrictions for women to stay at home. Fortunately, the literacy rate in the Islamic Republic of Iran was 94 per cent for both men and women, which meant that there were indeed opportunities for women to education, but these were skewed towards areas of learning or caring functions of society and not to core industrial or economic decision-making functions. Sixty-four per cent of female students actually reached higher education, where well over 60 per cent of the university population studying medicine, humanities, arts and science-support functions were women, compared to 20 or 30 per cent in technical, engineering or agriculture studies. These same rough proportions were then reflected in women working in corresponding government ministries, where up to 45 per cent of staff were women, compared to industry where they made up 12 per cent of the workforce and were unrepresented in corresponding ministries.

Finally, the speaker pointed out that female discrimination was deep-seated in school text books, and at all levels of compulsory education. Since 2006, 50 women involved in a campaign to collect 1 million signatures in support of improving women’s rights had been detained, with several receiving suspended prison terms. Hence, he implored the Government to amend labour laws with ILO assistance, and to fully implement the core labour standards.

The Worker member of Pakistan pointed out that Convention No. 111 was a core Convention ratified by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Committee of Experts had repeatedly asked the Government to provide information and data in relation to the application of the Convention. The Government had indicated that it would provide such information as well as accept technical cooperation. He accordingly urged the Government to respect its international obligations.

The Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran observed that despite all goodwill, his country would not be able to cover the gap in employment between men and women in the next few years. The prevailing role model had been established thousands of years ago. People could not be coerced into how to run their households, and there were many obstacles to changing existing legislation. Whereas in other countries, legislation had to pass two chambers of parliament, in the Islamic Republic of Iran it had to pass three. This made the process more complicated. Also, there appeared to be some misunderstanding regarding section 1117 of the Civil Code which had, in any case, fallen into abeyance. Given that the social security issue was new before the Committee, the speaker was aware that he should have submitted the relevant information in advance in writing. The situation of women in his country was by far not so gloomy as certain people liked to describe it. In no way were they oppressed, but forward looking and enthusiastic about their future. Many discriminatory laws had been repealed and progress in that respect was continuing. Regarding the Charter of Citizenry Rights, a number of judges who had not respected it had been brought to court for its breach. The issue of the Baha’i community was rooted in history, but being addressed. The Government was looking into any discrimination occurring in the process of repelling Baha’i students. The case of a Baha’i institute whose land had been seized had been adjudicated and the land returned. Many Baha’is were running very lucrative businesses and had easy access to credit and loan. Licences for starting businesses were freely granted. The negative statistics on Baha’is were inflated. As regards the information on Baha’is imprisoned without judgement, which he had just received, he would report the issue to his Government where the matter would be brought to the judiciary.

The Worker members stated that the previous year, owing to the absence of any noticeable progress in the implementation of Convention No. 111, as well as the lack of will by the Government to provide the information requested by the Committee of Experts, it had been necessary to include a special paragraph on the case in the report of the Committee. However, considering that the discussions in 2008 had been based on a mid-term report on the measures taken within the framework of the plan for socio-economic and cultural development (2005–10), the Committee had expressed confidence in the Government and allowed it a certain leeway to intensify its efforts and meet the objectives of the plan before the 2010 deadline. However, no such effort had been seen; the Government had not demonstrated its goodwill. It was hoped that the Government would provide to the Committee of Experts at its next session information on all the issues that the Committee had raised since 2006. The Worker members requested that the case be included in a special paragraph in the report of the Committee.

The Employer members suggested that, in the conclusions, the Government be requested to provide the required information to the ILO, including the statistics that the Committee of Experts had asked for on a number of occasions, to enable it to assess the situation. The conclusions should also reflect that employers and workers should be free to establish organizations consistent with the principles of freedom of association.

Conclusions

The Committee noted the statement of the Government representative and the discussion that followed.

The Committee noted that the Committee of Experts had raised a number of issues, including the lack of any improvement in the social dialogue situation in the country; the need for information on the practical measures to implement the national plans and policies relevant to equality in employment and occupation, and the results achieved; the situation of women in vocational training and employment; discriminatory job advertisements; discriminatory laws and regulations; the situation of unrecognized religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, and ethnic minorities; and the importance of accessible dispute resolution mechanisms. The Committee of Experts, having noted the Government’s indication that a comprehensive Bill prohibiting any form of discrimination in employment and education had been drafted, he expressed the hope that every effort would be made to adopt in the near future a comprehensive law on non-discrimination which was fully in conformity with the Convention.

The Committee took note of the Government’s statement that it would provide full information, including detailed statistics, on all the issues raised by this Committee in 2006 and 2008 and by the Committee of Experts. The Government stated that the Charter of Citizenry Rights had been a successful instrument to ensure the protection of rights including non-discrimination, and that it had been used to discipline judges who had not adequately ensured the rights of citizens. The Government also submitted information on training provided to judges on citizens’ rights and referred to a joint project with the United Nations Development Programme on human rights promotion and development of justice. The Government indicated that the judiciary had declared null and void a range of administrative orders. On the issue of quotas regarding the access of women and men to university, the Government acknowledged that such quotas existed in 39 fields of study, stating that the aim was to balance the participation of women and men. The Government also provided information on certain cases relating to the infringement of the rights of minorities and discrimination against women. Information on programmes to promote women in employment and as entrepreneurs was also provided. Regarding the Baha’i, the Government referred to one recent case ruling in favour of a Baha’i institution that had complained that its land had been unlawfully seized. The Government acknowledged that, due to the cultural and historical fabric of society meant that progress in bringing law and practice into conformity with the Convention would be slow, but expressed its commitment to continuing to move forward in that direction. The Government asked for coordination and closer cooperation among various governmental bodies and the national social partners, as well as assistance from the ILO.

The Committee regretted that there was an ongoing need to discuss this case regularly, given the absence of progress on the range of issues that had been raised over the years. It noted that during its most recent examination in June 2008, it had requested the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues with a view to fulfilling its promises of 2006 that it would bring all the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by no later than 2010, and had requested the Government to provide complete and detailed information for examination by the Committee of Experts at its November 2008 session in reply to all the pending issues. The Committee noted with concern the lack of information that had been provided to the Committee of Experts, despite this specific request, and the range of serious issues that remained outstanding.

The Committee expressed its deep concern that due to the continuing context of repression of freedom of association in the country, meaningful social dialogue on these issues at the national level had not been possible.

The Committee, while acknowledging that certain achievements had been made in the past in respect of education, vocational training and employment of women, remained concerned at the lack of evidence of any real progress made with respect to their situation in the labour market. Detailed information on the number of women actually finding employment after their education and training was still lacking, and concerns remained with respect to existing and draft legislation limiting women’s employment. The Committee also noted the need for information on the quota system in universities and how it was applied in practice, as well as information on the impact on women’s employment of the recent bill limiting working hours for women with children. The Committee noted that the outstanding issues raised by the Committee of Experts in this regard remained unanswered. The Committee expressed continuing concern about the situation of religious and ethnic minorities with regard to their equal access to employment and occupation, and the failure to provide adequate statistical information in this regard. It concluded that the Baha’i continued to be subjected to discrimination as regards access to education and employment without any significant measures being taken by the Government to bring discriminatory practices, including on the part of the authorities, to an end.

The Committee urged the Government to take immediate and urgent action to ensure the full application of the Convention, both in law and practice, and to establish genuine social dialogue in this context. The Committee urged the Government to provide full, objective and verifiable information in its report of 2009 on the application of the Convention, in reply to the issues raised by this Committee and by the Committee of Experts. It expressed the firm hope that such information would evidence that concrete progress had been made on all the matters raised.

The Committee decided to include its conclusions in a special paragraph of its report.

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A Government representative indicated that existing laws and regulations, such as Article 101 of the Fourth five-year Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan, seemed to have provided the bedrock for the fulfilment of the aspirations of the Convention. The Government was firmly committed to providing a mid-term assessment of the steps taken to bring the long-contested legislation and practice into line with ILO Conventions. A more detailed periodic report containing facts and figures, segregated by gender, ethnic and religious minorities, where relevant, would be provided to the Committee of Experts. The Government was vigilantly monitoring any developments to ensure the due fulfilment of its undertakings towards this end by the year 2010.

The Charter of Citizenry Rights stipulated in the Fourth Development Plan had been approved by Parliament in 2007 and the Government had been required to implement its provisions fully. In a very recent measure by the Head of the judiciary, many judges had been disqualified and dismissed on the grounds that they had discarded and violated citizenry rights, especially the rights of women and minorities.

With respect to the implementation of article 101 of the Fourth Development Plan developed by the social partners under the Islamic Republic of Iran's Decent Work Country Programme in May 2005, the Government, the social partners and other stakeholders held regular meetings to jointly survey and monitor its due implementation aimed at ensuring access to decent work and decent life for all Iranian subjects, without discrimination. Under the Decent Work Country Programme, 54 operational decent work indicators had been identified in 2007, divided into four main categories. Article 101(a) of the Development Plan focused on the fundamental principles and rights at work including freedom of association, protection of labour rights, sound industrial relations, the right to organize and bargain collectively, equal pay for men and women for work of the same value, elimination of the worst forms of child labour, minimum wage for decent life and, last but not least, non-discrimination in employment and occupation.

Section 38 of the Labour Law provided that for equal work carried out in equal working conditions, workers, irrespective of their gender, had to receive equal pay. It further provided that any discrimination in setting wages based on age, race, ethnic background, religious and social beliefs was forbidden. A total of 141,968 periodic inspections and 234,225 unannounced inspections had been carried out to ensure due adherence to the law for the period March 2006-March 2007. No wage discrimination had been reported.

The Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations was responsible for the supervision of a Presidential circular calling for the guarantee of equal access to women and religious minorities to employment opportunities. One of the most important goals of article 101 in ensuring equal and indiscriminate extension of social protection to all was ensuring equal access to employment opportunities for women through women empowerment programmes. Two state funds had been created to provide subsidized financial grants to women entrepreneurs and women heads of household.

The Government had held five different workshops at provincial level within the last two years to improve awareness of, access to and enforcement of equality and non-discrimination rights and policies aimed at balancing work and family responsibilities for women. It was determined to hold similar workshops throughout the country. Women were now gradually breaking into new non-traditional spheres and additional ILO technical cooperation on women empowerment programmes would further catalyse the process of women's integration into a more diversified labour market. Most regretfully, such technical services had recently been suspended by the ILO over allegations from the social partners.

The Government representative stated that following the official submission of a Bill to repeal section 1117 of the Civil Code, both Parliament and the judiciary acknowledged that, given the existence of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, which superseded section 1117, section 1117 was automatically repealed under national law and the courts were not authorized, under any condition, to receive any such complaints.

Being mindful of the need for a comprehensive law on the prohibition of any form of discrimination in employment and education, as also stipulated in different sections of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Government positively responded to the observation of the Committee of Experts and had presented a Bill concerning access of all Iranian nationals irrespective of gender, colour, creed, race, language, religion, or ethnic and social background, to education, vocational training and employment. The Bill prohibited all forms of discrimination with respect to access to free and formal education at different levels; access to technical and vocational training; and access to job and employment opportunities, as well as working conditions. The Bill defined discrimination as any unjustified distinction, exclusion, limitation, preference or privilege that might adversely affect or nullify equality of opportunity or treatment in occupation, employment, training or education for all Iranian subjects. Unlike the provisions of the Constitution or those of the Labour Law, the infringement and violation of which did not result in penalties or sanctions, liability for violators under the proposed Bill according to its section 2 would consist of heavy sanctions and penalties. While the Bill was currently awaiting final approval by the Cabinet of Ministers, the Government would appreciate receiving any comments from the Committee of Experts and the International Labour Standards Department.

The Government, in collaboration with the social partners, had launched a global plan for social security, which, among other things, addressed the issue of social security regulations favouring husbands over wives in terms of pension and child benefits. It denied the existence of any administrative rule or practice restricting the employment of wives of government employees. The Government, furthermore, denied the unfounded information brought to the attention of the 2007 ILO technical assistance mission concerning the existence of legal barriers to women being hired after the age of 30. Section 14 (a) of the State Employment Law limited the age of employment to a minimum of 18 and a maximum of 40 years of age. The Government also pointed out that the maximum age of employment was exceptionally extended by five years in cases in which the Government recruited staff for the second time. Detailed statistics on the number of women and men in public and private sector employment, disaggregated by gender, category and rank of employment, would be provided by the Government, as promised, in its next report.

With regard to Decree No. 55080 of 1979 changing the status of female judges from judicial to administrative, the Government representative indicated that a Bill had been presented to Parliament in 2007 concerning the required qualifications for judges, irrespective of their gender. This was indicative of women breaking away from stereotypical roles and the availability of new opportunities for them in the judicial system. Once this Bill was adopted, Decree No. 55080 would be automatically repealed. A total of 459 female judges had thus far been assigned to different judicial positions, including assistant prosecutor, remand judge, adviser to the court of appeal, ruling judge in the family court and judge of guardianship and minors, administrative tribunal judge and judge of the special judiciary supervision department. Women were occupying judicial positions both as investigation and prosecution judges. A few had been appointed as directors of the judicial administration in the provinces. Others had been assigned to supervisory and administrative functions. Two female judges were assigned to the court of appeal. They now ruled over very contentious and critical cases together with their male colleagues. In the Province of Tehran there were 112 female remand judges. Female applicants were admitted to the faculties of law every year, and, upon completion of their judicial training courses, were recruited to different judicial posts. Eighty-eight women were attending judges' training courses.

Regarding the situation of ethnic minorities, the Government wished to emphasize that Iranian culture was the result of the integration and interaction of common interests and beliefs, customs and traditions and, last but not least, of a common historical background of different ethnic minorities in the Islamic Republic of Iran having been resident for a long time. The latest national statistics regarding the provinces, where ethnic minorities traditionally dwelled, revealed that in the Turk-Kurd Province of Western Azerbaijan, 83.7 per cent of the managers were from either of the Turk or Kurd minorities. In Kermanshah, where a mix of Kurd minorities existed, 86.7 per cent of the managers were national Kurds. In Kurdistan, 78.8 per cent of managers were from different Kurd minorities. In Sistan and Baluchistan, where two ethnic minorities, the Baluchi and Sistani, with two different religions had peacefully coexisted for thousands of years, 65.6 per cent of the managerial positions were distributed among the natives. In the Province of Ilam, 84.3 per cent of the managers were among the natives of the region. The Government considered that it had done its best to promote access for ethnic minorities to high- and medium-level managerial positions without any discrimination. Further, many of the high-ranking government officials at the national and international level were also from ethnic minorities.

Regarding the Baha'i and the concerns expressed with respect to their access to education and vocational training, the Government stated that a new circular had recently been issued by the President of the Technical and Vocational Training Organization emphasizing the free access of all Iranian nationals to vocational training. This new circular had been issued in accordance with the Government's policy for the protection of all Iranian nationals' rights, irrespective of their beliefs, colour and creed, religion and gender. The Government was committed to providing equal access to employment and education for all Iranian nationals. This was illustrated by the reports of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance who, after a mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1995, highlighted that the non-recognition of a religious minority in the country did not imply the non-recognition of its respective rights or the existence of discrimination against it. The Special Rapporteur further stated that the Baha'i enjoyed all citizens' rights, including, among other cultural activities, the freedom to practice their rituals, to promote their belief in their sects, and to provide higher education to their youth. The report stated that the Baha'i's right to higher education was not breached to the extent that it could be interpreted as a violation of a fundamental human right. It also concluded that the Baha'i were able to participate actively in the cultural life of Iranian society. A more detailed account of the status of the Baha'i would be submitted to the Committee of Experts in the Government's next report.

Reiterating its determination to cooperate with the Committee and the ILO in addressing the Committee of Experts' concerns regarding employment and discrimination, the Government was looking forward to more extensive cooperation to bring national laws and practice into line with the Constitution of the ILO and international labour standards by the year 2010.

The Employer members thanked the Government representative for his submissions. With regard to the issue of equality of men and women, the low level of women's participation in the labour market and the high unemployment among women was disappointing. Women's low participation in high-level positions was unacceptable, as was the Government's argument that women's low labour market participation was a result of cultural, religious, economic and historical factors. In fact, the high rate of women among university students suggested a desire of women to have a role in the labour market and to participate fully in social life. It was also disappointing that relevant statistical information that, as pointed out by an ILO technical assistance mission, existed in the country had not been provided to the Committee of Experts.

The Employer members noted that the obligatory dress code for women and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on administrative infringements, in practice, had a negative impact on women's employment in the public sector. Opposition was also expressed to Decree No. 55080 of 1979 regarding female judges. The Government had described a new Bill to elevate women's status in the judiciary and, in the discussion, had referred to a number of judicial positions that women were holding currently, but it was unclear whether the women in these positions enjoyed the same authority as male judges. While noting the Government representative's statement concerning section 1117 of the Civil Code, the explanations provided had been inconclusive. The Government was urged to provide full information on the barriers, in law and in practice, for women over 30 to be hired and on how discrimination based on age was prohibited.

Concerning discrimination on the basis of religion, the Employer members noted that the situation of the Baha'i had not improved and requested the Government to take measures to promote respect and tolerance for the Baha'i. The Government was also urged to provide full informa- tion on the employment situation of ethnic minorities, in particular in the public sector.

The Employer members noted the strong commitment expressed by the Government to constructive dialogue with the social partners. They nevertheless expressed concern over the present freedom of association crisis in the country. Without ensuring freedom of association, meaningful social dialogue was impossible.

In conclusion, the Employer members expressed deep concern regarding the issues of discrimination which continued to persist in the Islamic Republic of Iran. They urged the Government to repeal laws and practices that were not in conformity with the Convention without further delay.

The Worker members recalled that this year was the 50th anniversary of Convention No. 111 which originated from the Declaration of Philadelphia. According to the Declaration, all human beings, irrespective of race, creed or sex, had the right to pursue both their material wellbeing and their spiritual development in conditions of freedom and dignity, of economic security and equal opportunity. Convention No. 111 was dealing with discrimination in employment and occupation, the non-compliance with which also constituted a violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The fight against discrimination was a concern of all modern and democratic societies. The abovementioned fundamental texts played a key role in the progress so far achieved.

The Worker members recalled that Convention No. 111 prohibited any distinction made on the basis of race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin, which had the effect of nullifying or impairing equality of opportunity or treatment in employment or occupation, including the access to vocational training, access to employment and to particular occupations, and terms and conditions of employment. Each Member ratifying the Convention undertook to declare and pursue a national policy designed to promote, by methods appropriate to national conditions and practice, equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment and occupation. Convention No. 111, widely ratified by 166 member States, was about respecting each other and accepting each other's characteristics and differences.

The Worker members recalled that the question of the application of Convention No. 111 by the Islamic Republic of Iran had been analysed by the Committee of Experts 14 times between 1990 and 2008. Moreover, the Conference Committee had already examined this individual case in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2006. Yet, the Islamic Republic of Iran regularly benefited from ILO assistance. Since 2004, the Government undertook to adopt a national strategy for promoting women's employment, their independence and their equality of treatment through the Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan for 2005-10. The Government already undertook in 2006 to submit a mid-term assessment report on the implementation of this Plan and on the measures taken to bring legislation and practice into conformity with the Convention by no later than 2010. The Worker members observed that, whilst in 2006 the Government could still hope for the Committee's indulgence with regard to the implementation of the Plan, today it was clear that no progress had been achieved.

The Worker members stressed various points raised by the Committee of Experts: (a) the Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan - some provisions of which underlined the importance of human rights (Articles 100 and 101) - and the role of the judiciary in combating discrimination (Article 130) did not appear to have been adequately disseminated; (b) the Government mentioned a Charter of Women's Rights but did not provide a copy of it nor specified its link with the Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan; (c) the information provided on measures taken dated back to 2006 and had already been taken into account by the Committee of Experts.

The Worker members expressed their concern about the lack of updated information on the rates of men and women undertaking technical and vocational training in private institutions where women were in the majority. They indicated that, according to recent sources, the access of young women to universities and to technical and vocational training was limited through devious means in order to hamper women's participation in society. The illiteracy rate of women stood at double that of men. Women's participation in the labour market remained low, and even women with entrepreneurial skills had very little chance to have access to the labour market. Finally, the Government did not provide statistical information, if any, on the number of women holding managerial posi- tions and in occupations traditionally reserved for men.

The Worker members stated that they were aware of a petition against discrimination that had been signed by one million women expressing their concern at the justification given by the Government regarding women's low level of participation in the labour market. The attitude to link the issue of women's work solely to that of family responsibilities would reinforce the assumption rooted in the Iranian society, that women were solely responsible for the family. The Worker members stressed that when a woman decided to take a break in her professional career for family reasons, she would lose her post. They deplored that no measures had been taken by the Government to prevent or prohibit discrimination in job advertisements and sexual harassment. Moreover, the imposition of a compulsory dress code for women had a direct effect on the employment of non-Muslim women and affected their public freedom. Nonetheless, the Government was aware of the discriminatory legal provisions which needed to be amended or repealed, like the provisions of the Civil Code allowing the husband to prevent his wife from taking up a job. Finally, regarding women's conditions, the Worker members referred to a recent resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly in March 2008, which once again highlighted the dramatic situation of women being continuously discriminated against in law and practice.

The Worker members were deeply concerned that the observation of the Committee of Experts once again referred to discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities excluded from particular occupations for alleged national security reasons. In this regard, the Worker members stated there was written information available for 2007-08 undoubtedly proving discrimination against the Baha'i with regard to their access to universities and to particular occupations, as well as to their right to a pension, and that they were subject to moral harassment in the public sector. Such information was being revealed while progress should have already been registered following the Government's commitment at the 2006 session of the Conference Committee.

The Worker members, observing that the recommendations of the Committee of Experts did not receive any serious response by the Government, deplored that the Government did not provide in due time the relevant information on the measures taken. Since the conformity of these measures with ILO international labour standards needed to be verified, the Worker members reserved the right to request that the individual case appeared in a special paragraph of the Committee's report.

The Worker member of the Netherlands referred to three specific areas of legislative discrimination against women highlighted in the 2006 conclusions of this Committee. The Government had undertaken to revise section 1117 of the Civil Code, pursuant to which a husband could bring a court action against his wife for taking up employment. Unfortunately, the provision had not been amended, and, even if not used in practice, its very existence had an intimidating effect on women. Secondly, Decree No. 55080 limited the position of female judges to administrative or advisory status denying them the authority to issue judgements. This represented a severe insult to the intellectual and decision-making capacities of women. It was most regrettable that the Government was unable to present evidence of steps taken to remove the restriction. Thirdly, the legal and practical restrictions on access to jobs for women above the age of 30, or even the envisaged age of 35, severely restricted the participation of women in the labour market for more than half of their working life. It could only be deplored that the Government only expressed intentions but was not able to present evidence of steps taken to remedy this.

As argued by the Government representative, discrimination against women in the labour market was just a result of historical and cultural factors. This reason, however, did not remove the responsibilities of the Government to amend the relevant laws and implement and enforce them actively. Iranian women trying to assert the rights of women in their personal, working and community lives faced growing repression. More than 100 women had been arrested, interrogated and sentenced in the last two years. Newspapers, magazines and broadcasters promoting women's rights had been closed down, including the prominent magazine Zanan. Women collecting 1 million signatures in the Campaign for Equality had faced harassment and arrest.

The restrictions of civil liberties and the repression of independent trade unions made it difficult to obtain reliable information on the position of women in education and the labour market. As no freedom of association existed, the working women of the Islamic Republic of Iran could not organize freely, be represented or defend their interests independently. While the efforts of the Government to provide women greater access to education were appreciated, no accurate data had been collated as to how many women entered employment after their education, in what sectors, at what levels, how long they retained employment, and how many re-entered employment after having or raising children. It was crucial that the Government collate and make available this essential, disaggregated data. Job opportunities for women still lagged far behind that of men, and, according to the Committee of Experts' observation, the participation of women was 12.2 per cent in 2003 and had only increased to 13.8 per cent in 2006. The Government needed to acknowledge this extremely low rate and take remedial action. Women were also the first to be laid off when companies restructured and, in case of non-payment of wages, had little means to pursue the arrears.

Health and childcare services and other social services had been promised to facilitate women's participation in the workforce, but most working women had not been able to get access to these services. The nature of employment in the Islamic Republic of Iran had shifted towards informalization. More and more women were working in temporary jobs and contracted labour, where they could not benefit from legal entitlements including maternity protection. Since Iranian labour law did not require companies employing less than 20 people to abide by regulatory protections, and the majority of workers in such companies were women, women faced huge obstacles of discrimination in the labour market. It was vital that the Government develop instruments to make the promised facilities available to women employed in the informal sectors, and provide detailed information on these matters to the Committee of Experts. The huge gap in the pay rates afforded to women performing the same work as men (sometimes half the pay) also needed to be addressed. The Government should provide comprehensive data on matters relating to pay equity and the measures envisaged in this regard.

In conclusion, after the Government had been urged in 2006 by this Committee to take measures to eliminate discrimination against women in the labour market, no visible progress had been made, neither with respect to the amendment of specific regulations that had been the subject of discussion for years, nor concerning the more general social and economic barriers that hindered women's participation in the labour market. The Government was urged again to address the serious violations of the Convention.

The Worker member of Indonesia recalled that one of the most atrocious aspects of this case, when it first came to the attention of the Committee of Experts, was the execution of 200 Baha'i citizens in the framework of significant intolerance towards religious minorities. The UN General Assembly also expressed its concerns in its resolution of 20 March 2008 on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. This resolution included specific reference to attacks on the Baha'i in statesponsored media, as well as increasing evidence of efforts by the State to identify and monitor the Baha'i. Information and evidence from various government departments on the violations against the Baha'i was available. An official communication from the Public Intelligence and Security Force dated 9 April 2007 aimed at repressing Baha'i businesses through the denial of licences. Another communication from the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security (bearing the emblem of the State Pension Bureau) dated 8 August 2007 stated categorically that there was no law in force allowing the Baha'i to receive pensions. The third communication from the Ministry of Science, Research and Technology listed 81 universities within the Islamic Republic of Iran from which the Baha'i were to be expelled and denied further access. Discriminatory action against both the Baha'i community as a whole and against individual members, was current and pervasive, perpetuated and promoted at the very highest levels of the State. Plans, projects or draft legislation were not sufficient, since there was a need for urgent and effective action for the promises made by the Government in 2006 to be realized before 2010.

The Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran thanked the Committee members for their contributions and reiterated that detailed statistical information on the situation of women in the labour market would indeed be provided. The high level of women's university attendance and the large number of women among university professors illustrated that the Government was committed to improving the situation of women, although many challenges remained. There was some legal miscomprehension as to the status of section 1117 of the Civil Code. Under the Iranian legal system, the provision was considered as repealed. Regarding the access of ethnic minorities to employment, the Government representative reiterated that it was the qualifications that mattered, not ethnic origin. The ILO technical assistance mission in 2007 had had an opportunity to meet a member of the Baha'i community who was a successful businessperson in the high-tech sector. Many of the circulars regarding the Baha'i that had been mentioned were fabrications; others had been repealed.

The Government was striving to promote women's entrepreneurship and to promote women's social rights. In addition, numerous non-governmental organizations were active in this area. The Government denied that there was any legal barrier that would prevent women over the age of 30 from being employed, however, it would look into the matter. Improving literacy and providing free access to education for all, men and women, was a priority. The current social security legislation, which considered the man as the breadwinner, was in line with the country's culture. There was no sexual harassment, and labour inspections had not revealed any wage discrimination based on sex.

The Government representative noted that a number of ILO missions had taken place in recent years, but the country had not received the amount of assistance it needed. It was unacceptable that technical assistance on important matters, such as occupational safety and health was being denied. A number of legislative initiatives were under way, but time was needed to complete them. The Government was also committed to pursuing social dialogue. More detailed information would be provided to the Committee of Experts.

The Employer members observed that the efforts to promote equality and non-discrimination in employment and occupation had been very slow. The Government had not provided information on the practical effects of the measures it had taken. However, it was a fact that women's labour force participation remained very weak, while their unemployment was twice as high as men's. Women's absence from high-level jobs was unacceptable and the obligatory dress code constituted a barrier to women's employment in the public sector. The Government must demonstrate that progress concerning women's equality in employment was being made in practice. To this end, it must provide detailed statistical information on the situation of men and women in the private and public sectors, disaggregated by level of employment, to allow for an assessment of the scope of the problem and the progress made. The Government was also urged to provide information indicating the extent to which vocational training translated into employment opportunities for women. The Employer members also called on the Government to demonstrate progress regarding the application of the Convention in law, including the repeal of discriminatory social security regulations and provisions restricting access to employment on the basis of age. The Government must also ensure that there are no legal obstacles with regard to women's equal status with men in all functions in the judiciary. Finally, the Employer members expressed their deep concern about the repression of freedom of association and meaningful social dialogue on the issues covered by the Convention.

The Worker members recalled that the elimination of all forms of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation was a question arising in all modern democratic societies. The number of observations formulated by the Committee of Experts on the application of the Convention in the Islamic Republic of Iran constituted a mat- ter of concern. In 2006, the Committee had requested the Government to communicate to the Committee of Experts a written report on the points that had not been covered by the Government representative during the discussion as well as on the progress achieved in bringing the legislation into conformity with the Convention. In this regard, the Committee had urged the Government to take measures to ensure the amendment of the texts restricting the employment of women, in particular those relating to the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the possibility of the husband to refuse his wife's access to employment and the inclusion of women in the social security system. The Committee had also expressed concerns about the acts of discrimination against the members of religious and ethnic minorities, and notably of the Baha'i community. The Worker members recalled that the Government had undertaken to bring national legislation into conformity with Convention No. 111 by 2010 and to submit a report on the implementation of a national strategy for the promotion of women's employment and empowerment and equality through the Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan for 2005-10. The Worker members regretted that the Government contented itself with making declarations on basic principles and expressed their disappointment with the lack of up to date information on the effectiveness of the measures allegedly taken. None of the recommendations of the Committee of Experts, in particular concerning necessary legislative amendments, had been the subject of a serious response from the Government. In 2006, the Worker members had trusted in the Government's commitment. However, the lack of progress and the impossibility to verify the information supplied by the Government representative during the discussion prompted the Worker members to request that the case be mentioned in a special paragraph in the Committee's report.

The Worker members did not find in the information provided by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran proof of any real progress in the elimination of discrimination against women or religious minorities. This lack of progress was serious and ought to justify a special paragraph. However, given the fact that the discussion was based on a mid-term report, the Worker members were willing to give the Government the opportunity to increase its efforts to meet the 2010 deadline for fully removing all discriminatory elements from its legislation and seriously address all discriminatory practices hindering the equal participation of women and religious minorities in education and the labour market.

The Employer members observed that the discussion of the case had provided the Government with an opportunity to provide a mid-term assessment of the progress made in bringing its law and practice into line with the Convention no later than 2010. The Employer members therefore deeply regretted the lack of progress since the discussion of the case in 2006. They expressed deep concern that, due to the present context of the repression of freedom of association in the country, meaningful social dialogue on these issues had not been possible at the national level. They therefore urged the Government to take action on all the outstanding issues with a view to fulfilling its promises made in 2006 that it would bring the relevant law and practice into line with the Convention by 2010. They called on the Government to provide complete and detailed information to the Committee of Experts at its session in 2008 in reply to all the pending issues raised by the Conference Committee and the Committee of Experts. If such progress were not achieved, the Employer members would support the inclusion of a reference to this case in a special paragraph of the Committee's report when the case was next discussed.

Conclusions

The Committee noted the statement of the Government representative and the discussion that followed. It took note of the Government's statement that there was a strong legislative and policy framework supporting non-discrimination, and that recently, bills had been drafted and circulars issued on specific aspects of non-discrimination. It also noted that no cases of wage discrimination against women had been found during the 375,000 inspections that took place last year. It also noted the Government's statement that it would provide with its next report to the Committee of Experts a wide range of detailed statistics, as well as a more detailed account of the status of the Baha'i.

The Committee noted that it had examined this case on a number of occasions, most recently in June 2006, at which time it requested the Government to provide a mid-term assessment in its subsequent report to the Committee of Experts on the steps taken to bring the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by no later than 2010. The Committee also noted that the Committee of Experts, having examined this mid-term assessment, as well as the findings of an ILO technical assistance mission which took place in October 2007, continued to raise a wide range of concerns, in particular regarding discriminatory laws, regulations and practices, lack of access to complaints mechanisms regarding discrimination and the absence of meaningful social dialogue on these issues. The Committee expressed its disappointment with the absence of progress since it discussed these issues in 2006.

With respect to discrimination against women, the Committee expressed concern regarding women's low labour market participation, and particularly their limited access to senior positions, and the high unemployment rate of women. The Committee noted the continued efforts of the Government to promote women's access to university education, and noted the Government's acknowledgment that there remained a long way to go in practice to remove the barriers to women's employment. The Committee took note of the Government's indication that a bill regarding anti-discrimination in education, vocational training and employment had been submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers, and that a bill was before Parliament regarding the status of female judges. However, it remained concerned that over the years a number of bills, plans and proposals had been referred to which had not come to fruition. The Committee also took cognizance of the Government's indication that judges had been instructed not to apply section 1117 of the Civil Code. It was concerned that in the absence of the express repeal of this provision, it would continue to have a negative impact on women's employment opportunities.

The Committee deeply regretted that despite statements of the Government to this Committee expressing a clear commitment to repeal laws and regulations that violated the Convention, progress in this regard was slow and insufficient. It, therefore, strongly urged the Government to repeal or amend, without any further delay, all laws and regulations restricting women's employment, including regarding the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the right of a husband to object to his wife taking up a profession or job, and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation. The Committee also urged the Government to take action to address any barriers, in law or in practice, to women being hired after a certain age, whether it was 30 or 40, and to address effectively other discriminatory practices against women, including by prohibiting job advertisements containing discriminatory elements.

With respect to the existing laws and policies on non-discrimination, the Committee called on the Government to ensure these were widely publicized and enforced. Given the increase in temporary and contract employment of women, the Committee urged the Government to ensure that all entitlements and facilities were also made available in practice to these women workers. It also urged the Government to provide the Committee of Experts with the detailed statistics it had been repeatedly calling for, in order to allow it to make an accurate assessment of the situation of women in vocational training and employment.

With respect to discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities, the Committee regretted that the situation had not improved since 2006, and requested that concrete steps be taken in this regard. Noting the particularly serious situation of the Baha'i, the Committee strongly urged the Government to take decisive action to combat discrimination and stereotypical attitudes, through actively promoting respect and tolerance for the Baha'i. It also urged the Government to ensure that all circulars or other government communications discriminating against religious minorities be withdrawn without delay, and that measures be taken to make it clear to the authorities at all levels and the public at large that discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha'i, would not be tolerated.

The Committee expressed its deep concern that, due to the present context of repression of freedom of association in the country, meaningful social dialogue on these issues at the national level had not been possible.

The Committee urged the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues, with a view to fulfilling its promises of 2006 that it would bring all its relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by 2010. The Committee requested the Government to provide complete and detailed information to the Committee of Experts at its 2008 session in reply to all the pending issues raised by this Committee and the Committee of Experts.

The Worker members did not find in the information provided by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran proof of any real progress in the elimination of discrimination against women or religious minorities. This lack of progress was serious and ought to justify a special paragraph. However, given the fact that the discussion was based on a mid-term report, the Worker members were willing to give the Government the opportunity to increase its efforts to meet the 2010 deadline for fully removing all discriminatory elements from its legislation and seriously address all discriminatory practices hindering the equal participation of women and religious minorities in education and the labour market.

The Employer members observed that the discussion of the case had provided the Government with an opportunity to provide a mid-term assessment of the progress made in bringing its law and practice into line with the Convention no later than 2010. The Employer members therefore deeply regretted the lack of progress since the discussion of the case in 2006. They expressed deep concern that, due to the present context of the repression of freedom of association in the country, meaningful social dialogue on these issues had not been possible at the national level. They therefore urged the Government to take action on all the outstanding issues with a view to fulfilling its promises made in 2006 that it would bring the relevant law and practice into line with the Convention by 2010. They called on the Government to provide complete and detailed information to the Committee of Experts at its session in 2008 in reply to all the pending issues raised by the Conference Committee and the Committee of Experts. If such progress were not achieved, the Employer members would support the inclusion of a reference to this case in a special paragraph of the Committee's report when the case was next discussed.

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A Government representative stated that the population explosion of the early 1980s affected unemployment of both sexes. According to the latest figures released by Iran's Centre for Statistics, women's participation levels in universities stood at 65 per cent of university students, and women's unemployment rate was expected to decrease from 21.3 per cent in the year 2004 to 9.3 per cent by the end of 2009. The participation rate of women in employment in the meantime would increase from 12.94 per cent to 16.20 per cent. The Government hoped to fulfil its plan to curb women's unemployment through awareness raising and entrepreneurship courses for women. The latest figures on the economically active population in 2005 in different sectors of the economy showed 27.4 per cent of economically active women were employed in the industrial sector as compared to 29.8 per cent for men. In the services sector the rates stood at 33.3 per cent versus 45.2 per cent, respectively. Article 6 of the Women Employment Policies adopted in 1992 paved the way for appointing qualified and educated women to senior managerial and decision-making positions so as to redress previous imbalances at higher administrative levels. The prevailing imbalance in vertical and horizontal occupational opportunities and inequalities with respect to promotion and decision-making and management positions was being gradually redressed. The speaker stated that his country looked forward to ILO technical assistance on Women's entrepreneurship workshops to be held in July 2006 in Shiraz and Tehran that aimed at improving vocational training and employment of women in non-traditional skills and promoting women's entrepreneurship. In order to break away from traditional skills, many young women were presently attending vocational and technical courses. Furthermore, over the last seven years, the Police Department had been recruiting more than ten thousand women officers and office staff.

Regarding the Committee of Experts' comment on the High-level Tripartite National Women's Conference, he affirmed that his Government would submit the draft of the National Strategy for Promoting Women's Empowerment and Equality together with other reports regarding the social situation of women. In respect of eliminating discrimination against women in the labour market and in promoting equality of opportunity, the speaker noted that the Fourth Five-year Development Plan required the Government to further strengthen the role of women in society and promote their participation in the economy. The plan further called for strengthening women's skills in line with the needs of the labour market and technological development, identification and promotion of investment in job-generating sectors, and improving the quality of life for women and raising awareness on women's rights and gender issues.

As regarded the Committee of Experts' comments on the progress made in vocational training, education and non-traditional skills for women and young girls, the speaker pointed out that in 2005, around 160,000 women attended a variety of different technical courses. Women also comprised 73 per cent of the trainees in the non-government technical and vocational training centres in the same year. Women now comprised 34.01 per cent of the total government staff.

Turning to the question of section 1117 of the Civil Code under which a husband could bring a court action against his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to his wife's prestige, the Government representative stated that the Government would make every effort to amend the provision and would advise the Committee of any development in this respect in its next report. With respect to article 2 of the Bill proposed by the Judiciary to Parliament under which a female judge could issue verdicts provided that she was married and had more than six years of experience, the speaker informed the Committee that the existing legislation imposed the same requirements for the appointment of male judges as well.

Regarding the issue of compulsory dress code, he indicated that the Disciplinary Rules for University and Higher Education Institutes did not treat non-observance of dress code as a political and moral offence, and did not impose sanctions such as dismissal or permanent exclusion from universities as mentioned in the Committee of Experts' report. Moreover, observance of dress code was a practice on which there was consensus in the population.

With respect to the consultative revision process to ensure protection in law against discrimination in employment and occupation on the grounds of religion, he pointed to the Fourth Five-year Development Plan whose article 120 called for the formation of a council for policy dealing with recognized religious minorities affairs. He also mentioned the newly established High Commission on Human Rights which addressed among other things the violation of the rights of religious minorities. With regard to religious diversity in his country, the speaker stressed that persons of different religions held jobs in the government. Details on the number of persons from religious minorities receiving financial incentive through the employment-generation projects could not be supplied, as people were not asked to state their religion to benefit from these programmes.

In response to the concern expressed by the Committee of Experts on the employment of Baha'i, he pointed to the Fourth Five-year Development Plan which emphasized the promotion of equal civil rights. He further maintained that there were no restrictions for Baha'i in higher education or access to the labour market. Regarding the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, he recalled that the Constitution and the State Employment Act prohibited discrimination. There was presently a rainbow of ethnic minorities in the government and military. The Islamic Commission on Human Rights dealt with individual labour-related cases, including employment discrimination.

In conclusion, the speaker reiterated his Government's firm determination to continue dialogue and cooperation with the ILO in order to devise a common approach to dealing with the Committee of Experts' concern regarding employment discrimination.

The Employer members thanked the Government representative for the information he had provided but expressed their disappointment that this had not been supplied earlier to the Committee of Experts. They recalled that the protection afforded by Convention No. 111 applied not only to persons who had employment but expressly extended to possibilities of gaining employment and training. With regard to discrimination on the grounds of gender, the Employer members noted that the level of women's participation in the labour market remained low, and that the unemployment rate for women was twice as high as that for men, and rising. The low participation rate (2.5 per cent) of women in high-ranking positions was not acceptable. They noted that this case had been on the Committee's list previously, and it seemed that the Government's reports in the past had been more detailed and indicative of efforts to reduce discrimination. This was not the case of the report submitted this year. Little was known about what had happened in recent years in this case or if any of the positive measures mentioned in previous reports had come into effect. What was known was that the dress code for women and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on administrative infringements for violations of the code had in practice a negative impact on women's employment. The Employer members stressed that they were not against women dressing in a traditional manner, but opposed the fact that this was compulsory for women who wanted to work in the public sector. They also noted that section 1117 of the Civil Code was still in force, and that the Government had indicated it would change this rule. Furthermore, they expressed their opposition to Decree No. 55080 of 1979 on female judges, noting that it reduced women judges from a judicial to an administrative status and restricted them to hearing "female" cases. The Employer members noted that religious discrimination was a risk where one religion was established as the state religion. They noted with interest that the Government intended to revise the law regarding religious minorities' rights, and hoped that it would initiate a consultative revision process to ensure protection from religious discrimination. The ILO should be kept informed and the Government should provide information on the mandate and functions of the National Committee on the Protection of the Rights of Religious Minorities. They also observed that the situation of the Baha'i had not improved. They asked the Government to provide statistics on their situation. In conclusion, the Employers asked the Government to abolish laws that conflicted with Convention No. 111 and to develop legislation concerning non-discrimination.

The Worker members thanked the Government representative for his statement. However, they warned that those who were not familiar with the case and with the comments of the Committee of Experts over the years, and who had only read this year's report and listened to the statement by the Government representative, might have gained the mistaken impression that this very serious case was only confined to certain shortcomings, particularly with regard to the education, vocational training and employment of women, as well as a few difficulties relating to religious minorities, some of which were not recognized, and ethnic minorities. Without wishing to go too far into the past, the Worker members believed that it was however necessary to refer to certain events, with particular reference to a massacre that had occurred over 20 years ago when some 200 Baha'i had been executed, when there had been reports of terrible cases of discrimination, persecution and harassment. Although, as indicated by the Government representative, many of the Baha'i might well had been jewellers, goldsmiths and dairy producers at that time as they were today, in that period they had all been labelled as American spies. While the Baha'i were a non-recognized religious minority, even recognized minorities, such as the Jews, had also suffered terribly some years ago, as attested by United Nations bodies. The Worker members, recalling that the Government had for many years adopted a hostile and threatening tone when discussing this case, expressed gratitude at its more open attitude in more recent years. Nevertheless, upon closer examination, and despite the by and large positive picture painted by the Government representative, the positive aspects to which he had referred were not at all in balance with the issues raised by the Committee of Experts. On the positive side, the Government representative had described in detail a series of programmes, projects, courses and meetings. Appreciation should therefore be expressed of what had been done, particularly in relation to the education, vocational training and employment of women. While these measures were all of great importance in order to promote a more favourable climate, they tended to obscure the fact that very little had been done in other and more crucial areas, including the amendment of the legislation, as called for by the Committee of Experts. Moreover, many serious problems also remained in practice. Although there were many more women who were educated than in the past, jobs were not always available for them. Clearly, it was a difficult situation when there was a large reservoir of well-educated women who could not find work.

Certain long-standing issues still needed to be addressed. Under section 1117 of the Civil Code, a husband could still bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a specific profession or job. Even though the Protection of the Family Act of 1975 gave similar rights to women in this respect with regard to their husbands, this meant that there was a discrepancy between these provisions that was confusing but which would be relatively easy to rectify. The Government had stated on many occasions that it wanted to achieve progress. The question therefore arose as to why issues like this remained unsolved. The same applied in relation to the dress code. A reference had been made to draft legislation being submitted to Parliament, but there had been no further news. The situation was the same with the Bill proposed to Parliament by the judiciary concerning female judges. The fact that no action had been taken on a whole series of issues raised by the Committee of Experts for many years undermined the credibility of the Government's claims and promises. The Worker members therefore called upon the Government to take the ILO supervisory bodies seriously and finally to take firm action. Moreover, it should provide the statistics requested by the Committee of Experts so that the situation could be assessed objectively. With regard to the rights of the non-recognized religious minorities, and particularly the Baha'i, and ethnic minorities, although on the basis of the statement by the Government representative and the reports of the Committee of Experts nothing appeared to have changed to the negative, reports from other sources suggested that their situation might well be deteriorating. Citing articles in the international press, the Worker members noted reports that Government newspapers had published articles denouncing persons of the Baha'i faith and accusing them of barbarous practices, mass arrests and detentions, etc. Such reports were in stark contrast to the description of the general attitude in the Islamic Republic of Iran vis-à-vis the Baha'i given by the Government representative and raised the question as to what the situation really was in practice. The Worker members further noted comments by the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights expressing concern about the treatment of minorities in the country. Explanations were therefore needed to account for the discrepancies between these various statements. There was a real danger that the existence of stereotyped attitudes for which in many cases the Government itself was fully responsible, was preventing progress in improving law and practice in the country. The Government should spend intensive attention and take determined action here. Moreover, the Worker members were gaining the general impression that, while the Government had shown a certain willingness to take action in the past, as illustrated by many activities including various draft legislative texts that had been formulated, it had now run out off steam and no further progress was being made. They therefore called on the Government to make a renewed effort to fulfil the promises that had been made in the past. As the issues had been discussed for many years, it was necessary to achieve progress rapidly. They therefore proposed that the Government should make a commitment to fulfilling the recommendations of the Committee of Experts by 2010. Its next report to the Committee of Experts could therefore take the form of an interim report on the progress achieved towards this end.

The Government member of Cuba stated that she appreciated the efforts made by the Government and its positive initiatives to improve women's access to education, training and employment, in particular the incorporation of the National Strategy for Promoting Women's Employment, Empowerment and Equality into the Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan, which the Committee of Experts had noted with satisfaction in paragraph 2 of its observation. The observation of the Committee of Experts also noted a 65 per cent participation rate for women in the field of education and vocational training in universities, a rate that was increasing rapidly, which showed that the measures adopted were producing positive results. With the willingness expressed by the Government to accept ILO technical assistance, further progress would gradually be achieved in other areas where action had been taken, including in relation to ethnic and religious minorities and in the legislative reforms the Government had considered submitting to Parliament. The Government had also provided considerable data which showed that the participation rate of women in the various government bodies had increased. The speaker added that, where ancestral rules and traditions played an important role in social organization, laws and administrative measures did not achieve immediate results unless they were combined with the dissemination of positive experiences and public awareness, as a more effective way of achieving the objectives. She therefore thanked the Government representative once again for the efforts to promote social equality and said that, in her view, the first criterion in the Conference Committee's conclusions should be to express support for the measures taken to gradually achieve the desired results.

The Worker member of Pakistan stated that the Islamic Republic of Iran was an important country in Asia and the next brotherly nation of Pakistan. It had ratified the fundamental ILO Convention No. 111 and the Committee of Experts had made concrete recommendations to eliminate discrimination in practice with respect to gender and ethnic minorities. It had asked the Government to provide further information on the measures taken to improve the situation in law and practice. He supported the call made by the Worker members to the Government to remedy the situation, as urged by the Committee of Experts in paragraphs 1 to 12 of its observation. He had also listened with interest to the Government representative who had reported some positive developments such as the holding of a national conference in collaboration with the ILO, which had adopted a National Strategy for Promoting Women's Employment, Empowerment and Equality into the Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan. Paragraphs 2, 4 and 12 of the Committee of Experts' observation had also noted the efforts made in relation to the access of women to employment and vocational training and the positive action the Government had taken in the past to promote equality in employment and occupation. However, the Committee of Experts had also requested that the Government made further efforts to implement the recommendations that had been made to and to provide up-to-date information on the concrete results achieved, as requested in paragraphs 2 to 8 of the observation. With respect to ethnic minorities, the Government was urged to bring the law and practice into conformity with the Convention and to implement the recommendations made by the Committee of Experts. He urged the Government to implement the measures that it presented to this Committee in conformity with the Convention, and in the wider interest of progress and the well-being of the Iranian society.

The Government member of Pakistan indicated that he had taken careful note of the statement made by the Government representative on the measures taken to address the points raised in the Committee of Experts' observation. He had also listened carefully to the remarks of the two social partners. He expressed the view that, in drawing up its conclusions, the Conference Committee could take into consideration the significant achievements of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran in ensuring adequate gender representation in many spheres of life. Moreover, the Government had submitted many draft laws, which were before Parliament. He added that women were not only actively engaged in the economic and social fields, but were also well represented in the Iranian Parliament and in the different branches of the Government. The presence of a significant number of Iranian women delegates to the present session of the International Labour Conference was a further indication of the desire to ensure proper gender representation. He reiterated his belief that the Government was making earnest efforts to overcome the problems raised in the observation of the Committee of Experts, through a consultative process which involved all the social partners. All of these elements of progress should be taken into account by the Committee.

The Government member of Bangladesh stated that the local circumstances and the reality in the Islamic Republic of Iran should be taken fully into consideration when discussing the case. He noted the commendable success made by the Government in improving the role of women in employment and occupation. Moreover, the Government had provided disaggregated statistics on women's education, employment, training and participation in information and communication technology, in line with the observation of the Committee of Experts. Taking into consideration the dialogue between the Government and the ILO, impressive progress had been made. He was therefore of the view that the Conference Committee should express its appreciation of these developments, and reiterated that, in light of the above information, the Islamic Republic of Iran should be given adequate time to achieve full compliance with the Convention.

The Government representative thanked the various speakers, including those Government members who had recognized the earnest efforts that were being made by his Government to promote the implementation of international labour standards. He called on the Committee to focus on the future, setting aside the past, and to engage in an open and constructive dialogue focusing on commonalities rather than what could divide the members. He expressed the view that the issue on the Baha'i faith was not a matter of discrimination, but of distinction. Furthermore, he regarded the unexpected discussion of the case as an opportunity to provide information on what was being achieved in his country. The Government was ready to provide the additional information requested by the Committee of Experts, including the measures taken or envisaged in this regard, along with information on the issues concerning women. Certain members of the Committee had given the impression in their statements that the situation was problematic for all religious and ethnic minorities, but he expressed the view that issues relating to religious and ethnic minorities had not been, were not and would not be a problem in his country. Concerning section 1117 of the Civil Code, which permitted a husband to bring a case to court if he objected to his wife taking a job contrary to the interest of the family or to his wife's prestige, he indicated that in practice it was extremely seldom that complaints were filed with the courts on the issue. He also stated that the judiciary would be very strict on this matter and indicated the Government's readiness to provide information on cases in which courts had rejected men's appeals in this regard. With regard to women's employment, he stated that it was indeed a matter of great concern, with particular reference to the higher unemployment rate amongst women than men. He added that the employment situation was aggravated by the fact that there were currently 2,700,000 migrant workers in the country and that the population was doubling every 20 years. Although everything possible was being done, this was a situation that would give rise to difficulties for any country. To address this issue, the Government was assisting in the voluntary expatriation of such migrant workers in collaboration with concerned agencies, such as the UNHCR. This expatriation was carried out in a friendly and peaceful manner and in accordance with humanitarian principles. In relation to the situation of women, he indicated that there were many women in universities. The percentage of women in different faculties of universities was as follows: 56 per cent in humanities; 70 per cent in sciences; 33.2 per cent in agriculture; 71.5 per cent in medical sciences; and 69 per cent in the arts. His country was therefore doing its best to improve the situation of women, particularly by improving their vocational skills. These facts were a token of the solidarity among the peoples in the country. The Islamic Republic of Iran was like a Persian carpet, comprising different elements woven together with a common thread. He concluded by expressing his Government's firm determination to make every effort to bring its legislation into conformity with ILO Conventions, fully in line with the demand of the Worker members that this should be done before the year 2010.

The Employer members thanked the Government representative for the additional information provided and recalled that the case had been discussed by the Committee for more than 20 years. While the tone of the statements by the Government representative was positive, the actual improvements were very slow. The Committee of Experts had requested the Government to supply more specific information, but such information had not been provided and no indication had been given as to when it would be communicated. They therefore urged the Government to supply specific information, including the necessary statistics as soon as possible. They recalled that the employment rate of women was still very low and their unemployment rate was twice as high as that of men. The Government did not recognize that all women might not wish to follow a dress code that was laid down by the law. Moreover, even if that legal provision was not applied, the very fact that it existed had a huge symbolic effect. They therefore urged the Government to resolve these substantive issues in law and practice. They added that they hoped to see changes immediately, because discrimination had been ongoing for many years and there could no longer be any excuses.

The Worker members observed that, while metaphors were very useful, they could hide meaning as well, just as beautifully woven cloth could be used to conceal the facts and a rock could be a credible symbol of immobility. The principal aspect of the present case was that it was necessary to establish priorities for cooperation so that real progress could be made as soon as possible. In that respect, the reply by the Government representative had contained an interesting comment on a matter raised by the Committee of Experts. The Government representative had explained that, with regard to section 1117 of the Civil Code, which allowed a husband to take court action to prevent his wife from taking up a profession or job, there were very few cases of its implementation in practice. This statement was deceptive, as the very existence of such a provision was a violation of the Convention. The same applied to what had been said about the dress code. Although the Government representative had indicated that there were no sanctions for violations of the dress code, the mere fact that such a provision was contained in the legislation was in contravention of the Convention. Such provisions should therefore be removed from the legislation, so that the relevant legal provisions were consistent, clear and in conformity with the Convention. In view of the commitment expressed by the Government representative to spare no effort to bring the relevant laws into line with the Convention, the Worker members called on the Government to ensure that the next report to be submitted to the Committee of Experts, which could be examined by the Conference Committee in 2008, took the form of an interim report on the progress that had been made in parliament as regarded concrete changes in law and practice. Furthermore, with regard to the matters raised by the Committee of Experts, on which the Government representative had not provided replies, they called on the Government to respond in writing to the Committee of Experts. They hoped that the conclusions of the Conference Committee would recognize the positive steps taken by the Government to create the appropriate conditions to address the problems under discussion, particularly those related to gender issues. While recognizing and welcoming such action, the conclusions should stress the important measures that still needed to be taken to bring the law and practice in the country fully into line with the Convention in relation to all the aspects raised by the Committee of Experts. The conclusions should also note the serious problems affecting certain minorities, with particular reference to the non-recognized religious minorities, such as the Baha'i. The conclusions should also urge the Government to take action to address urgently the problem of stereotyped attitudes, which were at the root of many of the problems under discussion.

The Committee noted the statement of the Government representative and the ensuing discussion. The Committee noted the information and statistics provided by the Government, particularly concerning the participation of women in employment, higher education and vocational training, and its expression of commitment to eliminate discrimination against women. The Committee recognized the measures that had been taken to create conditions to increase women's participation in the labour market. However, the Committee expressed serious concern that a number of issues that it had been raising for many years remained unresolved.

The Committee regretted to note that no progress had been made in amending or repealing legislation that was contrary to the Convention. It urged the Government to ensure that the laws and regulations restricting women's employment, including regarding the role of female judges, the obligatory dress code, the right of a husband to object to his wife taking up a profession or job, and the application of social security legislation regarding women, would be brought into conformity with the Convention without delay. The Committee also expressed continued concern regarding discrimination against members of recognized and unrecognized religious minorities and ethnic minorities. The Committee noted that discrimination against Baha'i remained particularly serious. The Committee stressed the need for the Government to take decisive action to combat stereotypical attitudes underlying discriminatory practices.

The Committee recalled the need to demonstrate that statements of commitment were translated into concrete action and results. The Committee urged the Government to take the necessary measures to bring its law and practice fully into conformity with the Convention. It also requested the Government to provide detailed information, including statistics disaggregated by sex, in its next report to the Committee of Experts on concrete steps taken and results achieved. The Committee noted the Government's commitment to constructive dialogue and to intensifying its cooperation with the ILO. It welcomed the firm commitment given by the Government to take all appropriate measures, and in particular to bring all its relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by no later than 2010. The Committee requested the Government to provide a mid-term assessment of these steps in its next report. The Committee further requested that resulting technical assistance address all the pending issues concerning the application of the Convention.

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A Government representative stated that her country accorded high priority to the protection and promotion of fundamental rights and had taken concrete efforts to ensure that the Iranian people enjoyed all fundamental rights. The Islamic Republic of Iran was facing various challenges in its movement towards development and the cornerstones of the reform policies were upholding, among other matters, the promotion and protection of non-discrimination. The speaker pointed out that her Government was not claiming that there was no discrimination in the Islamic Republic of Iran as no country had a perfect record on this issue, but that it was important to recognize that the overall movement was highly positive and encouraging. Nevertheless, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran continued to be fully committed to the protection and promotion of human rights and was determined to pursue the necessary policies to this end. Recalling her Government's preparedness to cooperate closely with the ILO to eliminate and combat discrimination in employment and occupation, the speaker listed a number of measures taken in the Islamic Republic of Iran. These included the expansion of the "human rights advocates network" in 2002 ; the holding of training courses for human rights advocates on the Islamic Republic of Iran's commitment in terms of human rights and ILO Conventions; meetings by high-ranking officials aimed at developing expert approaches and solutions to combat discrimination against unrecognized religious minorities; and two conferences held in 2002 within the framework of the agreement between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Denmark, concluded in 2001, on "Women's Rights" and "Freedom of Expression and Belief" (Tehran) and on "the Rights of the Child" and "Rights of Minorities" (Copenhagen). Furthermore, the Women's Friendship Society jointly established by Belgium and Iran promoted ties between the women of the two countries aimed at capacity building and empowerment of women. In addition, an increasing number of women had been appointed to higher judicial ranks and the Islamic Republic of Iran's female head of court had started her work at the bench in the Isfahan Province. The speaker further provided information on the number of women holding licences to publish magazines, women chief editors, and women employed in the Islamic Republic News Agency and female managers in the Iranian Defence Ministry, and pointed to the increase in the number of women's non-governmental organizations and the inauguration of a Women's Technical and Professional Institute in May 2002.

With respect to the legal measures taken and modifications in the legislation requested by the Committee of Experts, the speaker mentioned that the judiciary had established the High Council of Judicial Development which had studied the necessity of amending certain articles of the Civil Code. An ad-hoc Commission of the Council was working in close cooperation with the Parliament's Research Centre to remove shortcomings in legislation with regard to women. The reviews and amendments of laws and regulations covering all aspects of civil life was currently taking place and three projects in three different organizations to amend the legislation on women's civil rights were ongoing.

With respect to certain provisions of the Civil Code, the speaker noted that the Women's Social and Cultural Council had designed a comprehensive project for amending the Civil Code, the proposals of which would be presented to Parliament. The Women's Participation Centre had submitted a proposed amendment to section 1117 of the Civil Code and the Committee of Experts would be notified of any changes on this subject in due course. The attention of the Conference Committee was also drawn to the modifications made to certain other sections of the Civil Code, notably, section 1107 (alimony allocations for women), section 1110 (payment of alimony to widows), section 1130 (grounds of divorce) and section 1133 (women's rights to divorce).

Regarding women's employment, the speaker provided some examples of the Government's efforts, such as certain laws passed to speed up privatization and attract foreign capital and efforts to prohibit government monopolies in strategic areas and to lower interest rates by banks, aimed at encouraging development and improving the employment situation in general, including women's employment. The Government representative further recalled that the Government had invited a technical team from the Office to assess the needs of technical assistance in the area of the promotion of women's employment. This was a significant step towards using international expertise and technical assistance to build up national capacity. In March 2002, the ILO team had met with the relevant officials in Iranian universities and with representatives of the Government and of non-governmental organizations. As the first phase of the ILO's Project on Women's Empowerment, a National Tripartite Conference on Women's Empowerment was due to be held in October 2003. It was hoped that the holding of such a gathering would contribute to further national capacity building in this area. The Government also hoped that it would be able to inform the Committee of Experts, in its next report, on positive and tangible results of the ILO project.

With respect to the promotion of equal access of religious minorities to work, the speaker highlighted several aspects in law and practice of an improved situation of these minorities in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In implementing the principles contained in articles 20 and 28 of the Iranian Constitution regarding equal legal protection of all Iranian citizens, the Government had declared in a circular the observance of the social and civil rights of all Iranian citizens as the country's official policy. This had been reiterated in Government Circular No. 11-4462 of February 1999 under which all ministries, organizations and governmental institutions were required to make effective efforts to ensure full observation of the rights of recognized religious minorities in the area of recruitment and employment. Government bodies were equally required to include and specify the issue in job vacancy advertisements, so that in the case of a successful recruitment test, the Government could benefit from the expertise of minorities by the Government. Further, with respect to religious minorities, the National Recruitment Board had issued an official Circular No. 2/47474 of November 2002 to the Interior Ministry, to be communicated to the provinces, which emphasized the need of further observance of the rights of recognized religious minorities, particularly with regard to employment and recruitment. Regarding the employment of religious minorities in the education sector, the speaker noted that 200 posts of the recruitment quota of the 3rd Five-Year Development Plan had been allocated to the recruitment of religious minorities in the Education Ministry for the academic year of 2003-04. Religious minorities had also been allocated financial facilities through presenting "job-creation investment projects" to executive bodies countrywide. In the housing sector, executive plans and projects were focused on low-income minorities, and the construction of rental housing units and of rural housing for both Muslim and religious minorities had been planned and implemented.

The Government representative further indicated that the efforts taken to promote the establishment of trade and expert associations in order to promote trade and business owners and specialized occupations had resulted in the setting up of more than 200 associations. A list of associations and organizations of religious minorities had been submitted to the Committee of Experts. She further stated that for 2001, 520 Christian women, 385 Zoroastrian women and 177 Jewish women had been recruited and employed in governmental bodies. The number of Christians employed in the public sector had risen to 520 women and 593 men, compared to only 363 women and 470 men in 1979. For the same period, the number of Zoroastrians employed in the public sector rose to 385 women and 276 men from 185 women and 113 men; the number of Jews employed rose from 177 women and 169 men compared to 86 women and 132 men.

Finally, the speaker once again, drew the attention of the Committee to her Government's readiness for cooperation based on mutual understanding with the ILO. It was notable that during recent years, cooperation and ties between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the ILO had improved considerably. Regular consultations and ILO missions to Iran had taken place at various levels on reviewing the Labour Code, improving social dialogue, upgrading freedom of association, expanding cooperation with the ILO Training Centre in Turin, developing a Project on Women's Empowerment and Gender Equality in the Islamic Republic of Iran, implementing the ILO/UNDP Project on Poverty Eradication, and on many other issues. Invitations had also been extended to the ILO, ICFTU and WCL. The speaker concluded by expressing the hope that the Committee would appreciate and apply a stronger and more constructive role in this process. If Convention No. 111 were indeed to be fully implemented due consideration needed to be given to promotional activities and national capacity building. In this respect the Islamic Republic of Iran wished to continue its cooperation with the ILO mechanisms and invited the Organization to make its technical and advisory services available to the Islamic Republic of Iran to review its laws and regulations in terms of their compliance with the provisions of Convention No. 111.

The Employer members thanked the Government representative for the detailed information provided to the Committee. They recalled that the Committee had some 20 years of experience with the issues of this case and noted that considering the Committee of Experts' report, this was overall a case of progress. Progress had been very slow, but improvements were obvious, as numerous institutional and other measures to eliminate discrimination had shown. The Employer members noted positively that even though discrimination on the basis of sex had a long tradition in the Islamic Republic of Iran, progress had been achieved in the participation of girls and women in the educational system from primary school up to university. A further translation into a comparable participation of women in employment was necessary. The Government was requested to provide further statistics in this regard. The Employer members further noted that female candidates for parliamentary elections had increased and that the number of women employed in male-dominated professions had risen as well. Despite the fact that there were now a number of female judges, there was no equality yet in the judiciary, as the issuing of verdicts appeared still to be the domain of male judges. The Employers members requested the Government representative to comment on whether female judges would be on an equal footing with men in this profession in this respect. The Employer members further noted the improvement of opportunities for women to obtain work in technical professions.

Referring to the statement of the Government representative to the effect that not all problems had been resolved, the speaker referred to the obligatory dress code, wondering why no progress was possible on this issue. The possible sanctions for violations of a dress code certainly had a negative impact on the position of women in the labour market, particularly in the public service. The Government was asked to provide the requested information to the Committee of Experts on this issue. The Employer members further stressed the need for progress with regard to section 1117 of the Civil Code, noting the involvement of the Centre for Women's Participation in efforts to address this question. They hoped that further progress would be possible on the outstanding issues in the near future.

In addition, the Employer members noted that the overall employment situation of women belonging to recognized religious minorities was better than average, but wondered how the situation was in the public service. They recalled that the members of the Baha'i faith had been subjected to discrimination for a long time and that the Labour Code would not prohibit religious discrimination. Despite the fact that the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran had been able to note some signs of hope and the opening of one university to the Baha'is, this community remained in practice the object of discrimination in employment and education. The Islamic Human Rights Commission considered that legislative changes were also necessary. Referring to the situation of ethnic minorities, the Employer members asked the Government to provide the information requested by the Experts. The speaker also highlighted that the recent collective contract covering workers in workplaces with less then five employees did not contain a non-discrimination clause. Finally, the Employer members took note of the impressive work programme adopted for 2002-03 under the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government and the ILO, including with regard to the formulation of policies for creating greater access of women to the labour market. In this context, the Employer members stated that progress in the Islamic Republic of Iran would ultimately depend on political developments, and experience had shown that substantial setbacks might occur in the field of civil rights. They reminded those who looked backwards that States which did not live up to their international obligations in the field of human rights would isolate themselves, damage their economies and development and finally their own people. The Employer members supported those who wanted to eradicate discrimination, which had existed for decades.

The Worker members stressed that inclusion on the list of individual cases was not a negative sanction, but discussions in the Conference Committee were constructive work that could help to overcome existing problems. Likewise, a footnote in the report of Committee of Experts, which was considered by all as objective, impartial and independent, and even special paragraphs in the Conference Committee's report, should not be perceived as sanctions. This case had a long and bad history, but it had finally resulted in some progress. However, in no way the situation could be simply left in the hands of the Government, as this was a process of checks and balances. The Worker members only trusted information that had been examined and analysed by the Committee of Experts. They had sympathy for the Government and for the ILO missions when they argue that the progressive forces in the country should be strengthened by praising the progress made, rather than playing in the hands of the conservatives who want to roll back the reforms. However, one should note that politics in the Islamic Republic of Iran were made by politicians, as elsewhere, and that they had their own interests. If these interests were not at odds with ILO values, they would promote them; if not, they would stab the values in the back. On a critical note, the Worker members deplored the fact that the Government had exploited that the Islamic Republic of Iran had not been put on the list of individual cases last year at home by giving the public the impression that the ILO now considered that all problems had been solved. That this was not the case was well known by the Government, particularly as the Worker members had asked the Committee of Experts last year to provide another comment to the Conference Committee with a view to discuss it this year.

The Worker members noted that the general tone of the Committee of Experts' report was positive, drawing attention to the functioning of human rights mechanisms, improvements as regard discriminatory practices on the basis of sex and religion, as well as regards contacts and cooperation with the ILO. There was indeed an impressive work programme for the years 2002-03 with very interesting elements and the Worker members were confident that the cooperation efforts would bear fruit. These improvements should however not divert from the shortcomings. According to the Committee of Experts, there were only a small number of remaining problems. These included the well-known points relating to the obligatory dress code, section 1117 of the Civil Code and the restriction on women judges to issue verdicts. In addition to these critical main points, the Committee of Experts asked for further progress and additional information on a number of other issues, including with regard to the situation of recognized and unrecognized minorities. The Government should in particular take a broader approach to combat discrimination against the Baha'is by taking active promotional measures to correct misperception held by the population, which the Government itself had encouraged. The Employer members had also urged the Government to make a serious effort to answer all the Committee of Experts' questions and the ILO was encouraged to do its own fact-finding. The Worker members suggested that a permanent ILO presence in the country should be given serious thought, despite the financial implications.

However, the Worker members raised serious doubts as to whether the issues taken up by the Committee of Experts were in fact the only remaining problems. For instance, according to indications given by Worker representatives from the Islamic Republic of Iran, several discriminatory practices against women existed in the fields of social security, pensions and in employment, both in law and practice, which were so common that the Iranian workers would call them the "unwritten law". The Worker members expressed their disappointment that these alleged shortcomings had not been brought to the attention to the Committee of Experts. The Iranian workers also had reported that the ILO missions had entered into an intensive dialogue with the Government, while paying less attention to the workers and employers. However, the Worker members stated that it was believed that the ILO would not have made such a mistake. Nevertheless, the matter should be clarified. A further issue of importance that the Committee of Experts should discuss in their next report was the practice of gozinesh, as reported by Amnesty International in their document prepared for this International Labour Conference. According to Amnesty International this practice of cooperation for all those seeking employment in the public sector and in parts of the private sector impaired equality of opportunity in employment and occupation on the grounds of political opinion, previous political affiliation or support, or religious affiliation. This practice contravened article 23 of the Islamic Republic of Iran's Constitution. The speaker stated that he would formally submit Amnesty International's document to the Office, with a request that the Committee of Experts take this issue up with the Government.

The Worker members concluded that its was useful to discuss the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran again in the Conference Committee in order give the Government credit for positive developments and to address ongoing violations or possible violations of the Convention. The Worker members hoped that the Government would recognize the constructive spirit in which these observations had been made. It was hoped that the Committee of Experts would be able to confirm in its next report the basic assessment that things were significantly changing.

The Employer member of the Islamic Republic of Iran thanked the Committee of Experts for their report which contained welcome advice. He recalled that the Confederation of Employers of Iran had been formed four years ago, which had led to stronger participation of social partners in decision-making. His organization appreciated the ILO's activities in the Islamic Republic of Iran and he urged the Government to continue to take action that would result in the elimination of all existing divergences between the Convention and the national situation. It was hoped that the increasing technical cooperation from the ILO would facilitate this process and that the Government would be soon able to report further progress. The comment made by the Committee of Experts on the absence of a non-discrimination clause in the collective contract mentioned in paragraph 14 of their observation would be taken into serious consideration and further action would be taken accordingly. In his view, the employers respected Convention No. 111 and there was no religious discrimination on their part. With regard to the position of women in the labour market, the speaker emphasized that women now chose a variety of jobs; they were running factories, small and medium-sized enterprises, and are engaging in research and engineering and other non-traditional occupations. There were female members of his organization, the Chamber of Commerce, and women also worked in several ministries and constituted 70 per cent of managers of non-governmental organizations. Women entrepreneurs should play an important role in job creation.

The Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran noted that this case was an old case with more than two decades of history with ups and downs in its process. He mentioned that there had been some improvements but there were still things to be done to fully comply with Convention No. 111. The speaker referred to the Act which exempts the application of the Labour Code in workplaces and businesses of five or less employees and stated that this law was an open violation of Convention No. 111. Although a collective agreement had been signed and duly confirmed by the Ministry of Labour, this agreement had still not been implemented in some of the provinces and discrimination continued to exist. He recalled that his trade union had lodged a complaint against the Government in relation to the law on support and growth of the carpet industry, which exempted carpet weaving units from labour and social security laws. The speaker wondered why the Committee of Experts had not referred to this law, as this was an open contradiction to Convention No. 111. He also referred to the question of the Baha'is, their percentage in relation to the total population was very nominal and to the fact the Baha'is did not have general public acceptance due to their religious and cultural particularities. He stated that the measures taken by the Government regarding this question were recommendable and no further pressure should be exerted as it would have a negative impact on public opinion. The workers had more important issues than the question of the Baha'is, such as the legislative problems mentioned above.

In addition, the speaker referred to two instances of discrimination on the basis of sex. He indicated that where husband and wife, both being insured workers, retired, the wife was neither entitled to receive child allowance, nor to her husband's pension benefits if the latter died. The speaker requested the review of the relevant provisions of the law as not only men should be considered to be breadwinners. The speaker also referred to the common practice that at the time of employment girls had to agree to not get married and to confirm that they would not get pregnant. This practice was not allowed under law but occurred nonetheless, since many women worked under short-term contracts, which were not renewed if they did not abide to these requirements. Finally, he urged for more efforts to be undertaken so that the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran fully implement Convention No. 111.

The Worker member of Pakistan endorsed some of the concerns expressed by the Worker members and the Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran concerning the issue of social security and effective application of labour laws. He had noted the commitment expressed by the Government representative to abide by the international obligations and to further improve the situation. Referring to the comments made by the Committee of Experts, he recalled a number of points where progress had been made, but concerns remained as expressed in paragraph 9 concerning certain restrictions on women's employment and in paragraph 12 concerning the education and employment of members of unrecognized religions. These points needed rectification. He confirmed that the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Government and the ILO was a positive step, but that the social partners needed to be strengthened in order to play an effective role in the social and economic development of the country. He urged the Government to take steps to improve the current situation and to eliminate any remaining contradictions with the Convention, including matters regarding social security and the abuse of contract labour.

The Government member of India supported the measures taken by the Government and underlined that no country in the world was perfect with regard to the application of this Convention. He expressed his surprise at the large number of issues related to human rights taken up by the Committee of Experts. These should rather be discussed within the United Nations than the ILO, which dealt with labour and employment issues. The speaker also was of the opinion that there were some inconsistencies in the Committee of Experts' observation. One could, for instance not speak of discrimination against minority women if in fact these groups were in a better position than others. The Government member stated that it was unclear how the list of cases was selected, observing that only developing countries had been targeted. Finally, he stressed the need to ensure cultural sensitivity in the conduct of missions.

Another Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran stated that he did not believe that Iran should have been included in the list of individual cases. However, his Government attached great importance to the international mechanisms, including those of the ILO, which helped to improve the situation of workers and employers and of human society as a whole. Noting that the discussion should focus on progress made and not on isolated cases, he pointed to the importance of promotional activities and the contribution provided by ILO technical services. He agreed with the Worker members in reference to the need to eliminate misperceptions in the population about unrecognized minorities, but would like to conclude that social, legal and cultural changes required time and a consensus needed to be built. There was a need for dialogue and interaction with the various institutions of civil society in order to have a common position. The problem was not only in the legislation but also in people's perception of certain groups. He stated that his Government was committed to discussing and focusing on the promotion of the civil rights of all citizens regardless of their religious or ethnic background. The speaker further indicated that it was important that these changes be perceived as advantageous by all citizens. He was heartened by the fact that every Iranian citizen believed in what the country was doing. He added that the ongoing reform was undertaken, not for the ILO, but for the Iranian people and was deeply rooted in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Referring again to the statement of the spokesperson for the Worker members to the effect that the Islamic Republic of Iran was playing games with the ILO mechanisms, he stressed that this had not been and would not be the Government's intention. As regards the comments related to the dress code, it should be noted that there had not been any dismissals of those who had not complied with this dress code. As for the situation of women judges, this was a tradition and Iranian women were actively promoting their rights. In response to the questions raised concerning the practice of gozinesh he agreed that this needed to be discussed with the Committee of Experts. He informed the Committee that a Bill had been adopted in Parliament asking for a review of this institution. He concluded by expressing his Government's interest in continuing the cooperation with the ILO.

The Employer members welcomed the new explanations provided by the Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran and raised again the issues of the restrictions for women judges on the issuing of verdicts and the dress code. They asked the Government to clarify whether a difference in the judicial profession existed as requested by the Committee of Experts in its observation. Referring to the observation on the existing dress code, the Employer members recognized that an exact assessment of the real situation was not possible, but that sanctions could have deterrent effects and existing legislation also had a considerable symbolic effect.

The Worker members welcomed the stated commitment of the Government towards further change. With regard to the Baha'is, they clarified that the relevant laws and practice must be in line with the Convention. The Worker members hoped that the Government would provide replies to all the open issues to the Committee of Experts and that they would be able to find them in the Committee of Experts' next report.

The Committee noted the statements made by the Government representatives and the discussion which followed. It recalled that this case had been discussed in the Committee for more than 20 years, most recently in June 2001, when the Committee noted with interest the developing dialogue between the Government and the ILO. The Committee had requested that this dialogue should include a new mission by the Office to monitor the application of the Convention, joint efforts to implement it in practice and assistance to make progress in the adoption of the relevant legislation. In this regard, the Committee noted that the Office carried out such a mission in March 2002, and that the report of the mission was reflected in the Committee of Experts' observation. The Committee took note of the positive but very slow progress, including institutional measures against discrimination.

The Committee welcomed the continuing positive trend in the level of women's participation in education and training, and the measures taken to promote women's participation in the labour market, as well as the growing cooperation with the ILO in this regard. It encouraged the Government to continue its efforts to promote gender equality in the labour market and hoped that the Government would soon be in a position to report progress in improving the participation rate of women in economic activities, including among women university graduates.

The Committee noted certain legislative changes removing restrictions on women and hoped that the amendment to section 1117 of the Civil Code would be adopted in the near future. Noting that a review of national legislation was under way, the Committee strongly urged the Government to address, as a matter of priority, the important issues of the obligatory dress code for women, which could have a negative effect on the employment of non-Muslim women, and the restriction on women judges issuing verdicts, to which reference had been made over many years, and to bring them into compliance with the Convention. It also requested the Government to supply information on the application of social security laws to women in practice.

The Committee also noted the efforts made to promote the application of the Convention with regard to religious and ethnic minorities, including the adoption of a national plan of action and the work of the Islamic Human Rights Commission. The Committee looked forward to receiving full information on the implementation of this plan, while noting that discrimination in law and in practice continued against the Baha'is. The Committee requested the Government to provide detailed information to the Committee of Experts on the measures taken to address these important issues, including on the points raised by the Worker members of the Committee, and statistical data on the participation in private and public sector employment of women and men, and of members of minority groups in general, including ethnic minorities and non-recognized religious minorities. It hopes that the Government would give consideration to launching of an awareness campaign for these minorities. The Committee expressed the firm hope that it would be able to note progress with regard to the remaining restrictions imposed on women in the very near future. It encouraged the Government to continue to request the support and technical assistance of the ILO to resolve these substantial issues preventing the full application of the Convention in law and practice.

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A Government representative, while recalling that the case had been discussed by this Committee on several occasions in recent years, emphasized the positive developments which had occurred in his country in the field of equality and deeply regretted that the Committee had decided to examine the case once again. The continued examination of the case by the Committee was disheartening and made those involved wonder what they had to do to prove their determination to fulfil their country's commitments to the ILO and comply with the Convention. The re-examination of the case was particularly surprising at a time when the re-election of President Khatami should instead be giving rise to congratulations on the progress that was being made towards democracy. Moreover, the deep commitment of the Iranian Government to eradicating discrimination had been shown by the meeting that it had hosted in August the previous year for Asian countries on the subject of combating discrimination and racism. His country had also invited the Secretaries-General of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) and the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) to attend the second tripartite forum with a view to providing them with an opportunity to exchange views with their counterparts and seek any information that they might require on the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran and the developments which had occurred over the past year. These developments included the election of the Secretary-General of the Workers' House to Parliament. He also referred to a report, of which copies were available to the members of the Committee, covering women's activities in all fields. He recalled that his country had only been a democracy for 20 years. It was therefore particularly to be regretted that the question of compliance with the Convention continued to be examined by the Committee, especially since no discrimination was allowed by Iranian legislation. He nevertheless offered to provide anyone who so requested with full information on the situation relating to equality in his country.

Another Government representative welcomed the efforts of the Committee of Experts and the Conference Committee to enhance labour rights and improve conditions of work by monitoring and supervising the implementation of the provisions of international labour standards and providing constructive recommendations. She reiterated the commitment of the Government to the obligations deriving from its membership of the ILO and the ratification of the Convention. She said that her country was committed to the application of the Convention, whose provisions were in line with the principles, values and objectives of her country. Upholding the labour rights was one of the fundamental principles of her Government and its reports on the Convention over the past years provided a clear indication of the intention and attempts made to fulfil its obligations, both at the national level and in accordance with the relevant ILO principles. The Committee of Experts' observations on the implementation of the Convention in the Islamic Republic of Iran had received due consideration and she shared its comments on continuing dialogue and collaboration between the Iranian Government and the Office. She expressed a willingness to further expand fruitful interaction with the ILO. In its report the Committee of Experts noted positively several developments in the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly regarding women and religious minorities, while requesting further and more detailed information. A total of nine of its paragraphs focused on women. She greatly regretted that the real image and true status of Iranian women was not fully known to the world. The Government's efforts to promote the rights of Iranian women, combined with the views of open-minded individuals and officials on women's rights, had greatly elevated the status of Iranian women. The presence of women in the Cabinet, the Islamic Consultative Assembly (Parliament), universities, city councils and other areas of social life were clear examples of the level that had been achieved in the recognition of women's rights. Decision-makers in the Islamic Republic of Iran focused on women's empowerment and their participation in all spheres of life as fundamental aspects of the development of society. The Government had adopted several important measures to promote the status of women and facilitate their full participation in decision-making. In the parliamentary elections in February 2000, of a total 6,089 candidates, 513 were women. The number of women candidates in these elections were substantially higher than in the previous two parliamentary elections. She described a number of the measures taken to promote women's rights, including the incorporation of a gender perspective in macro policies and programmes, for example through the allocation of a special budget for women's affairs in the national annual budget, which had increased by more than 10 per cent in 2000-01 compared with the previous year. A national plan of action for the advancement of women had been formulated, with emphasis on strengthening institutional mechanisms, women's human rights and the mass media. Special attention had been paid to women's affairs in the third Five-Year Development Plan 2001-05, with particular emphasis on social affairs. The action taken also included reviewing and amending the relevant legislation and improving the legal practices, and the development of national machinery for the advancement of women, and particularly the establishment of special commissions in governmental organizations and special commissions on women's affairs and the family in the Parliament. On the issue of the promotion of women's rights, she recalled the acknowledgement in the Committee of Experts' report that some progress had been made in women's participation in various sectors of wage and non-wage employment from 1991 to 1996 and that the improvement in their situation had continued up to the present. There were no restrictions on the areas in which women could study. With a view to increasing the rate of women's participation in the labour market, the Government, in accordance with section 158(B) of the Economic Development Plan on job opportunity development for women, had allocated and spent 200 billion rials and had approved all the necessary regulations in this regard. She added that the number of women's NGOs had risen to 248 in 2001, compared with 139 in 1999. Indeed, there had been a 400 per cent rise in NGOs over the past four years. One of the policy objectives of the Government was to empower women to participate in all political, economic and social fields. It was notable that in the sixth parliamentary election, held in the year 1999, over ten women had been elected, one of whom was the nominee of the Iranian "Labour-House", who had been the first woman to be elected to the Parliament's Presiding Board. The number of women in managerial posts had risen from 908 in 1997 to 2,856 in 1999, a rate of increase of 300 per cent. The rate of women's participation in the labour market had reached 11.7 per cent, compared with 10 per cent two years ago. Great importance had been given in the third Five-Year Development Plan to the development of women's cooperative enterprises. According to the law adopted recently, the Government would finance the total investment for enterprises which were 70-per-cent-owned by women. Moreover, a notable feature of the budget plan under the approved law was the allocation of a special budget for women householders under the Protection of Job Opportunities Fund. She emphasized that the promotional trend in the Islamic Republic of Iran should be taken very seriously, as it would speed up the process of the elimination of discrimination against all Iranian citizens. In 1999, the number of employed women in managerial and supervisory posts had risen to 3,029. In the same year, some 30.3 per cent of state employees had been women of whom 53 per cent were university graduates. The number of literate women in urban and rural regions in the country had risen respectively to 83 per cent and 73 per cent in 2000. Moreover, some 60 per cent of university students accepted through the university entrance exam for the academic year 1999-2000 were women.

She therefore concluded that the presence and struggle of Iranian women during the revolution and their active involvement in all social and political fields, their membership of the Cabinet, Parliament, universities, city councils and other fields of social life were clear examples of the level that had been achieved in the institutional recognition of women's rights over the past 20 years since the establishment of democracy in her country. Although it could be seen that in many countries women were deprived of the full political right of participation in elections, in the Islamic Republic of Iran all women enjoyed the right of free participation in the political field and peacefully cast their votes, as well as standing for election. Women had played a considerable role in the period of political development. Indeed, the beginning of that period had been characterized by massive participation especially by youth and women in the two presidential elections in 1997 and 2001. Great emphasis was placed on the advancement of women in the Five-Year Development Plan with a view to increasing their participation.

With regard to the mechanisms for the promotion of human rights, the Committee of Experts had noted the establishment and functioning of the Islamic Human Rights Commission, which acted independently from the Government and the judiciary. The Committee had also requested the Government to continue supplying general information on the activities of this institution. She indicated that the Islamic Human Rights Commission had been established in 1994 as a national institution at the initiative of a number of independent jurists. Members of Parliament, the judiciary branch and judges, along with the representatives of relevant non-governmental organizations, were members of the Commission. The head of the judiciary was one of the members of the High Council of the Commission. Over the past year, the Commission had organized several seminars and workshops on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In relation to cases of human rights violations in the Islamic Republic of Iran, over the past eight months the Commission's observers had attended the court hearings in a number of cases. Recommendations and proposed measures had been adopted and issued by the Commission based on a close observation of the circumstances of the cases. She specified that the Islamic Human Rights Commission intended to develop a human rights defenders network in the various provinces of the country, with the objectives and functions of: facilitating and stabilizing public participation in various social activities for the furtherance of human rights; the promotion of public awareness in this field and the prevention of violations of human rights; developing individual knowledge and social tolerance in relation to human rights and freedoms; and preparing an organized structure of provincial branches of the Islamic Human Rights Commission throughout the country. In addition, more Iranian NGOs active in political, economic and cultural fields had been established in recent years, some of which now enjoyed consultative status with ECOSOC. Moreover, the number of NGOs dealing with women's issues had increased to 113, around 20 of which were active in the field of poverty eradication for women and the promotion of women's economic independence and self-employment. On the subject of official policy for the protection of the human rights of all citizens, the Interior Ministry had established a special committee to consider and solve the problems of religious minorities, with the participation of high-ranking representatives of the relevant governmental institutions, the leaders of the religious minorities and relevant NGOs. In addition, over the past year, 11 Zoroastrian associations and eight Assyrian associations had received permission to operate. The Government was sparing no effort for the elimination of any formal and de facto discrimination against religious minorities. In line with the determination of the Government to foster tolerance and respect in society for all religious groups, a second annual national seminar had been held in Tehran in 1999, with the participation of religious minorities, on the subject of the Constitution and rights. Its objective had been to promote public knowledge and negotiation on the rights of religious minorities. Articles 22, 28, 29, 30 and 31 of the Constitution provided for equal rights for all Iranian citizens. The rate of unemployment among the religious minorities was lower than the average unemployment rate at national level and their living standards were higher than the national average. The labour market participation rate of religious minorities in relation to their population was also higher than the national average. She hoped to be able to provide the Committee of Experts with new statistics on the status of religious minorities when the information became available.

She emphasized the belief that international monitoring mechanisms were not the sole solution and that human rights needed to be institutionalized, which could not be possible until and unless national institutions were given a chance to take the lead. A constructive approach to the issue would require the close collaboration of the Government with international organizations, and particularly the ILO, through technical cooperation projects. In accordance with section 6 of the Labour Code and sections 43(4), 2(6) and 19, 20 and 28 of the Constitution, forced labour and the exploitation of others were prohibited. Iranians, irrespective of their tribe or ethnic group, enjoyed equal rights, and colour, race and language, inter alia, did not constitute a source of privileges. All individuals, whether men or women, were equally protected under the law and every person had the right to freely choose an occupation. Turning to article 1117 of the Iranian Civil Code, she reiterated that article 18 of the Family Protection Law provided for exactly the same rights for women. Article 1117 of the Civil Code should be considered as being fully in line with article 18 of the Family Protection Law. Indeed, the Family Protection Law, which was more recent, provided for the same rights for both husbands and wives. With the integration of a gender perspective in the third Five-Year Development Plan, employment had been given the top priority for both men and women. To address this issue, a Supreme Council of Employment, with a tripartite structure and headed by the President, had been set up. The representatives of the Government, employers and workers actively participated in its regular meetings and the trend of social dialogue was quite encouraging. She indicated that in the previous month, the second National Tripartite Labour Forum had been held in Tehran with broad participation and close interaction of the social partners. The forum adopted a final resolution, two items of which were related to fundamental international labour standards. The first requested Parliament to accelerate the process of ratification of Convention No. 182, and the decision to ratify the Convention had now been approved by the Council of Ministers and submitted to Parliament for final approval. The secretariat of the forum had also been requested to set up a specialized committee to examine the ratification of Convention No. 87. She recalled that the Committee of Experts had on many occasions confirmed in its report the positive steps taken by the Government. However, she was sure that the Committee would agree that positive positions and developments in societies required prolonged periods of time and that there was no successful way of rushing matters, particularly in relation to social and cultural tolerance, the amendment of provisions of laws and regulations and their application in practice. This process demanded comprehensive expert studies and gradual achievements. She also informed the Committee that a tripartite training workshop on ILO fundamental Conventions had been held earlier in the year with support from the ILO. The seminar had covered Convention No. 111 and other fundamental Conventions. She expressed her appreciation to the ILO for the valuable seminar. Alongside the seminar, several discussions had taken place between the social partners and ILO experts on the promotion of women's employment and non-discrimination issues. She looked forward to the implementation of a technical project in certain regions to enhance equality, with emphasis on the employment status of women heads of households. She recalled the issues raised by the Iranian Worker member of the Committee the previous year and informed the Committee that the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs had opposed the adoption of an Act to exempt from the application of the Labour Code workplaces and businesses with five or fewer employees, as well as making efforts to prevent the implementation of the Act. These efforts included the submission of a new Bill to Parliament and consultation with newly elected deputies to protect women and minorities against discrimination in employment in such workplaces. In this respect, it was noted that, following the recent National Tripartite Labour Forum, an agreement with 32 articles on employment and social protection in workplaces with five or fewer employees, had been concluded by the social partners. The Persian version of the agreement was now available. Over the recent years the Islamic Republic of Iran had on many occasions clearly declared its deep desire to develop and maintain good relations with the ILO. The principal criterion in all instances had been mutual respect and trust, while bearing in mind the cultural, historical and ideological differences which might exist between countries. However, differences should not prevent a good working relationship. In conclusion, she recalled that the eighth Iranian Presidential election had been held in Tehran two days ago, based on a democratic process in which men and women had actively participated, and that President Khatami had been re-elected in a landslide victory with 77.88 per cent of the vote. She was therefore convinced that reform and the further promotion of labour standards in the Islamic Republic of Iran was an irreversible trend. She expressed appreciation to the Committee for its understanding and expressed her willingness to build a partnership based on mutual respect and cooperation.

The Worker members thanked the Government representatives for the long and detailed introduction which they had provided to the case. With reference to the comments of the Government concerning the inclusion of the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran on the list of individual cases, once again, they referred to the criteria used by the Worker members for the selection of cases as mentioned in the report of the Conference Committee for the previous year. These included the content of cases, their relation to basic human rights Conventions, the conclusions adopted by the Conference Committee the previous year, as well as comments made by the Employer and Worker members the previous year. It had only been after close consideration that the Worker members had decided to call for the case to be included on the list once again this year. They also reminded the Government representatives that the Conference Committee was not a tribunal and that its role could well be described as helping member States to overcome difficulties that they might experience in complying with the Conventions that they had ratified. The basis for the discussions of the Conference Committee consisted of the independent, impartial and objective reports made by an eminent group of specialists in labour law. One of the ways in which the Committee of Experts differed from such bodies as the United Nations Commission on Human Rights was that the experts on the latter body were handpicked by governments, whereas the ILO's experts were independent. Finally, they added that the examination of a case by the Conference Committee was not a punishment and that the Committee was always ready to welcome improvements.

Referring to the comments of the Experts on the general human rights situation, the Worker members drew attention to the qualified optimism expressed in many quarters concerning recent developments in the Islamic Republic of Iran, both as regards the human rights situation and the outcome of the recent presidential election, in which President Khatami had won a landslide victory over the conservative camp. However, there were those who called for caution on the grounds that it was unclear where the reformers were heading and how far they wished to or were able to go. The positive indications included the fact that new newspapers had been allowed to be published and that there appeared to be greater freedom of expression. Nevertheless, a large number of newspapers had also been closed down and journalists imprisoned because they had expressed views which had not been approved by the authorities. In the view of the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, there had been tangible progress in some areas, but stagnation and even backsliding in others. Indeed, many commentators had suggested that the people had not voted for the reformists, but against the conservatives. The Worker members recalled that the conservative camp still had a strong hold on the judiciary, the security forces, the most important media and the legislation. The Committee of Experts had described the relevant developments in the country with regard to the observance of fundamental political and civil rights. In so doing, reference had been made to the report of the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR). The Worker members welcomed such cross references and believed that more should also be done to encourage the Commission on Human Rights to refer to the work of the ILO. Against this background, which the Committee of Experts probably had sketched so as to give their comments with regard to the Convention more depth and credibility, the general conclusion was that although progress had been made, there remained a number of shortcomings, and even serious weaknesses in compliance with the Convention. The Committee of Experts, quoting the Special Representative of the UNCHR, had also referred to the prospect of substantial and far-reaching change. However, the Worker members believed that mere prospects for change were not a very solid foundation for examining the situation relating to the application of the Convention. Progress would only be convincing if demonstrated by facts related to the implementation of the Convention in practice. By way of illustration, the Worker members referred to one of the original issues that had been raised concerning the application of the Convention, namely the discrimination against the Baha'is. Only one new development had been reported by the Committee of Experts, namely that it was no longer necessary to provide a declaration of religion in order to register for marriage. Although positive in itself, this measure was not, strictly speaking, relevant under the Convention and did not demonstrate widespread improvement. Indeed, the Worker members believed that the message contained in the report of the Special Representative of the UNCHR was that, even though in general prospects were good, the situation of the Baha'is had not improved significantly in practice. Discrimination continued in the fields of education, employment, travel and cultural activities. A number of Baha'is had been imprisoned for acts which would not be considered to be of a criminal nature in most countries, and two of them were facing the death penalty. The picture became worse when the position of other minorities recognized by the Government was also taken into account, such as the Jews, against whom appalling acts of discrimination had been perpetrated, as well as the Christians and Sunnites.

Several of the points of progress mentioned in the current report of the Committee of Experts, and which were welcomed by the Worker members, had also been covered in the previous year's report. Indeed, a large amount of the information provided by the Committee of Experts was not new. This was unfortunate in view of the request that had been made during the discussion of the case the previous year for more information and in particular facts to document the progress that had been made. Without such evidence, there was a danger that the situation might be slipping backwards. The previous year, the Worker members had welcomed the mission which had visited the country. However, they had warned that the mission would be most effective if it involved careful fact-finding and investigation into cases where real progress had been made in law and practice, as well as registering continuing, and new shortcomings. They had also emphasized that such a mission, important though it might be, was just a tool and that the only thing that counted was results. They recalled that the previous year they had raised a series of questions concerning the situation with regard to the application of the Convention. They referred the Committee back to these same questions, which principally concerned the issues of the precise and balanced monitoring of relevant developments with regard to the points which had been under discussion for many years. With reference to some of these questions, the Worker members had understood that answers were available: the report of the 1999 mission as well as the list of contacts that the mission had had. However, other points raised in their questions were still of relevance. The Worker members emphasized the importance of the fact that the Committee had progressed from a most unpleasant and unproductive relationship with the Government, through a stage of relatively normal exchanges of views and debate, to a stage of dialogue. This dialogue concerned progress, slow progress, and how it could be maintained and its pace increased. It concerned the many difficult questions with regard to continuing violations of the Convention, which they recalled was one of the basic human rights Conventions of the ILO. The Worker members had the impression that the Government was keen to continue this dialogue. They therefore reiterated the hope that the first mission could be repeated. Whatever name was given to it, it was important that it should provide answers to the questions raised the previous year, and that these answers should be more than mere repetitions of the information that was already available. Facts needed to be provided on the implementation of the Convention in both law and practice. The Worker members were convinced that such a mission would support and stimulate whatever real progress was being made in the country and that, by facilitating the work of the Committee of Experts and the Conference Committee, it could make a significant contribution to the full implementation of the Convention.

The Employer members expressed the belief that the complaints made by the Government representative concerning the re-examination of the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran by the Committee were somewhat exaggerated. They pointed out that the Islamic Republic of Iran was not the only country to come before the Committee repeatedly and that too many complaints might encourage the Committee to continue its dialogue in the future. The Employer members recalled that the case had been examined on many occasions by the Committee and that the historical reasons for this were still of relevance. They noted that the report of the Committee of Experts had made use of information from the United Nations Commission on Human Rights and its Special Representative on the Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. They also observed that the Committee of Experts had noted certain improvements with regard to the status of women in the country and in terms of freedom of expression, although there had been retrogressive steps with regard to the freedom of the press and the situation of the Baha'is. The situation with regard to the application of the Convention was therefore contrasted. The Employer members noted that the Committee of Experts had requested further information on the situation in the country with regard to equality of opportunity and treatment. One of the questions raised was the treatment of complaints concerning discrimination, and particularly the role of the Islamic Human Rights Commission in this respect. What was the competence and capacity of the Commission, could it receive complaints and, if so, how did it handle them? Although the Government representative had provided further information, the questions that still needed to be answered related to the action that the Islamic Human Rights Commission could take, in view of its advisory role.

The Employer members recalled that the basic questions arising concerning the application of the Convention related to the existence of discrimination on the basis of both gender and religion. Gender discrimination had existed for many years and affected the opportunities of women to gain employment and access to the various occupations. The interaction between the labour market and social issues meant that when women did not have opportunities on the labour market, their situation in society would not improve. The Committee of Experts had observed some improvement between 1991 and 1996 in such areas as wages, education and access to universities. However, less progress had been achieved in the labour market. Figures had been provided concerning the participation of women in higher level and managerial jobs. In this respect, the Government had explained that there had been a certain deterioration in the situation on the labour market due to a rise in unemployment. Another field in which women's opportunities were limited was in the judiciary, where they could only occupy advisory functions, but not become judges. The Employer members pointed out that the judiciary was not large in numerical terms, but the admission of women would have a considerable symbolic value in the field of equality. The question therefore arose as to why the necessary changes could not be made. They also considered that the obligatory dress code for women, which was accompanied by sanctions, constituted an obstacle to equality. Although the Government had indicated that women were not dismissed from their jobs on this ground, it nevertheless constituted a visible discriminatory measure. In this connection, even though the Committee of Experts had requested the Government to provide a complete copy of the Act on Administrative Infringements, the Government representative had not mentioned the subject. Information was therefore required to clarify whether the Government was ready to make changes in this respect. The Committee of Experts had once again raised the issue of the rights of husbands concerning the performance of work by women, and particularly their right to prevent them from taking certain jobs. Such a measure was clearly to the detriment of women. It was not clear, particularly in view of the indication that legislation on equality had been adopted more recently, why section 1117 of the Civil Code had not been amended or deleted. With reference to the National Plan of Action for Women, the Employer members requested information on whether and to what extent collaboration had been established between the representatives of employers and workers in the implementation and amendment of the Plan. They added that they doubted that the Plan could be successfully implemented without such collaboration.

Turning to the question of discrimination on the basis of religion, which had always been an important issue in the past, the Employer members recalled that there was no difference in the situation with regard to the recognized religious minorities, even though a preference had been noted for Muslims in hiring practices. However, too little information was available on the situation of the Baha'is, who had always suffered from discrimination and a negative opinion among the population as a whole. The situation of the Baha'is had been examined by the Conference Committee in its previous examinations of the case and previous Government representatives had admitted, for example, that the Baha'is were considered to be spies. Although this argument no longer appeared to be used, no other information had been provided on this subject. On previous occasions, the Conference Committee had also raised the issue of the Act to exempt from the application of the Labour Code workplaces and businesses with five or fewer employees. The effect of the Act was that labour legislation was not applicable to such workplaces, which placed women in an unfavourable situation in view of the fact that they were no longer protected by the equality provisions.

The Employer members recalled in this respect that, on all of the questions raised, tripartite discussion was of great importance for the practical implication of measures in the world of work. They therefore asked the Government to provide information on the situation in this respect, and looked forward to the comments of Employer and Worker members. Although the report of the Committee of Experts had reported a slight improvement in the situation in a number of areas, this was not the case in all fields. In this respect, the Government representative and the Worker members had called for the political situation to be taken into account. The Employer members believed that, although the political situation was not in practice easy, it was not the ILO's mandate to discuss this issue. Nevertheless, they admitted that the overall political environment was a decisive factor in the world of work. Finally, the Employer members drew attention to the fact that one-half of the population in the Islamic Republic of Iran was under the age of 18. They called upon the Government to take this fact into account and to be careful not to lose contact with the majority of the population. They warned that young people were now developing new ideas and attitudes and believed that the Government would be well advised in its own interests to take action rapidly and in a consistent manner so that it met the expectations of this important part of the population. They therefore called upon the Government to reply orally and in writing to all the questions raised by the Committee of Experts and the Conference Committee as a necessary premise for a constructive dialogue. While no one was completely denying the existence of problems in the application of the Convention, the Employer members emphasized that dialogue would need to lead to change and that such change should be more rapid in the future.

The Worker member of Greece noted that it would be desirable for the Committee to reflect on its working methods in order to avoid losing time in the beginning of its work on issues that, if not altogether futile, were nevertheless not as serious as the examination of individual cases. He thanked the Government for the information provided and recalled that the Committee was not the enemy of the Iranian Government or people. It was obvious that there had been an improvement in the situation when compared to the times when members of the Baha'i faith were considered spies, or when women lacked any right, or when the Committee was called every name under the sun by the entire Iranian delegation. The Government representative had cited an entire list of facts which were covered in the Committee of Experts' report. A fruitful dialogue could not take place if the Government representatives only repeated the information already contained in the observations of the Committee of Experts and welcomed the slightest progress accomplished. He added that according to the information he had, in the last four years there had been 600,000 prisoners in the Islamic Republic of Iran and 4,000 executions, of which 103 had occurred since January 2001. There were Iranian citizens still living in exile due to their religious and political beliefs. He had heard many figures and would not bring up any others, but he wished to ask a number of very specific questions. Was it true that a girl could marry at the age of nine but that with medical authorization this age could be lowered? That if a man killed his wife in a crime of passion he would not be punished? That as long as girls were virgins they could not marry unless they had the authorization of their father, even if they were 60 years old? That divorce was a right that belonged exclusively to men? That adult women did not have the right to study abroad without the consent of their guardian? That 9-year-old girls were considered, from the point of view of criminal law, to be as responsible as adults and, consequently, could receive the same punishment (stoning, flagellation, etc.)? The speaker noted that the Government representative had asserted that an improvement in the situation of women had occurred and that a number of them had been candidates and elected to government positions. Nevertheless, he expressed the wish to know the exact nature of these posts and the number of women occupying them. He proposed that a direct contacts mission be sent and stated that he would have liked to recommend the introduction of a special paragraph congratulating countries for their accomplishments. However, this was not possible at present, as long as the role of the Islamic Committee on Human Rights was not clearly distinct from the one of the Supervisory Committee on the Application of the Constitution, and especially as long as the rule of law was not established for all citizens.

The Worker member of Romania noted that the Committee had examined on several occasions the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran in previous years with regard to non-respect of Convention No. 111. Despite these discussions and a number of positive conclusions made by the technical advisory mission, violations to the Convention continued to exist in the Islamic Republic of Iran. According to the Committee of Experts' report, discrimination on the basis of sex persisted both in law and in everyday practice, and was an indication of the low rate of participation of women in the labour market. Women's role in the judiciary remained purely advisory and was an example of discrimination based on sex. Another important element that bore consideration was the continuing compulsory dress code which had a negative impact on the access to security of employment in the public sector for women of non-Islamic faith; or even section 1117 of the Civil Code, which had not been repealed and under which a husband could bring a legal action in order to prevent his spouse from taking up a profession or job. Concerning discrimination on the basis of religion, there was no new information on the situation of recognized religious minorities, male or female, regarding their participation in the labour market and their employment levels in the public and private sector. However, formal restrictions on the hiring of members of the Baha'i faith in the public sector still existed. He concluded by drawing attention to the fact that all these points reflected serious violations of the Convention and he suggested that a direct contacts mission with a detailed mandate be sent in order to complete the mandate of the technical advisory mission which took place in 1999.

The Worker member of Colombia thanked the Government representative for the information provided. He indicated that despite of the Government's information on cases of progress, there were internal sources in the country that highlighted that the situation of women, in particular with regard to discrimination in employment on the basis of sex, was very far from acceptable levels of equality. In respect of women's access to senior posts, he mentioned as an example, the judiciary, where women had only advisory functions and could not issue judicial verdicts. He questioned whether the artificial numbers given, albeit distorted, of the growth of women's participation in educational centres (reaching more than 40 per cent, according to the information contained in the report of the Committee of Experts) was compatible with the low participation rate of women in the labour market. He deplored the fact that the technical advisory mission which visited the country could not have access to statistical offices nor were they able to interview the authorities in charge of such offices. He equally deplored the fact that discrimination continued with regard to women and religious minorities. With respect to the profound changes invoked by the Government, he stressed that, out of two million persons who were employed in the public service, according to authoritative information made available to the speaker, only 13 per cent were women. He urged the Government representative to indicate clearly the legal age for getting married (officially, 14 years for girls) and questioned whether the practice of marrying children of 9 years of age continued. Even if the Iranian culture were to be respected, from the point of view of the speaker, the above practice was barbaric. Without doubt, the case merited being dealt with in a specific paragraph.

The Worker member of Pakistan stated that he was compelled to comment on the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran's application of the Convention since Pakistan shared a common culture and enjoyed a close relationship with that country. Having been a member of the Conference Committee for ten years, he had observed positive changes in the position taken by the Government. He recalled that, after the Islamic revolution, the Conference Committee had attempted to establish a dialogue with the Islamic Republic of Iran, but the Government had declined to listen and had adopted an inflexible attitude. He now saw a very different and positive approach, with the Government welcoming a dialogue with the ILO and accepting ILO missions to the country. Some of these positive developments had been highlighted by the Committee of Experts as well as by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights with regard to the situation of the Baha'is. He also noted the positive developments that had taken place with regard to the situation of women, as noted in the comments of the Committee of Experts in paragraph 6 of its report, where the Committee of Experts had noted progress in the increase of women's participation in various sectors of wage and non-wage employment, as well as progress in education for girls and women. Stressing that the Conference Committee and the Government apparently shared the same ideals, particularly with regard to the issue of human rights, he appreciated the time taken by the Government representative to explain the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Conference Committee. However, he noted that there were certain grey areas that remained, referring to the points raised by the Committee of Experts in paragraphs 16, 17 and 20 of its report. Regarding the issue of the Islamic Republic of Iran's treatment of minorities, the Committee of Experts had noted progress, but still saw discrimination against minorities in the public sector. He therefore asked the Government to explain these discrepancies between the provisions of the Convention and the national legislation and urged the Government to bring its laws into conformity with that instrument. He looked forward to additional positive developments as well as to the Government's fulfilment of its undertaking to fully implement the Convention.

The Employer member of the Islamic Republic of Iran noted that the various speakers had raised so many questions that it would take the Government representative hours to answer them. While he did not intend to speak for the representative with regard to the issue of discrimination against women, he drew attention to the positive developments already mentioned by the Government representative, stating that the recent elections in the Islamic Republic of Iran spoke for themselves. He considered that the best proof of the non-existence of discrimination was seen in the enthusiasm shown by Iranian women for the election candidates. Their active participation was, in his view, proof that Iranian women were using their intelligence deliberately to choose freely what was in their best interests. He added that the Iranian people had a long history which went back several thousand years. The Iranian culture had produced great thinkers at different times who all had just one thing in common - they recognized the need to strike a balance between differing views. He stressed that this balance should also be sought in the Committee's examination of this case.

The Government representative expressed his appreciation of the valuable comments made by members of the Committee. Although he might disagree with some of the statements made, he noted their constructive intent. This constructive atmosphere was what the Government had expected from the ILO. However, he did not consider that the Employer members had been altogether fair in assessing this case. He considered that one of the problems was that the statistical information given today should have been provided to the Office long before the Committee's session. He did not doubt the good intentions of the Worker members of Greece, Romania and Colombia and other speakers and invited them to keep in touch with the Government regarding any doubts they might have regarding the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran. With regard to the comments concerning the minimum age for marriage, he pointed out that this formed a part of the religious beliefs in the country. However, the Government considered this an important issue and a bill was introduced and approved by the Parliament which raised the marriage age of girls to 14 and that of boys to 17. He explained that, when matters were uncertain, they are submitted to the Expediency Council, composed of six religious and six secular members that examined the issue and determined the appropriate measures to be taken. The speaker noted that, with regard to discrimination on the basis of religion, the Constitution, which was approved by 98 per cent of the Iranian people following the Islamic revolution, recognized a number of religious minorities, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrias and, of course, Islam. The Government was bound by the Constitution. Whilst the Baha'i were not a recognized religious minority, the Expediency Council took the decision to give this group all civil rights enjoyed by Iranians. The Committee of Experts had noted this issue as a social problem in the Islamic Republic of Iran but, it had now been addressed in the Expediency Council and laws now existed to remedy this problem. The Worker member of Greece had apparently overlooked that, with regard to section 1117 of the Civil Code, under which a husband could bring a court action to object to his wife's taking up a profession, section 18 of the Protection of Family Act, 1975, extended to wives as well as husbands the same right to object to the spouse's employment. Accordingly, this was a new development in that men and women now enjoyed the same rights in this area. The Government representative stressed that the Iranian Ambassador and the staff of the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Geneva remained available to members of the Conference Committee. They should not hesitate to contact the Mission staff if they had any doubts about the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran, as the Mission would provide them with full information to clarify their doubts. Additionally, he noted that his Government had cooperated fully with the recent ILO direct contacts mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran and he stressed that the mission team had had no restrictions placed upon their activities and contacts. He urged the Committee, however, not to mix the labour standards issue with political issues. This was why his Government would not permit the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to visit the country. However, his Government had given him full authority to invite the ILO to visit the Islamic Republic of Iran, and he included both workers' and employers' groups in this invitation. While it was important not to mix human rights issues with ILO issues, he fully acknowledged that there were weaknesses in some aspects of application of the Convention, as noted by the Committee of Experts. He welcomed the Committee's valuable suggestions and recommendations intended to improve upon these weaknesses.

The Worker members, responding to the statements made by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, expressed their understanding of the fact that this was a long-term process of change for the country. They nevertheless considered that it was important for the Government to set concrete goals and implement them. The Worker members were in full agreement with the Employer members that is was necessary for the Government to set priorities and make efforts to accelerate the process. It was also important to emphasize that the ILO stood ready to assist the Government in its endeavours. The Worker members wished to respond to the second point made by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, which dealt with the central issue before the Committee. The spokesperson had indicated that the Committee should take into account the Islamic Republic of Iran's culture, history, and other factors. The Worker member of Pakistan had also mentioned this. The Worker members pointed out that, although the Committee had great respect for cultural differences, they considered that when dealing with fundamental human rights Conventions, these were minimum standards which were universal and could not be interpreted taking such differences into account. They therefore considered that there could be no flexibility in the interpretations or the application of ILO fundamental standards on human rights and no exemptions from the application of the Convention based on cultural or other particularities. The Worker members noted that according to the concluding statements of the Government representative, the Government had established new rules concerning the issue of Baha'i and this problem had been resolved. They considered, however, that the mere establishment of a rule would not necessarily eliminate the problems for the reasons stated by the Government representative himself, namely that in-built prejudices remained. While it was a difficult task, the Government must nevertheless make every effort to ensure that these new rules were implemented in practice and they expected the ILO to follow up and verify this. Responding to the Government's statement that the Committee should not mix ILO issues and human rights issues, the Worker members noted that the Convention addressed discrimination in employment and occupation and therefore concerned an aspect of human rights. The Worker members also considered it embarrassing that the findings of the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights continued to differ from those made by the ILO. A serious effort should be made to sort this problem out. The Worker members noted that, even if the Government were making efforts to achieve change on the points raised by the Committee of Experts, as the Government representative had stated, the ILO should keep in mind that conservatives in the country still wielded power in the judiciary, in security matters, the armed forces and the press. Therefore, they cautioned that the Office should not be complacent and assume that the process of change in the Islamic Republic of Iran was irreversible. In this regard, they suggested that the 1999 direct contacts mission be followed up by another mission which should have three terms of reference. First, the follow-up mission should continue to monitor the Islamic Republic of Iran's movement toward full implementation of the Convention in law and practice. This would be the mission's main task. Second, the mission should develop and discuss with the Government practical measures to implement the provisions of the Convention. Finally, it should determine, jointly with the Government, what assistance might be necessary to facilitate the drafting of legislation to bring the national laws into conformity with the Convention.

The Employer members, in response to the concluding statements of the Government representative, noted that the Government had indicated that the Conference Committee should not mix the issue of human rights with the observations on the application of the Convention. However, they drew the Government's attention to the fact that the Convention contained anti-discrimination provisions which protected human rights. With regard to the issue of discrimination against women, they considered that two issues had not been addressed sufficiently by the Government representative. One was the dress code for women and the other was section 1117 of the Civil Code, under which a husband could bring a court action to object to his wife's taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his or his wife's prestige. This provision was apparently in contradiction to the provision of the Protection of the Family Act, 1975, which extended to wives and husbands the same right to object to the spouse's employment. The Employer members considered that this section of the Civil Code should be amended if it conflicted with the Family Act provision. The Employer members noted that the Islamic Republic of Iran had made considerable progress. They considered that, while the pace of progress might be slow, it was certainly better than no progress. However, the Employer members trusted that the Government would make more progress in the future and that the country would utilize the great resource represented by its youth effectively and without discrimination.

The Government representative stated that it was difficult to challenge the Committee's conclusions, although there was no doubt that the Government was not happy with them. However, on a positive note, he welcomed the careful consideration given by the Worker members to the wording of the Committee's conclusions, pointing out that the Worker members were correct to do so, as well as the Worker members' statement that they did not care about the name or title of the ILO mission, as long as a mission could take place. The Islamic Republic of Iran had already had technical cooperation missions and technical cooperation projects and these were acceptable to the Government. Accordingly, within this more flexible framework, at least the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Geneva and the Department of Labour could facilitate any missions sent and make sure that they took place. The same consideration extended to the issue of recognized and unrecognized religious minorities since the wording on that point could also pose some difficulties. Regarding the implementation of the new provisions extending full civil rights to the Baha'i, he pointed out that, immediately after the Expediency Council adopted these provisions, the Government would give explicit instructions for their implementation. He therefore agreed with the Worker members that, if a law was enacted, it should be implemented and he assured the Committee that this was also President Khatami's intention.

The Committee noted the statements by the Government representatives and the discussion which followed. It recalled that this case had been discussed in this Committee on many occasions. The Committee had noted last year that a technical advisory mission had been carried out in November 1999, and that the report of the mission was reflected in the Committee of Experts' observations last year and this year. The Committee noted with concern the legal restrictions on the employment of women (section 1117 of the Civil Code, and the fact that women judges were not empowered to issue verdicts) to which reference had been made for several years. The Committee also noted the progress that had been achieved in the participation of women in education and in vocational training, as well as the other measures which had been reported. Though the participation of women in the labour force had risen, it remained very low. The Committee continued to be concerned over the difference between the Government's stated intentions and the measures which had actually been taken to eliminate discrimination in employment and occupation. It also noted that the Government was continuing to examine measures to eliminate the formal obstacles to employment of women, and was working to overcome the social obstacles which restricted the participation of women in the economy and in the labour market. In addition, the Committee noted the efforts made by the Government in relation to recognized religious minorities, but recalled that it should continue taking additional measures for all the religious and ethnic minorities in the country. It urged the Government to take initiatives to transform its objectives and stated intentions into concrete measures which would promote the full application of the Convention in law and in practice, including greater tolerance for all groups in the country, and the prohibition of discriminatory practices on all the aspects covered by the Convention. The Committee requested the Government to communicate detailed information to the Committee of Experts on the measures taken to address the questions raised, including detailed statistical information and analysis of the participation rates of men, women and minorities in the labour market, in both the public and private sectors. It expressed the hope that the Office would provide the technical assistance that had been requested, and that this would result in an improvement in the application of the Convention. The Committee noted with interest the developing dialogue between the Government and the ILO, which should include a new mission by the Office to monitor the application of the Convention, joint efforts to implement it in practice and assistance for the development of relevant legislation. The Committee expressed the firm hope that the Government would give priority to the outstanding questions and that it would very shortly be in a position to report progress on the questions which were preventing the full application of the Convention.

The Government representative stated that it was difficult to challenge the Committee's conclusions, although there was no doubt that the Government was not happy with them. However, on a positive note, he welcomed the careful consideration given by the Worker members to the wording of the Committee's conclusions, pointing out that the Worker members were correct to do so, as well as the Worker members' statement that they did not care about the name or title of the ILO mission, as long as a mission could take place. The Islamic Republic of Iran had already had technical cooperation missions and technical cooperation projects and these were acceptable to the Government. Accordingly, within this more flexible framework, at least the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Geneva and the Department of Labour could facilitate any missions sent and make sure that they took place. The same consideration extended to the issue of recognized and unrecognized religious minorities since the wording on that point could also pose some difficulties. Regarding the implementation of the new provisions extending full civil rights to the Baha'i, he pointed out that, immediately after the Expediency Council adopted these provisions, the Government would give explicit instructions for their implementation. He therefore agreed with the Worker members that, if a law was enacted, it should be implemented and he assured the Committee that this was also President Khatami's intention.

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A Government representative reaffirmed the commitment of her Government to the application of the Convention, the provisions of which were in conformity with the principles and objectives of her Government. The Government recognized its obligation to promote and realize the principle of non-discrimination and had endeavoured to provide complete and substantive reports to the Committee of Experts, containing all the available information requested.

She recalled that last year during the Committee her Government had stated that it would invite a mission from the ILO to come to the Islamic Republic of Iran to discuss with various parties any issue that it wished regarding the application of the Convention. Her Government had also responded positively to the views expressed by the Worker members and other members of the Committee and had agreed and accepted the terms of reference of the mission as indicated by the ILO in their entirety. The Government had cooperated fully and provided all the necessary assistance and facilities requested for the mission. In an extensive work programme, the mission had discussed various issues regarding the application of the Convention and matters raised in the supervisory bodies in their meetings with various government officials, the judiciary, several NGOs and minority groups. As a result of the knowledge and experience of the mission members, it had been possible to hold very useful in-depth dialogue on all the issues raised, as indicated in the report of the Committee of Experts. She added that a national tripartite seminar would be held in her country in the next few months with ILO cooperation on the further implementation of the ILO's fundamental standards.

With respect to the comments of the Committee of Experts, she noted the reference to the existing national dialogue in the Islamic Republic of Iran on the issues covered by the Convention and the commitment in the governmental structure towards removing all possible obstacles to the application of universally recognized human rights standards. It had also referred to the national institutions set up to examine and promote human rights. She emphasized in this respect that the national environment in which the Convention was applied was of great importance. The existence of a lively civil society and a wide range of governmental and non-governmental institutions to ensure respect for the rights of citizens, including non-discrimination, was the best mechanism for the materialization of these rights. Any comments on the application of the Convention therefore needed to take into account the degree of social and civil development of the national environment, as had been done by the Committee of Experts when it noted the expanded activities in her country in the area of human rights.

With regard to discrimination on the basis of sex, the Government had received support from Parliament in adapting the present Five-Year Development Plan, under which legislation was introduced to promote equal opportunities and encourage the higher participation of women in employment and education, as noted by the Committee of Experts. In this respect, the credit should be given to Iranian women who had made the effort to achieve the breakthrough in their levels of participation in social activities, and particularly in educational and occupational areas. The pertinent statistics and facts, which had also been reported by the ILO mission, were significant in any comparison with other developing countries. She reported in this regard that social and awareness-raising activities included the establishment of a large number of state and non-governmental committees and institutes throughout the country to facilitate and encourage the higher participation by women in all socio-economic fields in accordance with the importance given by government policy to the empowerment of women. She added that, in the sixth Iranian parliamentary election held at the end of 1999, more than ten women had been elected, one of whom had subsequently been elected to the Bureau of the Parliament. She recalled that current developments in education in her country had received international acknowledgement, including by UNESCO. The numbers of students at universities had risen from 170,000 some 20 years ago, of whom 24 per cent had been women, to 1,400,000 at the present time, of whom 50 per cent were women. It was significant that over the past two years, female entrants to universities had accounted for 52 and 57 per cent of all students, respectively. A new type of women's empowerment project addressing specific target groups in deprived areas had also been initiated and included research, training workshops, the strengthening of local NGOs and other activities.

Turning to the subject of women in the judiciary, she stated that various high-ranking positions were occupied by competent women, as noted by the ILO mission. No distinctions or privileges were set out for women or men in the law respecting the recruitment of judges. Male and female applicants competed in the same examination, which was the only basis for admission as a candidate. All persons admitted had to complete one year of professional training to prepare for the final professional examination for qualification as a judge. At none of these stages was there any distinction between the sexes. Moreover, for a number of years, women had obtained the five highest marks in the examination. There were currently 146 women judges and 380 women attorneys-at-law. The Committee of Experts had noted the influential judicial capacity of women in her country. Moreover, the role of women in the judiciary was not confined to advisory positions. Women were now appointed as judges and made judicial decisions. With regard to the obligatory dress code for civil servants, she stated that the regulations applied equally to men and women working in the civil service. She announced the submission of a copy of the relevant document, as requested by the Committee of Experts, and stated that it did not include any element of discrimination between the sexes and had in practice served as a basis for a higher participation by women.

On the subject of section 1117 of the Civil Code, which had been adopted some 70 years ago, the Committee of Experts had called for either the husband's right to object to his wife's employment to be removed or for the equivalent right of objection to be granted to the wife. In this context, she stated that more recent legislation, namely the Protection of the Family Act, granted the wife the same right in section 18.

She informed the Committee of a major development, namely the adoption of the present Five-Year Development Plan, which incorporated a gender dimension with regard to employment. She emphasized that her Government was determined to develop and adopt the necessary measures to further enhance the employment of women and to take any additional administrative decisions that might be necessary.

In relation to discrimination on the basis of religion, she recalled that her country had been famous for religious tolerance and that religious minorities had found that it was a home in which they could live and enjoy the same citizenship rights, as those acquainted with the situation of Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians in her country could confirm. The ILO mission had confirmed that the members of the recognized religious minorities continued to have high levels of education and employment. Furthermore, in addition to access to all the legal and administrative channels available to all citizens, the members of minority groups also had other formal and informal channels through which they could raise any issue of interest to them. The protection of their interests was also ensured through their representation in the national decision-making process. Indeed, the number of representatives in Parliament from the religious minorities was proportionately higher than that of Muslims. These mechanisms and the tradition of coexistence, which had continued for many centuries, ensured the principle of non-discrimination.

With regard to the employment situation of persons not belonging to any recognized religious minority, she emphasized that the right to employment covered all the citizens in the country. The articles of the Constitution which set out the rights and liberties of the citizens used only general terms, such as "any individual" or "all Iranians". There were no grounds for discrimination in such rights, including in the right to employment. Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians were recognized in the Constitution as religious minorities with a view to ensuring their freedom in their religious rights and ceremonies and so that they could act according to their own cannon in matters of personal affairs, such as marriage and divorce, as well as with a view to the recognition of their religious holidays and their own religious sites and organizations. She therefore explained that recognition as a religious minority was related to religious issues, while non-discrimination was a general principle which applied to all citizens. She added that there were no restrictions for religious minorities in access to universities and higher education.

She indicated that the Government had taken several measures, and would continue to do so, to ensure that the rights of individuals as citizens of the country were well protected. The national Constitution explicitly guaranteed equal rights for the entire population of the country and specific mechanisms existed to ensure that any new legislation, including provisions on non-discrimination, were fully in line with the Constitution. One such mechanism was the Board of Follow-up and Supervision of the Implementation of the Constitution, established a few years previously, which was responsible for monitoring the full implementation of the Constitution and reporting any shortcomings to the President. Complaints against government officials and authorities could also be filed with the relevant courts, Parliament, the Administrative Justice Tribunal and the State General Inspection Organization. In addition to these judicial and administrative safeguards, non-governmental mechanisms were in full operation, including several NGOs active in various aspects of human rights.

She emphasized that new legislation of major importance and direct relevance to the Convention, namely the legislation on the rights of citizenship, had been approved by the Iranian Expediency Council in 1999. This legislation was based on the provisions of the Constitution and re-emphasized the equal rights for all the citizens of the country without any discrimination on the basis of religion, sex, race, ethnic origin and other grounds. It was applicable to all Iranians irrespective of their religion. She added that the Board of Follow-up and Supervision of the Implementation of the Constitution had held its second annual national seminar on citizens' rights and the Constitution which had been designed to raise public awareness and had focused on the rights of minorities. She also noted that her country would be the host of the Asian Preparatory Meeting for the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance.

Finally, on the occasion of the ILO mission to her country, a commitment had been made to undertake a number of joint activities with the ILO to further promote the application of the Convention and of fundamental principles. She reiterated the invitation to the ILO to hold a national tripartite seminar in the autumn of 2000 which would cover in detail the provisions and requirements of the ILO's fundamental Conventions. She welcomed ILO cooperation and expressed readiness to collaborate with the Office in various activities to promote the application of fundamental Conventions, including Convention No. 111, in her country. The Islamic Republic of Iran was therefore willing to continue its constructive dialogue and cooperation with the ILO on all subjects, including the implementation of the Convention.

The Employer members thanked the Government representative for the information provided and recalled that the application of the Convention raised very serious issues which had been examined by the Committee over a period of many years. At the Conference in 1999, the Government representative had agreed to receive an ILO technical advisory mission, the functions of which had been set out in the Committee's conclusions. The Employer members believed that the statement by the Government representative had demonstrated a certain superficial appeal, in that the right things had been said. Nevertheless, they expressed a certain concern at the Government representative's affirmation that the Convention complied with the legislation and principles in the Islamic Republic of Iran. They pointed out that the process should be reversed, and it was for national law and practice to be brought into accordance with the Convention. The Government representative had also expressed a commitment to the principles set out in the Convention. However, this differed from complying with its legal obligations. While the national policy objectives might be in the right direction, the necessary legal protection might still not exist. The Employer members expressed the belief that neither the report of the Committee of Experts nor the statement by the Government representative contained precise information on the manner in which the fundamental problems raised were being addressed. While they welcomed measures such as the tripartite seminar and grass-roots educational programmes, they emphasized that the problems were of a systemic nature. Their resolution would require a sense of urgency, which had not been evident in the statement by the Government representative. In practice, despite the existence of a human rights commission, in view of the country's long history of human rights violations, it was not surprising that many citizens might be reluctant to file complaints.

While the Employer members welcomed the improvements with regard to discrimination in employment on the basis of sex, they pointed out that the number of women employed was still relatively low, being under 10 per cent. Moreover, there remained a clear distinction between participation rates of women in high-skilled and low-skilled jobs. The situation was the same in the field of education, where much more needed to be done to facilitate the access of women to higher education. Despite the affirmation by the Government representative that the selection of candidates for the judiciary did not involve any discrimination on the basis of sex, the Employer members referred to the comments of the Committee which still raised concern and called upon the Government to provide proof of the improvements which they claimed had been made. Such proof could consist, for example, of a statistical analysis of the number of judicial decisions taken by women in the judiciary in order to demonstrate that they did not merely fill an advisory role. The Employer members also observed that the issue of the obligatory dress code had not been mentioned by the Government representative. They called for further information to be provided on the exact situation in this respect. With reference to section 1117 of the Civil Code, under which a husband could bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family, they urged the Government to take action to remedy this discriminatory situation in both law and practice. Finally, with reference to the situation of the members of the Baha'i, which had not been mentioned by the Government representative, they expressed the conviction that discrimination continued to be exercised in practice.

While noting with interest the information provided by the Government representative, the Employer members feared that little progress had been made in practice over the past ten years with regard to the application of the Convention. They therefore urged the Government to continue taking the positive measures which had been mentioned, particularly in cooperation with the ILO. They also called on the Government to understand the need for a sense of urgency in addressing the problems of non-compliance with the Convention.

The Worker members, after thanking the Government representative for the information provided, recalled that the ILO mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran had constituted a welcome breakthrough in the manner in which this difficult and very serious case had been addressed. After a hostile and confrontational beginning in the early years, it had gradually been possible to progress to a climate of dialogue with the Government. In this respect, they recalled that some years ago the Government had claimed that it was completely different and could not be judged by ILO standards as they were supervised by international bodies. The Government had stated at that time that international standards would only be observed if they were compatible with Islamic precepts.

While welcoming the mission, the Worker members feared that the tone of the comments by the Committee of Experts was too positive, without wanting to degrade in any way the importance of the mission. They recalled that a mission was merely a tool and that the only thing which counted was the result. The result they wished to see was that Iranian law and practice would be brought into line with the Convention. They warned that there was still a long way to go before that point could be reached. While the mission had been expected to clarify the precise situation, it had not necessarily shortened the distance to the desired destination.

On the subject of the mission, the Worker members recalled the efforts which had been made in the Committee in 1999 to ensure that there could be no misunderstanding about the nature of the mission or its mandate. The Worker members had emphasized that its objectives should be clear and that all the problems which had arisen in the application of the Convention should be discussed. In view of the past controversy over the facts of the case, it had seemed evident that the mission would endeavour to contribute to greater clarity on the factual situation as to the application of the Convention. While this had not been stated as among its objectives, the mission appeared indeed to have tried to clarify the situation in this respect. However, what the Committee's report did not contain was a clear and complete list of the mission's contacts. The question therefore arose as to which government officials and representatives of employers and workers, and which other parts of Iranian society had been included and whether they were independent of the Government. They also raised the question of whether the national institutions set up to examine and promote human rights, including discrimination in employment, were independent of the Government. They asked for more information on the mission's contacts with representatives of the recognized religious minorities and whether these had included representatives of the Jewish community as, at the time of the mission, there were serious and politically sensitive problems regarding the latter. They also wondered whether the people engaged in such contacts could be considered to truly represent the views of their minority or of the Government. He questioned whether the mission had met representatives of the Baha'i, and other non-recognized religious minorities. All of these were important questions, the answers to which were indispensable in interpreting the report of the mission. An indication was also required of whether the mission had been able to meet all the persons it wanted to see and whether it had the impression that the people it had met feared reprisals by the Government.

With regard to the findings of the mission, the Worker members drew attention to the many valuable elements in the report of the Committee of Experts. One of these, which was apparently in line with the views of the Government, had been the effort made to situate the shortcomings in the application of the Convention within a broader human rights context. Interesting information had also been included on the issues discussed earlier in the Committee. However, one issue which the Committee of Experts had raised in the past, and which the Worker members had especially requested the mission to cover last year, was that concerning the Islamic Works Councils. No information had been included in the report on this matter and the reasons for its omission were unclear. The message in the observation by the Committee of Experts was that there were many positive elements concerning the promotion of human rights, including with regard to discrimination on the basis of sex and religion, and tripartite consultation. The Committee of Experts had requested the Government to continue to supply information on the cases pending before the Islamic Human Rights Commission and on the Commission's activities. It had also requested the Government to continue supplying information in its reports on the situation with regard to discrimination on the basis of sex and on the participation of women in the labour market and in certain professions. The Committee of Experts had expressed the hope that certain restrictions on equality of opportunity and treatment of men and women workers would be removed, that section 1117 of the Civil Code would be reviewed and that measures would be taken to promote non-discrimination and the non-recognized minorities.

While all the above was of importance, the Worker members believed that what was completely missing in the report was a reference to what a serious case this had been, to the continuing serious nature of the case, and to the precise situation at the present time in the country with regard to the application of the Convention. Although positive developments had been recognized, the observations contained hardly any criticism of current problems. In this respect, there was a marked contrast between the observation by the Committee of Experts and the report of the Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Human Rights Commission, and such discrepancies had either to be explained or avoided by closer cooperation. It was good that the mission had gone, but it had raised as many questions as it had provided answers.

In conclusion, the Worker members welcomed the Government's desire for dialogue, but emphasized that it was necessary to concentrate on the application of the Convention in both law and practice. It was to be hoped that the mission could be repeated when deemed necessary, some time in the future, and that other forms of cooperation would be developed between the ILO and the Government. They urged the Committee of Experts in particular to examine in its next report whether there had been any changes in the law to bring it into compliance with the Convention, as this aspect of the case appeared to have been neglected by the Committee of Experts.

The Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran, mentioning the reference in the Committee of Experts' comments to the first tripartite consultation on social and labour matters, welcomed the first National Labour Conference held last year. He urged the Government to fully implement the recommendations of the Conference, especially those regarding contract labour, small enterprises, and the ratification of Conventions Nos. 87 and 98.

He further stated that during discussions with the ILO technical advisory mission, workers had raised the issue of recent legislation which exempted small enterprises with five or fewer employees from the ambit of the labour law. Unfortunately, this matter had not been examined in the report of the Committee of Experts. He stated that, in his opinion, the law was in open violation of the Convention because it discriminated against workers employed in small enterprises. He noted that parliaments usually enacted laws in favour of workers and that it was unprecedented in the history of his country for a law to be adopted to provide for the non-application of a law to one part of the working population. This new law was against the essence of the Islamic Constitution and principles of social justice and would usher in an era of exploitation. He noted that this law would endanger the rights of approximately 3 million workers, and he therefore urged the Committee to take note of the situation and take appropriate measures. Similarly, he requested the Committee of Experts to evaluate this situation and reflect it in their comments.

Finally, he announced that the workers of the Islamic Republic of Iran were determined, while maintaining peace, to follow up on their demands through proper legal channels, both at the national and international levels. He demanded that the Government repeal the above law as a matter of urgency.

The Worker member of Italy took note of the comments of the Committee of Experts on the basis of the mission invited by the Iranian Government last year. It was clear from those observations that no effective legal and political steps had been taken by the Government to overcome the serious and continuous breach of the content of the Convention. Serious violations of basic human rights and political freedoms had continued to be registered by several human rights organizations. It was quite clear that in this general climate of repression, very few cases on discrimination had been reported to the Islamic Human Rights Commission or to the Supervisory Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution, since both institutions were composed of former high-level government members. In addition, she considered that the judicial system was not independent and was subject to government and religious influence. She recalled that women were not allowed to become magistrates empowered to deliver verdicts, which constituted a clear violation of the Convention. In this regard she requested the Government to abrogate the Conditions for Selection of Magistrates Act of 1982. She also pointed out that women could not freely enter certain sectors of the world of work.

With regard to education, she emphasized that higher education remained an opportunity for only a very small and privileged group of women and pointed out that 30 per cent of adult women were still completely illiterate. She expressed her indignation concerning the fact that discrimination was enshrined in the law through section 1117 of the Civil Code, which gave the husband the right to bring his wife to court for taking a job that he or the family considered contrary to the interests of the family. She therefore called on the Government to abolish section 1117 of the Civil Code. She also strongly criticized the 1975 Protection of the Family Act, which was supposed to extend some rights to women, as well as a new law which had been adopted last April and which provided for sex segregation in health care at all levels.

With regard to violations of the compulsory dress code, while this did not lead immediately to a dismissal, other humiliating disciplinary measures were implemented which could be compared to dismissals. As for the new legislation on small enterprises which denied social protection and other rights at work, she considered this to be a clear violation of the Convention. Finally, unless new legislation and effective programmes were implemented to redress the situation and sanctions imposed on those violating the provisions of the Convention, no real progress would be achieved. As many women in the country were trying to achieve emancipation, these measures were needed to help them succeed in their efforts.

The Worker member of Turkey referred to section 6 of the Labour Code of the Islamic Republic of Iran which provided for equality without distinction based on ethnic origin, race or language. He noted that the absence of any direct reference to sex in respect of non-discrimination created the impression that this legislation did not provide for protection against discrimination for Iranian women. He stated that discrimination against women with respect to marriage, inheritance, guardianship and divorce, as stipulated in the Civil Code, had its parallel in employment and occupation as well. He further noted that section 6 of the Labour Code guaranteed the freedom to choose an occupation, provided that such an occupation was not inconsistent with Islamic principles. He asked for more information regarding the nature of such "Islamic principles".

He added that, under certain circumstances, discrimination on the basis of sex might take on a disguised form, such as in the assignment of tasks and jobs according to the alleged strength of a worker. In the context of a general attitude which considered women as an inferior sex with respect to mental and physical capabilities, such disguised discrimination might be especially important. In this regard, he asked the Government to provide information as to whether Iranian legislation or government policy considered males and females equal with respect to their mental capabilities. He also asked the Government to provide information regarding section 75 of the Labour Code, which provided that women should not be employed to perform dangerous, arduous or harmful work. He asked for further clarification with regard to the definition of these types of prohibited work and as to whether such prohibitions were based on internationally accepted standards. With regard to the observation that women judges had only advisory powers, he asked whether the regulation concerning the conditions for the selection of judges, which stipulated that only male Muslims could become judges, had been amended to bring it into conformity with the Convention.

He then turned to the question of consultations with representatives of workers' organizations during the ILO's technical advisory mission. He pointed out that the Labour Code provided for two types of workers' organizations: guild societies, and Islamic societies and associations established "in order to propagate and disseminate Islamic culture, to defend the achievements of the Islamic Revolution and to further the implementation of article 26 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran". He indicated that current legislation allowed for the appointment of an employer's representative in such organizations. Consequently, he asked whether any such organization could be considered as an independent body.

Finally, he referred to the Rules of Procedure and Propagation and Extension of the Culture of Prayer of 29 April 1997, which provided that workers should also be evaluated by virtue of their daily prayers. He asked whether Muslims who did not fulfil their religious obligations could be considered as objects of discrimination. In conclusion, he called for a direct contacts mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran and the inclusion of this case in a special paragraph.

The Worker member of Singapore noted that the Government had taken a number of measures to attempt to provide more opportunities for women and to assure them greater equality. She urged the Government to put these plans into practice. She further called upon the Committee of Experts and the ILO to continue to monitor the situation closely. With regard to discrimination, she observed that there was no religious basis to justify the ill-treatment and marginalization of women in any society. She stated that equal opportunity for women in education was an investment in the present and future of a country. It was an investment in the present because women made up at least 50 per cent of any society, and a society which chose to deprive itself of women's resources and intellect would severely restrict its own growth. It was an investment in the future because women remained the key caregivers in the family, and poorly educated women would have a harmful effect on future generations. She further stressed that the initiatives by the Government mentioned in the report of the Committee of Experts should not be regarded as concessions but rather as basic rights due to women in any civilized society. With regard to the new law mentioned by the Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran, she strongly urged the Government to repeal it immediately. She noted that small enterprises were common in developing countries and that they were usually the largest employer of workers. Excluding such small enterprises from the ambit of labour law would deprive a large majority of workers from the basic protection of the law. In conclusion, she called upon the Government to respect its obligations under the Convention and to immediately repeal the new law.

The Worker member of Romania recalled that this case had been discussed several times in the past and that it had been mentioned seven times in a special paragraph. After reading the report of the Committee of Experts, it appeared to him that several issues were still unclear. For example, he noted that the legal status of the technical mission had only been of an advisory nature and that the sources of information had not been disclosed in the report. According to available information, it appeared that recent law and practice had only increased discrimination against women and religious minorities. The participation of women in the labour market continued to be low and they did not have access to higher posts. Discrimination persisted in the areas of marriage, inheritance, guardianship and divorce, as well as in the field of employment. Legal obstacles to the promotion of women to higher positions in the public service also remained. The situation concerning the obligatory dress code for women public employees had not improved either. In this regard, he referred to the France-Presse news agency which had reported last January on ten women who had been imprisoned for violating the dress code. Furthermore, discrimination on the basis of religion with regard to access to education and employment still persisted. Persons who wished to study at a university had to sit an Islamic theological examination, which prevented religious minorities from entering higher education. This religious discrimination also existed in the public sector. Finally, he emphasized that the new law exempting small enterprises with fewer than five employees from labour legislation constituted a new violation of ILO Conventions. He therefore requested that this case be mentioned in a special paragraph.

The Worker member of Canada stated that the Canadian trade union movement had always followed the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran with concern and that it had always supported the mention of this case in special paragraphs and the request of a direct contacts mission. He wondered whether it was appropriate to reconsider this approach today. Indeed, a number of developments mentioned in the report of the Committee of Experts appeared positive and encouraging. Nevertheless, he emphasized that the report only mentioned plans and not real change. The Board of Follow-up and Supervision of the Implementation of the Constitution, which had as its aim the reexamination of legislation, was an example of a result which was still awaited. With regard to the Islamic Human Rights Commission, which also dealt with matters related to discrimination, he questioned the composition of the Commission and its independent character and impartiality. He expressed his scepticism about the future, since there had not been a real direct contacts mission, but rather a technical mission. In this regard, he wondered if the technical mission had really had access to victims of discrimination. Furthermore, he observed that, with the entry into force of the new legislation on small enterprises, 3 million workers had been deprived of fundamental rights, thus becoming even more vulnerable to all forms of discrimination. Finally, he emphasized that virtually nothing had been done in this case.

The Worker member of Colombia, referring to the reports of the Committee of Experts on Convention No. 111 and on the technical advisory mission, said that although they contained some indications of progress, it would be a great surprise if the situation had changed radically over such a short period. He emphasized the fundamental importance attached by the Conference Committee to the observance of human rights. In this respect, he stated that it had to be taken into account that cases of discrimination in employment in both the public and the private sectors in the Islamic Republic of Iran were examined by the Islamic Human Rights Commission. However, it was not known whether this Commission was indeed of an independent nature and of an authentically pluralistic composition. Although the Committee of Experts continued to report the existence of acts of discrimination, the Government representative had endeavoured to demonstrate that progress had been made. The Committee of Experts had indicated that recent legislative reforms appeared to include changes, but asked the Government whether it was possible to speak of progress in these matters when only 10 per cent of women participated in the labour market. He insisted upon the need for a direct contacts mission which, in his view, would be more effective than a technical advisory mission. With regard to the ILO mission which had visited the Islamic Republic of Iran, he requested information on the persons and organizations interviewed and whether the Iranian Government had met its requirements. The Conference Committee no longer wished to hear promises, but wanted to see results in law and in practice. In conclusion, he expressed concern at the adoption of a new Act on 26 February 2000 which excluded enterprises with fewer than five workers from the provisions of the Labour Code. This Act showed that, far from improving, the situation was continuing to deteriorate.

The Worker member of France recalled that he had made a firm intervention before this Committee several years ago to denounce the discrimination against the Baha'i community. At that time the Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran had severely criticized his statement. He appreciated that the dialogue was now more constructive. He was rather surprised at reading the report and the conclusions of the Committee of Experts. In his view, discrimination was still present in the Islamic Republic of Iran. He recalled that the Government had declared last year that the mission could be conducted without any restrictions on its mandate. This had, however, not been the case in practice. He referred to paragraph 4 of the report of the Committee of Experts and highlighted the contradiction between the fact that, on the one hand, only 10 per cent of women were employed, which apparently corresponded to their desires, and on the other hand, laws were in force which allowed men to prohibit their wives from working. Finally, he requested that this case be mentioned in a special paragraph.

The Worker member of Greece recalled that this case had been the object of discussions in a wholly different climate in the past. He noted with pleasure the changed attitude of the Iranian Government. He was uncertain why the Government feared a direct contacts mission and had transformed it into a simple advisory mission. With reference to the report of the Committee of Experts, he fully agreed with the observations made by the Worker member of France. He also emphasized that the word "Islamic" should not be part of the title of the Committee on Human Rights, as this meant at the outset that religious minorities would not be recognized by it. With regard to the discriminatory measures, he was of the view that international public opinion would not be appeased by statistics, but required concrete action. He also emphasized that the Islamic Republic of Iran had not ratified Conventions Nos. 87 and 98. Finally, he considered that this case should be mentioned in a special paragraph, not as a sanction, but in order to enable observers to be informed both on the progress accomplished and on what remained to be done.

The Worker member of Pakistan stated that it was positive that the Government had accepted the mission and opened dialogue. He also noted with great interest the interventions concerning the contradiction between law and practice in the Islamic Republic of Iran and Convention No. 111. He expressed particular concern regarding the reference that the Iranian Worker member had made to the new Act which deprived workers in enterprises employing less than five persons of all labour protection and social benefits. He further recalled previous discussions in this Committee in which the Government had displayed little interest in heeding the requests of the Committee of Experts. The fact that a dialogue had now been established was positive. He recalled, however, that the Government was bound by an international obligation to remove all discrimination based on gender, race, colour or creed both in practice and in law. He expressed the wish that by its next meeting the Committee would be able to note clear progress in this respect and that the recently adopted law would be repealed.

The Government representative stated his appreciation of the views expressed during the discussion tending to constructive dialogue. He recalled that when a government was considering the ratification of a Convention, it studied its law and practice and, once it had determined that there were no contradictions, proceeded to ratify the Convention. His Government believed there were no contradictions; it was determined to implement all the provisions of the Convention in full and requested the assistance of the ILO in that regard. In replying to the points raised during the discussion, he offered to provide all the available information to the ILO after it had been translated. With regard to the issue of religion, he pointed out that the new President had established the Supervisory Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution, the mandate of which covered all Iranians irrespective of their sex or religion. He also stated that the members of the Islamic Human Rights Commission were independent and that it was not just dealing with problems of Iranian Muslims. All Iranians could refer violations of their rights to this Commission. He recalled that the Protection of the Family Act gave the same rights to women as those granted to men in section 1117 of the Civil Code. With regard to the participation of women in education, he noted that UNICEF had reported on the increased participation of girls in the education system and the role of women in raising educational standards. For example, over 70 per cent of the candidates accepted for pharmaceutical examinations were women and their marks were better than those of men. He referred members of the Committee to the detailed statistics found in the UNESCO report. He also offered to provide a list of high-ranking women in the Government, including the Vice-President, deans of universities, and members of parliament. Concerning the new law on small enterprises, he noted that the workers had protested against the law and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs had objected to its adoption. He indicated that the new Parliament would soon address the issue again and consider a new law. On the subject of the recognized religious minorities, he emphasized that they were represented in Parliament and had enjoyed a long tradition of peaceful coexistence within the country. Although the members of the Baha'i faith did not belong to a recognized religious minority, under the terms of the legislation on the rights of citizenship approved by the Expediency Council in 1999, all Iranians enjoyed the rights of citizenship irrespective of their belief. The Government was making all efforts to remove difficulties within the framework of the Constitution. In conclusion, he recalled that the ILO mission had been made welcome although the discussions had sometimes been difficult. Everything should be done to facilitate the continuation of the constructive measures taken by the Government, including the holding of seminars and training courses. In view of the efforts which were being made, his Government looked forward to cooperation from all concerned.

The Employer members emphasized the importance of the Government making a demonstrable improvement in its law and practice before the next meeting of the Conference Committee. It would be necessary for it to provide the relevant amended legislation and statistical evidence to prove to everyone that meaningful progress was being made in complying with the provisions of the Convention.

The Worker members stated that between now and next year proof would need to be provided of the progress which had been made. The evidence should be reflected in the text of the report of the Committee of Experts next year. On the basis of the information provided during the discussion, the Committee should recognize the positive attitude shown by the Government and the value of the ILO mission. It should also express a cautious welcome with regard to certain positive developments in the country, while emphasizing the serious nature of the shortcomings in the application of the Convention. It should also urge the Committee of Experts in its next report to include a detailed assessment of the situation with regard to compliance with the Convention in practice and, in particular, in law. The Government's request for ILO assistance should also be noted.

The Committee took note of the statement made by the Government representative and the subsequent discussions. It recalled that this case had been the subject of discussion in the Committee over a number of years and that serious divergencies from the requirements of the Convention had been noted. It also recalled that last year it had welcomed the Government's request for a technical mission to examine all points raised concerning the application of the Convention, and that the report of the mission had been reflected in the report of the Committee of Experts. The Committee noted with concern that some legal restrictions remained on the employment of women, including the fact that women judges were still unable to render verdicts, and section 1117 of the Civil Code. In spite of the progress in participation rates, women's participation in the labour market remained very low. It noted that the Government was examining measures to remove the formal obstacles to equality for women, and noted the intention to hold a national seminar on workers' fundamental rights before the end of 2000. The Committee also regretted the legal and social obstacles to equality which still remained for religious minorities, although it noted the Government's intention to take measures in this regard. The Committee urged the Government to continue to work towards improvements in the application of the Convention in law and in practice, including the promotion of greater tolerance for all groups in the country, and to be vigilant in prohibiting discriminatory practices on the grounds enshrined in the Convention. It noted nevertheless that serious questions of application of the Convention still remained. The Committee requested the Government to submit all the information provided orally during the meeting to the Committee of Experts. It also requested the Government to report in detail to the Committee of Experts on the concrete measures taken to address the questions raised by the Committee of Experts and this Committee, including detailed statistical analysis of the participation of women and men and minorities in the labour market in both the public and the private sectors. The Committee expressed the firm hope that the Government would deal with the issues raised as a matter of urgency and would be in a position next year to report progress on the outstanding issues in order to ensure the full application of the Convention in law and in practice and requested the Committee of Experts to provide a detailed assessment of compliance with law and practice. The Committee encouraged the Government to continue cooperation with the ILO.

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The Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran stated that the policy of the Government had been to promote actively and enhance the participation of women in all political, economic and social activities, including under a policy of equal opportunity. This policy also incorporated further measures which actively and positively aimed at the empowerment of women to increase their presence and participation in all spheres of social life. He stated that in support of this objective, a bureau was established in the Presidential Office, special advisory posts to enhance the role of women were established in all government ministries as well as in the judiciary, and national and provincial committees were established; altogether there was an extensive campaign on the part of the Government in this regard. He added that some 201 offices were working throughout the country to formulate local-specific programmes contributing to the promotion of women's rights and their empowerment. He stated that civil society had also undertaken a vast campaign to further enhance the role and participation of women. More than 90 women's NGOs and associations were active in the country, some of which had even gained consultative status within the UN system. The media had also joined a lively debate on the rights, role and participation of women.

Concerning the education, training and employment of women, he noted that the literacy rate of the female population had increased from 26 per cent in 1976 to 74.2 per cent in 1996. With regard to the younger generation, he stated that the literacy rate was much higher, as more than 95 per cent of teenage girls were literate. The average level of education of the female population had also risen. The number of girls leaving school after primary and secondary education was falling, while the share of those with higher education degrees was constantly increasing. Apart from the increase in the total number, the ratio of female higher education students to the total number of women students had more than tripled in the ten-year period from 1986 to 1996. Statistics also indicated that, in some subject areas, the number of women graduates would outnumber male graduates. In 1992, some 47.5 per cent of physicians and paramedical specialists in the country had been women. This ratio was changing rapidly, as both the ratio of women entrants and graduates of medical studies increased. At present, 60.2 per cent of current students in medical sciences were female and 39.8 per cent were male. This was clearly a significant change, as women graduates would extensively outnumber male graduates.

He added that 83.6 per cent of the active female population had been employed in 1976. In 1996, this rate had increased to 86.7 per cent, while in the same period the total female population had increased by 80 per cent. In urban areas, women were mainly employed in services. In the rural areas, their main employers were industry and production sectors. In 1996, about 46 per cent of working women had been employed in services, 34.5 per cent in industry and 17 per cent in agriculture. The total number of women working in the country had increased by 81 per cent in the ten-year period from 1986 to 1996. The increase in the total number of working women had been 44 per cent in the 1991-96 period. The number of women in public wage and salary employment had increased by 452,000, 290,000 and 84,000 persons as compared to 1976, 1986 and 1991 respectively. The number of women wage and salary earners in the private sector had also increased by 150,000 and 131,000 persons as compared to 1986 and 1991 respectively. The number of women employers had increased by 11,000 and 6,000 since 1976 and 1991 respectively. Over the same period, the number of women self-employed workers had also increased by 216,000, 166,000 and 90,000 since 1976, 1986 and 1991 respectively. In the provinces of Isphahan, Bushehr, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Ghom, Kurdistan and Yazd, the unemployment rate of women was lower than that of men. Other interesting information which should be noted was that women's employment in the public sector had doubled between 1981 and 1991.

He stated that the numbers spoke for themselves. The increase in the number of employed women was quite significant. The statistics also indicated that there had been a trend of women moving away from simpler jobs and an increase in their share of more sophisticated jobs. In 1979, only 13 per cent of women had been employed in professional, technical and scientific jobs. This percentage had increased to 39.7 per cent in 1991. The number of women in managerial and decision-making positions was increasing several-fold, particularly under the new Government. The number of women in the judiciary was also significant and the number of women judges was also increasing. Women held positions as judges of investigation, deputy head of the provincial judiciary, court judges, and also at such higher judicial ranks as judges of the Court of Appeal. The highest position held by a woman was the Deputy General Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of the country. In addition to the universities which offered degrees in law, several women were currently studying at the College of Judicial Sciences, which was affiliated to the judiciary and was the main institution for the training of judges.

The above information clearly demonstrated that the increase in employment and in higher education of women was more than a trend: it represented a significant achievement. The figures also showed that further significant developments were to come, as the investment in the higher education of women would continue to show its effects for several years. He stated that the activities of the Bureau for Women's Affairs was another example of the political will at the highest level to intervene and enhance the employment of women. With a view to integrating the promotion of the gender dimension more effectively into all national policies, the head of the Bureau for Women's Affairs was participating in all the cabinet meetings of the Government. A Commission on Women's Employment had also been established. The Commission was composed of the representatives of various ministries and also the Planning and Budget Organization. The Committee of Experts had also been supplied with a copy of the National Plan of Action for Women and the progress report on the implementation of the Beijing Declaration.

He then addressed two issues raised in the report of the Committee of Experts. One was section 1117 of the Civil Code, which had been adopted in 1934. The Committee had asked to be informed of developments regarding the revision of section 1117. The answer was that section 18 of the Act on the Protection of Family, adopted in 1975, had revised section 1117 of the Civil Code. With regard to the dress code for civil servants, he emphasized that dress codes were not discriminatory, since both men and women had to respect them. Several countries had dress codes for their public servants. The Committee of Experts had inquired in this respect about the possibility of dismissal. However, he affirmed that this was not the case. Dismissal was for more serious infringements. The usual sanction was a written notification to the employee. Section 9 of the Act on Administrative Infringements enumerated the administrative sanctions, copies of which had been provided to the Committee of Experts.

With regard to the employment of Baha'is, he drew attention to the fact that the general employment situation of the Baha'is had been addressed in several previous reports, which had stated that neither the Constitution nor the Labour Code contained criteria for employment leading to or incorporating discrimination on any basis mentioned in the Convention. Over several years, several copies had been provided of the respective legal provisions, as well as copies of claims, rulings and even various forms that had to be filled in by the parties to any dispute on employment, terms and conditions of employment or dismissal. All that documentation bore witness to the policy of non-discrimination.

Decisions on recruitment to public institutions were and should be based on the principle of non-discrimination and consideration of the constitutional mandate of state institutions, the needs of the relevant institution, the qualifications of the individual, and the need to ensure the security of the State. These considerations could not be deemed to be discrimination. The rights of citizens, including the right to employment, were universal and applied to all citizens. Not being a member of an official religion did not deprive any individual from his or her rights as a citizen. The Constitution was explicit in stating that everyone had the right to employment and the Government had to ensure equal treatment in access to employment. He added that the Government was strongly committed to the full implementation of the Constitution.

With regard to religious minorities, in its long report to the Committee of Experts the previous year, detailed statistics had been provided on the active population, employment, unemployment, previous employment and the non-active population, including the student population, for each of the religious minorities. All the facts and figures available underlined that the religious minorities benefited from the national policy of non-discrimination in employment and access to employment and were employed in various occupations, both in the public and private sectors. The distribution of population according to religion was 99.56 per cent Muslim, 0.05 per cent Zoroastrian, 0.13 per cent Christian, 0.02 per cent Judaism, and 0.25 per cent other religions non-declared. The total active population of the country was 16,027,223. The active population of the Jewish religion was 3,480, of whom 3,164 persons were employed and 316 were unemployed. The active population of Christians was 25,687, of whom 23,748 were employed and 1,939 were unemployed. The active population of Zoroastrians was 7,973, of whom 7,287 were employed and 686 were unemployed. He stated that the statistics showed that the religious minorities had even higher rates of employment than the national average, as noted by the Committee of Experts in its report. Moreover, on the question of terms and conditions of employment, in addition to the non-discriminatory legal provisions which applied to all workers, the Committee of Experts had already been provided with information on individual cases which proved that all cases were dealt with in a non-discriminatory manner. No one was required to disclose his or her religion in filing a complaint to the labour courts and tribunals and no one could make a ruling based on the religion of any party to the conflict.

In conclusion, he stated that there had been an important development that he wanted to bring to the attention of the Committee. Two ILO missions from the Bureau of Workers' Activities and the Bureau of Employers' Activities had recently visited the country. Both of the missions were quite successful. Based on such experiences, it has been decided to invite an ILO technical mission to the country to discuss the application of the Convention, and to forward a written invitation as soon as possible. He expressed the hope that the Committee would take into account the information and substantive report which was just provided, as well as the significant steps which had been taken in cooperating with the ILO.

The Worker members thanked the Government representative for the information. Nevertheless, as it contained information received during the work of the Committee, they could only take note of it and wait for the results of examination of the information by the Committee of Experts.

The case of the Islamic Republic of Iran had already been discussed on numerous occasions: from 1983 to 1990, then in 1993, in 1996 and in 1997. In 1996 and in 1997, very firm conclusions had been set out in a special paragraph and adopted because the Government had not accepted a direct contacts mission. The purpose of such a mission would be in particular to collect verified and objective information on the spot. Genuine and constructive dialogue was not possible if one had only unchallenged information on the application in law and practice of the Convention concerned.

The report of the Committee of Experts dealt with two questions: discrimination on the basis of sex and religious discrimination. The report of the Government, according to the Committee of Experts, neither contained information on the possible opposition of the husband to the wife's taking up employment or exercising an occupation, nor on the consequences for employment security in the event of a woman's non-compliance with the dress code.

There was a major problem in that information provided by the Government did not enable the Committee to understand the situation in practice. The Government provided very general data on employment of women and access of women to training and occupations. These figures did not enable verification of the change in the presence of women in the labour market taking into account the significant growth of the population, kind of functions and changes in economic structures. The Government representative provided additional statistics today, but these could not yet be assessed.

Moreover, the governmental system was unusual in that it was bipolar. With regard to constitutional institutions such as Parliament, the Government and the President, there were parallel decision-making centres that based their competence particularly on religion and certain laws. This system complicated comprehension of the true situation and the actual scope of some laws, ordinances and decisions regarding the situation of women and religious minorities in employment and occupation. According to information available to the Worker members, laws, directives and recent practice strengthened discrimination with regard to women and religious minorities. In particular, this concerned segregation on the basis of sex with respect to health care, extension of the right of the husband to oppose his wife's access to high-level training, and the decision to the effect that the position of director of religious minorities schools was reserved for persons who were adherents of Islamic principles and practices.

With regard to discrimination on the basis of sex, according to the information contained in the report the situation regarding the employment of women seemed to be improving. However, it was necessary to compare the absolute figures in the context of a female population of 30 million. The number of women who had paid work varied according to the sources from 600,000 to 1.7 million. In general, the number of women working was estimated to be less than 10 per cent of the workforce. Women did not have access to important positions such as those of judges. Nevertheless, the Government representative just provided contradictory information on this matter before the Committee. This information must be verified. The Committee must have available to it information on the actual impact of non-compliance with the dress code by women, and in particular the consequences of possible termination of employment, as well as the application of the right of the husband to oppose his wife's employment and training.

With respect to religious discrimination, the Committee of Experts referred to the conclusions in the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Commission, according to which the Baha'is and other religious minorities were the victims of significant discrimination in employment and occupation. The Committee of Experts indicated that, according to information provided by the Government, efforts had been made to improve the employment situation of religious minorities recognized as such -- which excluded the Baha'is. However, the figures provided by the Government did not permit a realistic evaluation of employment. According to the Worker members' information, the number of persons belonging to religious minorities had greatly lowered because of their migration. Moreover, most of these persons did not work under employment contracts or in the public sector but as self-employed persons or in the informal sector. The Baha'is were formally excluded from employment in the public sector. This discrimination was contrary to the Convention.

The Worker members emphasized that this Committee and the Committee of Experts should have verified and objective information without delay. They insisted on the importance for this purpose of sending a direct contacts mission. The Government representative today made a proposal in this regard. According to this proposal, the Government would invite an ILO technical mission. This could mean a first step subject to the fulfilment of certain conditions. This mission must not be limited to a few exchanges of views of a technical nature. It must meet the following objectives: to collect data, with the possibility of verifying and comparing information; to address all the questions raised in the report of the Committee of Experts; and to make a report to the Committee of Experts. The Worker members requested that these elements be accepted by the Government and that they be included in the conclusions of the Committee. In this way the Committee would be in a position to continue to follow the case. If these conditions were not fulfilled, this would be the equivalent of a refusal of the mission.

The Employer members thanked the Government representative for the information provided. They noted that the case had a long history, having been discussed a number of times by the Committee since 1980, and having featured seven times in a special paragraph. They stated that in part it seemed that they were at the dawn of something positive in this case, but cautioned that the dawn brings the beginning, not the end. With respect to the statistics that had been provided, the Employer members were of the view that while the rate of growth was in and of itself impressive, they still did not know in absolute terms the relative position of women in education and in the labour market.

On the issue of the obligatory dress code for female public servants, the Employer members noted that the Committee of Experts had requested information on the sanctions that could be imposed and on the implementation of the Act on Administrative Infringements. However, specific information in this respect had not been provided by the Government representative. Turning to section 1117 of the Civil Code, they noted the statement of the Government representative to the effect that this had been revised in 1975, but regretted that no indication had been given as to how it had been revised or the implications of such revision. They called on the Government to provide concrete information showing that section 1117 no longer existed.

In the view of the Employer members, the most dramatic part of this case concerned the long-standing problem with Baha'is. They noted that the Committee of Experts had referred to continued persecution, including refusal of entrance to universities, and dismissals from employment, and the Employer members had information to the effect that such practices and persecution were continuing. The Government had not provided any specific information with respect to the participation rate of Baha'is in the private or public sector. They noted that while the Committee of Experts had also asked for information concerning different workers' representation mechanisms and the number of Baha'is participating in these different mechanisms, the Government representative had provided no information on this matter. They expressed regret that while the Government appeared to be saying that all citizens had the right to be treated equally whether or not they were members of a recognized religion, at the same time it was stating that national security was paramount.

They stated that a fundamental characteristic of this case had been the unwillingness of the Government to accept a direct contacts mission to evaluate the situation. The Government representative had, however, given some indication of the Government's willingness to explore in a more definitive way a means of resolving this conflict. They stressed that the Government needed to accept a mission that would be undertaken as a serious endeavour and include the provision of verifiable and reliable information on the laws and their implementation and statistics showing the actual situation, so that the Committee of Experts would be able to evaluate the situation in full knowledge of the facts.

The Government member of the Netherlands, speaking also on behalf of the Government members of Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States, noted with interest the information provided by the Government and welcomed that some progress had been made in increasing female participation in employment and education, giving rise to the hope that further progress would be possible in this regard. He stated that an increasingly active policy of the Government in this area could and should lead to a more rapid achievement of equal opportunities for men and women, including at the level of higher education. With respect to the responses that the Government had provided on the issue of the possible revision of section 1117 of the Civil Code, his Government intended to study these closely.

He expressed regret that the progress made concerning the participation of women in the workforce and in education was not matched by the efforts made towards the abolition of discrimination on the basis of religion. Although real efforts had been made to allow for the improvement of the employment situation of members of the recognized minorities, the fact that only a number of religious minorities were recognized resulted in discrimination in employment and education. The documented information demonstrated that this held true particularly for the Baha'is, the largest but still unrecognized religious minority in the country. The lack of figures in the report to the Committee of Experts on the employment of Baha'is as well as those not professing any religion was disappointing in their view, and he called on the Government to provide these figures in writing.

He concluded by noting that on a number of occasions the Government had committed itself to cooperate with international bodies, including the ILO, and stressed that while such commitments were welcome, it was time for the Government to live up fully to such commitments in order to ensure full compliance with its obligations under the Convention. His Government welcomed the announcement to invite on short notice an ILO mission and indicated that the dialogue with the ILO begun a couple of years ago would be greatly enhanced by such a mission and would provide a good opportunity to effectively counter existing scepticism.

The Worker member of the Netherlands, commending the Committee of Experts for its observation in this case, stated that it illustrated the importance of the Committee of Experts' report as providing an objective and impartial basis for the Committee's discussions. With respect to the Government's use of the term "technical mission", he stated that it seemed not to refer to a technical assistance mission, which normally would be undertaken where there were no political difficulties between the ILO and the Government concerning the changes that needed to be made. Here, however, there clearly were some political difficulties; therefore, he requested the Government to clarify that it was not requesting a technical assistance mission. He agreed with the points raised by the Worker members to be investigated during the mission, and added that the issues relating to the Islamic Labour Councils should also be addressed, including whether these Councils represented all workers in the company without discrimination. He stressed that it was important to get out of the deadlock that the Committee had been in, and expressed the hope that the mission to the country would bring some improvement, but cautioned that the mission could only be an instrument for improvement and was not an end in itself.

The Worker member of Turkey referred to section 6 of the Labour Code of Iran: "Iranians, whatever their tribe or ethnic group, enjoy the same rights; skin colour, race, language and the like do not constitute any privilege or distinction". In his view, the absence in this provision of any direct reference to sex created the impression that men were given a privileged position and that women were discriminated against in employment. He stated that the serious discrimination with respect to marriage, inheritance, guardianship, and divorce, stipulated in the Civil Code and still in force, had its parallels in employment and occupation. He called on the Government representative to provide more information on a number of specific points:

-- were any jobs and occupations restricted to or totally forbidden for women? Would it be possible to give information about the regulations issued under section 75 of the Labour Code concerning types of prohibited work for women?;

-- were there any women judges who could preside over trials and give verdicts? Had the Code concerning the conditions for selection of judges, which stipulates that only a male Muslim may become a judge, been amended to bring it into harmony with the Convention?;

-- were there any legal or de facto obstacles to the promotion of women to superior positions in the public service and in private establishments?;

-- was there strict segregation in employment and occupation in the health service and in education between men and women?;

-- was there a ban on the employment of women and men who did not strictly respect religious dress requirements?;

-- were there provisions in the legislation requiring the prior permission of the husband in order for a women to obtain employment?

He asserted that sections 75-78 of the Labour Code seemed to have been formulated based on the totally unfounded view that women are feeble creatures who needed to be defended by men. He asked whether amendment of these sections was envisaged. On the issue of discrimination in employment and occupation based on religion, he requested the Government representative to provide information on whether Muslims who openly did not fulfil their religious obligations suffered any negative consequences in relation to employment, and on whether the differences of the Sunnis led to discrimination in employment.

The Worker member of Colombia stated that the Workers were obliged to express their point of view in the face of the continued violation of the Convention by the Government. He added that the report of the Committee of Experts stated that there had been substantial advances made with regard to discrimination based on sex; however, the complaints made in various instances showed that the situation for women was improving very slowly. He referred to the repeated complaints of religious discrimination, which meant that it was impossible for many Iranians to have access to education and employment in the public administration. He indicated that when women were able to obtain positions in courts, they were relegated to dealing with family matters without the power to impose sentences. On the other hand, he indicated that discrimination against women could be reflected in the domestic abuse of women, as related by the press. He concluded by requesting the Government to respect the rights of religious minorities and of women.

The Worker member of Italy indicated that to a certain extent the report of the Committee of Experts gave the impression that there was a trend towards improvement of the situation regarding discrimination on the basis of sex and discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities. The willingness of the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran to continue cooperating with the ILO appeared to be a step forward. Acceptance of a qualified ILO mission could constitute a real change of attitude, as Iran had never accepted the visit of a Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Human Rights Commission. The opening of schools and occupations to women must be strengthened by other measures taken in their favour: the reduction of pressure on women in family and society, and revision of the Civil Code. Since 1997, some positive signs had been noted such as the appointment of women to responsible political positions. One could observe that women had been appointed to positions of responsibility in the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Culture.

However, as highlighted in the report of the Committee of Experts, discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities with regard to access to training and employment continued. Statistical data on the unemployment rate for these minorities referred to in paragraph 4 of the report must be specified more precisely to enable comparisons to be made. Persons who wanted to enter university must undergo an Islamic theology exam. This prevented members of religious minorities from gaining access to higher education. Similarly, persons who wanted employment in the public sector must fulfil requirements with regard to the Islamic religion. Religious minorities were therefore excluded from the public administration. The Worker member indicated that workers belonging to the Baha'i community who had been dismissed in the 1980s had not been compensated. On the contrary, they were required to give back the salaries and pensions that they had received or face imprisonment. If there really were possibilities for trade union representation of religious minorities, as the Government indicated (see paragraph 7 of the report), one could perhaps hope for ratification by the Islamic Republic of Iran of Conventions Nos. 87 and 98. But the spokesperson was rather of the view that independent trade unions were still prohibited in the Islamic Republic of Iran, as was made known by the CISL (see paragraph 123 of the General Report of the Committee of Experts). The Italian trade unions were in favour of encouraging dialogue among countries, even when conditions were difficult. They had asked the Government of Italy, during the recent visit of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Italy to assert in the context of political and economic relations between the two countries the requirement that there be development in human rights, freedom of association and equality for all workers.

The Worker member of Pakistan noted that as the Islamic Republic of Iran was a neighbouring nation to his own with close historical ties, any developments in that country would have an impact on Pakistan. He welcomed recent developments in the country including the strengthening of democracy and the steps taken to improve dialogue with the West. He pointed to recent discussions between the Government and the Vatican resulting in a commitment to have a more open policy on religion. In this context he drew attention to the comments of the Committee of Experts concerning discrimination on the basis of religion, and expressed the hope that the Government would honour its commitment to promote and encourage religious minorities and women in employment and education. Noting the Government's intention to invite a technical mission to the country, he urged the Government to examine closely the points raised by the Committee of Experts concerning the various contradictions between the national law and practice and the provisions of the Convention. He hoped that the technical mission would lead to progress and continued cooperation.

The Employer member of the Islamic Republic of Iran thanked all the speakers for their comments, in particular the Government representative for informing the Committee of its willingness to accept an ILO mission. In his view such a mission would improve the country's image. He requested that should such a mission come to the country, it consult not only with the Government, but also with the employers' organizations. Regarding the improving role of women in the country, he pointed to the fact that his company had received three international standards on women. In his view the best way to understand the progress that had been achieved in the country would be to come to the country. He was optimistic that a number of improvements would result from the ILO mission.

The Government representative thanked all the speakers, but noted that it would be difficult to answer all their questions at this time. He would, however, try to respond to a number of the questions orally, and any outstanding questions would be addressed later in writing. He acknowledged that there had been a great deal of information and statistics put before the Committee which could only be noted by them and then more closely examined by the Committee of Experts at a later stage. He stated that this case had a long history and he hoped could be concluded in a constructive manner. He affirmed his Government's commitment to real dialogue.

With respect to the criticism concerning the general nature of the figures provided, he explained that he had set out the percentage increases as had indeed been requested by the Worker members of this Committee two years previously. The absolute numbers and percentages most recently requested by the Worker members would be made available to the Committee of Experts and to the members of the ILO mission. Regarding the concern raised that only some religions were recognized, he sought to clarify the provisions of the Constitution which made reference to particular religions only for reasons of personal status, so that questions concerning marriage, wills and heritage would be determined according to their own traditions. However, with respect to employment, the Constitution provided rights to "everyone". He stressed that the Government was committed to ensuring full compliance with the provisions of the Convention. On the question raised as to the reliability of the statistics provided, he stated that they were official statistics. He also confirmed that members of religious minorities were employed in the public sector and the civil service. Responding to the query of whether women could teach boys, he stated that there was no prohibition and in fact at the university level, 35 per cent of the academic staff were women. While there were no female ministers, he stressed that a woman held the position of Vice-President of the country and that there was a female vice-minister. The number of women members of Parliament had increased and presently stood at 14. In the recent city and village council elections, 114 women had been elected.

With respect to the request for clarification made by the Worker member of the Netherlands as to the nature of the technical mission, he confirmed that his Government was not calling for a technical assistance mission, but rather a mission to discuss the application of the Convention. He noted that in future, however, technical cooperation may be requested as a follow-up to the technical mission. In response to the comments made by the Worker member of Turkey, he stated that the Labour Code contained the reference to sex as another prohibited ground of discrimination, and referred in this regard to the report submitted to the Committee of Experts. He stated that no jobs were forbidden to women. Concerning article 75 of the Labour Code dealing with difficult and harmful occupations, he noted that this issue had been raised by the Committee of Experts a few years previously and a detailed text had been provided in response. After the issue had been studied by the ILO, it was concluded that the provision was not discriminatory. He asserted that articles 75 to 78 of the Labour Code were based on ILO Conventions, and indicated that more information on this matter would be provided to the Committee of Experts in the Government's next report. On the issue of whether non-practising Muslims were discriminated against, he stressed that the Government did not investigate who is practising and non-practising.

Some of the issues raised by the speakers, such as the issue of domestic violence, were not directly related to the Convention, he contended that based on international comparison, the rate of domestic violence in the country was relatively low due to cultural traditions. He disagreed with the comment that there had been increasing pressure on women. He stated that if education and employment of women had been increasing, it was due to policies to empower and encourage them. On the issue of trade union representation, he stated that information would be provided to the Committee of Experts, but assured the Committee that independent trade unions were not prohibited.

He expressed his Government's commitment to inviting an ILO mission to the country to discuss the application of the Convention, including with regard to sex and religion and any other matters related to the application of the Convention. His Government had no objection to the mission also discussing these issues with the Iranian employers' organizations. Concerning the paramountcy of state security mentioned by the Employer members, the Government representative had mentioned this matter only in relation to public institutions and as one of the considerations. He confirmed that female judges could give verdicts.

With respect to the issues mentioned by the Worker members regarding the technical mission, the Government representative confirmed that the mission would discuss the questions of facts and interpretations. He concluded by confirming that the Government had decided definitively to invite an ILO mission.

The Worker members, referring to the statement of the Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran, emphasized that it was most important that the agreement regarding the mission's objectives be clear. The four objectives that had been previously mentioned had not been contradicted by the Government representative in his comments. The Worker members understood in particular that information could be collected, that the mission could address all the questions raised by the Committee of Experts and that it would make a report for submission to the Committee of Experts.

The Committee took note of the detailed oral information given by the Government representative, as well as the subsequent discussion. It recalled that this case had been discussed in the Committee frequently over the years. It noted the efforts to promote employment of women and recognized religious minorities, but also noted with concern that the practical impact of those measures remains unclear, and that considerable problems in the application of the Convention persisted. It welcomed the Government's request for a technical mission to examine all the points raised by the Committee of Experts and the present Committee concerning the application of the Convention. It further noted the Government's willingness to improve the application of the Convention. It hoped that the mission would be carried out as soon as possible so that its results could be examined by the Committee of Experts at its next session. The Committee also asked the Government to continue to supply the Committee of Experts with full information on the measures taken to eliminate any form of discrimination prohibited by the Convention with regard to access to employment in law and practice. Finally, it expressed the firm hope that the Government would soon be in a position to report to the Committee of Experts that its law and practice were in conformity with the Convention on all the grounds covered by it.

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A Government representative expressed his Government's commitment to international labour standards and his wish for a positive dialogue in the Committee. He pointed out that the Committee of Experts, in paragraph 1 of its observation, had referred to the Government's detailed report as well as to the documentation and statistics supplied. In the course of the last year, the Government had furnished an unprecedented amount of information. This meant that it had made an effort to work with the ILO supervisory bodies and it appeared that this cooperation had enabled the Committee of Experts to be better informed of the realities. While several long-standing issues had been settled, some issues remained pending which could be resolved by further improvement in the Government's reporting or by other necessary cooperation.

Paragraph 2 of the report of the Committee of Experts summarized the discussion in the Conference Committee last year and the replies of the Government and indicated that the Committee looked forward to receiving, in the Government's next report, information concerning contacts made with the Office, with regard to technical cooperation. The Government representative gave an assurance that the next report would definitely contain that information. In fact, such contacts had taken place and had led to concrete technical cooperation, which was quite a new element in the Government's relations with the ILO supervisory bodies: ILO staff at headquarters had had a three-day meeting with members of the Labour and Social Affairs Commission of the Parliament; in April 1997, a tripartite training seminar was held in Teheran with ILO assistance. Both events discussed a number of fundamental ILO Conventions, in particular Convention No. 111. The training was targeted towards those officials responsible for the application of the Convention, including Directors-General and officers of the Ministry of Labour's central and provincial departments, and covered various aspects of the Convention and its application. In the following days, the ILO mission received first-hand information from different parties. It discussed the national mechanisms of implementation of the Labour Code, including the non-discrimination provisions, as well as arbitration mechanisms with the Director-General of Labour and Social Affairs of Greater Teheran, which had the largest industrial concentration in the country and with representatives of workers' and employers' organizations. The mission also spoke with the head of the women's NGO network. Separate meetings took place with women officials supervising projects and activities for the employment and job placement of women and for the enhancement of the economic and social situation of rural women. Finally, the mission also visited two of the largest factories. It could thus be seen that this technical cooperation had generated an extensive dialogue with the ILO supervisory bodies in the course of one year. It was to be hoped that such effective cooperation could be continued.

Referring to paragraph 5 of the Committee of Experts' report, the Government representative pointed out that the Committee of Experts had noted with interest the information on persons of faiths other than Islam gaining access to university education and sitting on Islamic Labour Councils and the existence of the various types of labour organizations. In paragraph 6 of the report, the Committee of Experts welcomed the clarification of a very important issue with regard to a directive, which had been a matter of controversy for several years. A copy of the directive repealing the previous directive was now with the ILO. Paragraphs 7 and 8 had noted with interest some relevant developments. Paragraph 9 of the report referred to a communication received from the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, which had been forwarded to the Government and which would be considered at the next meeting of the Committee of Experts.

The speaker assured the Committee that his Government would supply a detailed and substantive report to the Committee of Experts. The fact that his Government's detailed report of last year had been duly examined by the Committee of Experts could only encourage further cooperation and dialogue with this body. It was to be hoped that a similar positive dialogue could take place in this Committee.

The Workers' members thanked the Government representative for his brief comments. The Government had provided a detailed report and it was to be hoped that the dialogue with the Committee of Experts and this Committee would be pursued. This case had been discussed for several years, last year, most recently when, following a thorough discussion and considering the fact that the Government was not committed to accept a direct contacts mission, this case had been mentioned in a special paragraph of the report. The Government appeared still not to have accepted such a mission and this would surely have an impact on the type of conclusions to be adopted which might lead the Government to reconsider in the future the possibility of such a mission, even though the Government seemed to prefer technical assistance. The impression remained that the Government was trying to gain time since technical assistance and direct contacts missions have different purposes: direct contacts missions tried to evaluate the real situation as well as the practical impact of the measures mentioned in the Government's report. Detailed reports were necessary but not sufficient. Like technical assistance, they allowed the dialogue to be continued and encouraged mutual understanding. But a detailed report could also veil the real situation. Legal provisions could be repealed by other provisions or by other executory decisions; their impact could be neutralized by an institutionalized parallel power which appeared to have constitutional legitimacy and powerful means of pressure irrespective of the parliamentary majority. The observation of the Committee of Experts was very detailed but most of the information regarding the practical impact of the various measures emanated mainly from the Government itself. Other information, contained in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the observation, shed quite another light on the situation. It was indispensable for the ILO and the Committee of Experts to be able to analyse this information to assess the real situation. A direct contacts mission would be the most appropriate way considering the fact that tripartism which would permit a confrontation of options did not seem to be really operational in the country.

As regards recruitment, the Government implicitly admitted that a priority was granted to those practising the official religion and minimized this fact. The Government acknowledged that this priority applied to teachers who numbered over 1 million and therefore constituted an important part of the workforce. Moreover, Act No. 14928 of 7 June 1996 extended this recruitment priority to the whole of the public service as well as public enterprises and major industrial enterprises. New legislation had extended this criterion even further to certain liberal professions such as membership of the Bar for lawyers. Furthermore, the Government had not replied to the comment of the Committee of Experts on the publication of discriminatory job offers. In the teaching field, the conditions imposed on the schools, which were established by religious minorities, forced them to use leaders belonging to the official religion.

As regards discrimination against minorities, according to certain information, the Baha'is were simply considered as terrorists by those in power in the regime and 200 of them had been executed since 1979 while thousands of others had been imprisoned or dismissed. The United Nations Special Rapporteur who went to the country in December 1995 collected statements from Baha'is who declared that they were victims of discrimination in employment. Other sources revealed the assassination of Christian priests without the Government doing its utmost to find the perpetrators. As regards discrimination on the basis of religion and the Islamic Labour Councils, paragraph 5 of the observation noted the explanation of the Government according to which workers had the choice between three forms of representation: the setting up of trade unions, the election of representatives or the setting up of these Councils. According to the Government's statistics, the majority of workers had opted for these Islamic Labour Councils. But these figures must be viewed in the general legal context and in the framework of labour relations. According to the Labour Code, the Ministry of Labour had the responsibility to set up these Islamic Labour Councils in every enterprise that employed more than 35 workers. Therefore, choice did not exist in these enterprises. In enterprises with less than 35 workers, the choice was not really free since religious or political authorities could designate a representative. It was these Islamic Labour Councils which designated representatives to consultative commissions as well as the delegation to the International Labour Conference. Unless proven wrong by information from the Government, the Committee of Experts could only come to the conclusion that discrimination was institutionalized in the labour relations system.

As regards discrimination on the basis of sex in the judicial system, it was the Committee of Experts' task to analyse the real scope of the amendment to the Act on Appointments to the Judiciary mentioned by the Government. According to available information, women only held advisory and support posts in the judicial system and in the departments for the protection of children, being excluded from the judiciary in the real sense. In more general terms, it was important to urge the Government to provide more detailed information on education and the training of women as well as their active participation in the labour market in its next report, and to provide the relevant statistics.

In conclusion, the real situation had to be clarified as a matter of urgency. The information provided by the Government, as detailed as it was, was not fully convincing. The Committee of Experts still had to undertake an in-depth analysis regarding several provisions and the practice concerning employment. Finally, a direct contacts mission was indispensable to assess the situation. If the Government were to refuse to request such a mission, this case should be mentioned in a special paragraph.

The Employers' members recalled that this case had been the subject of comments by the Committee of Experts for the past 15 years, that it had already been discussed by this Committee ten times before and that it had been mentioned in a special paragraph on six occasions. As always, the Government representative demonstrated a cooperative attitude, but he did not contribute any new information. The reference to technical cooperation was a positive element, but it was questionable whether technical cooperation could replace the sending of a direct contacts mission as suggested by this Committee last year. The essence of the observation of the Committee of Experts was contained in paragraphs 3 and 4 which concerned discrimination based on sex, religion and political opinion. Although the general population of the Islamic Republic of Iran had grown, the average number of women active in the labour market had dropped. The Government seemed to rebut this argument. It was, however, noted that priority in employment was given to persons faithful to the Islamic religion, and that this criterion was applied not only in the ministries, but also in the public sector as a whole, as well as in all parastatal enterprises which represented a particularly large sector in the country. The statistics concerning new university entrants did not in themselves constitute sufficient arguments to refute the Committee of Experts' comments. Furthermore, job advertisements published in newspapers evidenced a consistent practice to give priority to Muslims. As regards the theoretical existence of three forms of worker representation, they were restricted by other provisions and in practice. The Government's response was also insufficient as regards discrimination on the basis of religion against the Baha'is; this had also been noted by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Question of Religious Intolerance. A clarification was urgently required. According to the Government, section 1117 of the Civil Code, prohibiting women to work without the permission of their husbands, applied only to Muslims. Yet, as the overwhelming majority of the population was Muslim, this discriminatory provision in fact was applicable to almost everyone. As the Workers' members had pointed out, women were excluded from judicial functions. The Government stressed that the number of women in the active labour force continued to increase, although certain dangerous types of work remained prohibited to them. Bearing in mind the evolution of the notion of dangerous work, greater care had to be taken in order to avoid such protective provisions being used as a pretext for discrimination on the basis of sex. The sending of a direct contacts mission appeared to be the appropriate procedure to evaluate the situation on each of these points. Last year, the Government representative had stated that he was not in a position to commit himself on behalf of his Government in this respect. Today he considered that such a mission was not necessary. The recent elections had brought a new president to office, but it seemed precarious to offer any predictions as regards the political evolution because, contrary to what was the case in parliamentary democracies, in the Islamic Republic of Iran there were supranational authorities whose legitimacy was not derived from public elections. This was not a value judgement but a statement of fact. The conclusions of this Committee should appear in a special paragraph of its report, and the Government should be urged to request a direct contacts mission as soon as possible.

The Workers' member of Spain stated that he was concerned by the content of section 1117 of the Civil Code which permitted a husband to prohibit his wife from taking up employment contrary to the interest of the family, his interests or his reputation. There were legal proceedings which permitted the husband to claim these rights before the courts, which in practice amounted to placing the wife as well as the rest of the family under the guardianship of the husband. As the Employers' members declared, this was institutionalized discrimination, which should be clearly condemned. The Government contradicted itself when it stated that the Iranian Constitution protected the right of all to employment while the Civil Code applied only to those married according to the Islamic tradition. These provisions applied, in fact, to the majority of the Iranians and in the Islamic Republic of Iran there did not seem to be any distinction between religion and the Civil Code. The fact that the Civil Code did not provide for equal treatment created a situation which was contrary to the Convention. He recalled that this case had been discussed for several years in the context of discrimination on the basis of religion against Freemasons, Zoroastrians and the Baha'is. Although the observations of the Committee of Experts mainly concerned the Baha'is, the problems of other minorities suffering discrimination should not be ignored. To conclude, he recommended that the Committee urge the Government to accept a direct contacts mission.

The Workers' member of the Netherlands supported what other Workers' members had stated on the case and indicated that the format of the Committee of Experts' observation posed difficulties for him since normally it took note of the Government's report, analysed the information and reached conclusions accordingly. This year, the Committee of Experts had merely noted the information provided by the Government except in paragraph 6, and mentioned the debate on the case last year in paragraph 2. It was not clear to him whether all the information available had been analysed. Thus the guidance which normally emanated from the Committee of Experts to the Conference Committee was absent. It would have been preferable if the Committee of Experts had specified, on the basis of clear arguments, why the situation was so complex and serious that it warranted a direct contacts mission. He hoped that the Committee of Experts would shed light on this next year. He supported the Workers' proposal regarding the form of the Committee's conclusions.

The Workers' member of Turkey asserted that in the Islamic Republic of Iran there was still systematic discrimination in employment and occupation on the basis of sex, religion and political opinion. For example, discrimination on the basis of sex was based on Islamic law, the Shari'a, under which men were considered to be superior to women in intelligence, in knowledge and in power. He wondered how equality in employment and occupation could prevail in a State based on a religion which considered women to be inferior to men. Moreover this discrimination was reinforced by legislation, including sections 899 to 902, 1122 to 1123, 1133 to 1134, 1169 and 1180 of the Civil Code. With regard to discrimination on the basis of religion, he considered that it could take three distinct forms: first of all, discrimination against officially recognized religions, in legislation but mainly in practice; secondly, discrimination against religions that were not officially recognized, which was the case of the Baha'is; and thirdly, discrimination against Moslems who did not appear to fulfil the requirements of Islam since, under the Government Ordinance dated 13 August 1995, those who had a religion, but who were known not to observe religious standards, had no right to work. He asserted that, unless there was a separation of religion from the State, and unless there was a secular system based on genuine democracy, there was no hope of an end to discrimination in employment and occupation. He wholeheartedly supported the proposal of a special paragraph if a direct contacts mission was not accepted by the Government.

The Workers' member of Greece noted that it was difficult not to mention religion, as the object of the discussion was discrimination on the basis of religion. This was not the first time that this question had been raised and it seemed an easy way out to accuse those who provided information, such as Amnesty International, of not being impartial. No country had been able to base their prosperity on the exploitation and discrimination of elements of their population, and history had taught us that all powers which hold on to such practices had been overthrown. A certain progress was discernible, at least as regards the will demonstrated by the Government to pursue a dialogue. But if this only represented an interest by the Government to enhance its international image, this dialogue was useless. If the Government, however, was genuinely prepared to cooperate with the ILO in order to find solutions, it should show its willingness by requesting a direct contacts mission. He supported the common position of the Workers' and Employers' members in this respect, and requested a clear reply to this question from the Government representative.

The Workers' member of the United Kingdom pointed out that the statistics quoted in the Committee of Experts' report indicated that while the population had grown, the average number of women active in the labour market had dropped from 15.94 to 10.73 per 100 men between 1976 and 1991. The observation, quoting data from the Iranian Centre of Statistics in 1994, noted that in industrial enterprises there was an average of only 5.92 women working for every 100 men. Women appeared to be disappearing from public view. She also pointed out that some occupations and jobs were closed to women and wondered how the Government was tackling this situation. The vast majority of women had no right to employment without their husband's permission. Thus it was men, by and large, who determined whether and in what jobs women could be employed. It was not enough to have a means of complaint about this situation, since it was not reasonable to expect women to be able to have access to justice this way. It was the practice itself that should be stopped by firm Government action. Moreover, although the Government representative had indicated that 97 women were currently serving throughout the country in various judicial positions, she wondered whether those women mentioned were active magistrates, judges, advocates or were they administrators? The question was, did women actually dispense justice in the courts? On the issue of women in further and non-traditional education, the figures did not provide enough evidence to make a judgment about whether there had been progress. There was no information about baseline numbers, only percentages. This did not explain very much. However, these specific points could not be looked at without considering the overall context of lives of women in the Islamic Republic of Iran, a tough situation referred to in a report circulated at the 53rd Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (April 1997). In the light of this context where there was institutionalized and systematic segregation, repression and oppression of women, it was very hard to see how the requirements of Convention No. 111 could be respected.

The Workers' member of Italy noted that, while the observations of the Government were detailed, no concrete element was found, neither on the absence of equal opportunities for women, whose work was subordinated to the approval of the husband, and who had to put up with the daily pressure of religious groups, nor on discrimination against Baha'is and other religious minorities in the areas of teaching and access to employment. The principle of religious tolerance, contained in Article 23 of the Iranian Constitution, was violated in practice by a series of discriminatory provisions. The religious criteria for access to employment in the teaching sector had been extended to numerous other sectors and no signs of softening this position had been noted since last year's discussion. However, the acceptance of technical assistance from the ILO, as well as the visit of the United Nations Special Rapporteur to the country, were encouraging signs. Nevertheless, only a well prepared direct contacts mission could really improve the situation.

The Government members of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia stated that, in their opinion, this Committee should not deal with political and religious matters.

The Government representative indicated that a lot of things that had been said in this Committee were a discredit to the ILO, its supervisory bodies and the future discussions on the strengthening of the supervisory system. Many interventions were in fact political statements made against a democratically elected Government, and not factual statements based on the report of the Committee of Experts. He saw no reason to respond to these political statements. Moreover, although many participants had indicated that not enough information or statistics had been provided by the Government, this was not true since it had furnished a report of over 100 pages to the Committee of Experts. It was to be emphasized that a UN report which had been referred to by a previous speaker was not in fact a report of the United Nations. Moreover, the statement about the oppression and repression of women came straight from a paper being distributed in the ILO by a group from a country near the Islamic Republic of Iran. He had hoped for dialogue and had noted that the Committee of Experts had thoroughly examined the last, detailed report. But this Committee's debate included highly political allegations, such as the statements on the lack of tripartism, non-elected posts and the assassination of priests, all of which he strongly denied. Even the allegations on section 11A of the Civil Code did not take account of the text's legal provisions which gave the same right to both husbands and wives to take such a case to the courts; in some other countries this also occurred. He noted that when another speaker challenged the tallying of statistics, it was because that speaker was using data from unreliable sources. It was not true, as intimated by an earlier speaker, that his Government had accepted the visit of a direct contacts mission to the country last year. On the question of such a mission, the report of the Committee of Experts correctly represented the Government's position. It was obvious that, given the tenor of the debate which had just taken place, a direct contacts mission would not be welcomed. In fact, there was a practical reason for this: the new administration would not take office until next month. He concluded that he was proud of his country and his religion, while at the same time respecting all religions.

The Employers' members stated that they were disappointed by the explanations provided by the Government representative, as well as his protest concerning the allusion to issues related to religion. This was not a proper way to conduct the dialogue. At issue here was not a discussion on religious matters, but problems related to the application of a Convention which had been ratified by his country and in which it was provided that religion was grounds for illegal discrimination in employment and occupation. No new information had been provided in response to the Committee of Experts' observations which had been communicated to the Government two months ago. The Government representative had not responded to the proposal concerning a direct contacts mission. The need to urgently send such a mission should once again be stressed, and the importance of this case justified the inclusion of the conclusions in a special paragraph in the report of this Committee.

The Workers' members declared that they were also disappointed by the lack of responses from the Government representative. New information should be provided to the Committee of Experts. In their opinion, there was nothing in the debate which discredited either the reputation of the ILO or that of the supervisory system, as the subject under discussion was a ratified Convention, providing, inter alia, for protection against discrimination based on religion. It was regrettable that the Government representative did not respond to the proposal made last year to request a direct contacts mission. This disappointing and incomprehensible attitude stood in stark contrast to the Government's statements concerning its willingness to have dialogue with the supervisory bodies. It was not enough to send reports but some progress in practice had to be demonstrated. In this context, the sending of a direct contacts mission was needed more than ever. This case should be included in a special paragraph in the report of the Committee.

The Committee took note of the observations that the Committee of Experts had been formulating for several years, the oral information presented by the Government representative as well as the detailed discussion in the Committee. It also took note of the explanations provided by the Government for not heeding the offer of a direct contacts mission, as well as on technical assistance which had been provided in accordance with the priority given by the Government. The Committee noted with concern that in spite of concrete initiatives and time which had elapsed, violations of the provisions of this as well as other Conventions subsisted, and required additional information. The Committee therefore expressed the firm hope that it would be informed of the measures that would be adopted in order to eliminate any form of discrimination in job offers as well as in the criteria applied by the competent authorities to declare certain groups illegal. The Committee notes the statistical information on the employment of religious minorities and women, the information on the constitutional provision according to which it is forbidden to question people about their beliefs and the amendment permitting women to hold certain functions in the judiciary. The Committee expressed the wish that the Government would continue to provide information on progress made until such time as the national legislation and practice were in full conformity with the provisions of the Convention. The Committee strongly urged the Government to accept the direct contacts mission evoked last year, in order to be able to register rapid and noticeable progress. The Committee decided to mention this case in a special paragraph of its report.

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The Government supplied the following information:

I. Paragraph 1 of the observation of the Committee of Experts refers to the detailed reports and statistics supplied by the Government, which is willing to continue its cooperation with the Committee of Experts and to supply further necessary information.

Paragraph 2 of the Committee's observation refers to various United Nations documents and resolutions. The Government draws the attention of the Committee to the following comment:

The ILO is the well-established specialized agency in the field of labour and also the ILO supervisory procedures are based on impartial principles. Therefore, the Government believes that, in the field of labour and employment, the ILO supervisory mechanisms should be the reference for other fora, and not vice versa. The politicization of the Commission on Human Rights is a fact that is admitted by the Commission itself.

Paragraph 3 of the observation has five subparagraphs which refer to the information that the Government has supplied, clearly demonstrating the extensive and detailed reporting which has also been substantiated by several official documents.

In reply to paragraph 4 of the observation, the Government would like to mention the following:

The circular issued by the Ministry of Labour in 1981 (by the officials in the Ministry at that time) had been a matter of disagreement and was found to be unconstitutional. The matter was taken up by the next administration in the Ministry of Labour with a view to correcting the situation to bring the text into full conformity with the Constitution. The 1989 directive of the Prime Minister emphasized that there should be no denial of the rights of citizens (citizens in general, without reference to any criteria) unless there is a ruling to this effect by the competent authority and according to the law.

This directive, issued by the Prime Minister, is the Government's official position, and emphasizes a general principle applicable to all citizens. The Government emphasizes that accusation cannot be a basis for the infringement of rights. The courts and the judiciary system are the only competent authority to judge such situations, based on relevant legally acceptable justification.

The following is a quotation from the Prime Minister's circular: "No one of the officials or employees of the Islamic Republic of Iran is allowed to deny the legal and social rights of any individual, for whom the allegations of espionage or denial of legal and social rights have not been proved by the competent authorities and have not been so condemned."

In order to give practical effect to the above-mentioned circular of the Prime Minister, the circular was addressed to all government ministries, organizations, institutions and foundations as well as provincial directorates. Consequently, the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs issued a directive which was circulated to all headquarters and provincial directorates and branches of the Ministry referring to the circular of the Prime Minister and thereby repealing and replacing the directive of 1981. Therefore, there is no restriction of access to labour courts and no discriminatory basis for withholding judgements in favour of any individual.

The text of the circular of the Prime Minister as well as the directive issued by the Ministry of Labour on that basis have been submitted to the Committee of Experts.

The Government also has previously informed the Committee of Experts on the possibility of appeal against unjust dismissal. Some relevant provisions are included in section 11 of the Administrative Justice Tribunal Code (a complaint against dismissal based on conviction, if any, can be filed under that section), and also relevant sections in the Labour Code, including provisions prohibiting any unjust dismissal, provisions for punishment of employers in the case of unjust dismissal, and provisions for reinstatement of dismissed workers.

The grounds for termination of the employment contract are specified in Chapter II, part III, of the Labour Code and Chapter IX is devoted to "settlement of disputes". These provisions do not recognize any basis for discrimination.

With respect to the request of the Committee of Experts mentioned in the latter part of paragraph 5, the Government would like to reiterate its commitment to Convention No. 111 and to its requirements to declare and pursue a national policy to promote equality of opportunity and treatment without discrimination on all grounds mentioned in the Convention. The Government would also welcome the opinion and technical assistance of the Department of Labour Standards in order to take any further steps to promote the objectives of the Convention. With regard to the followers of the Zoroastrian faith and Freemasons, the summary of the Government's reply is also given in the same paragraph. The Government would like to emphasize that any complaints are receivable.

With reference to paragraph 7 of the observation, the legal system in the Islamic Republic of Iran is based on the Islamic Code of Law. Judges should have the necessary qualifications according to this Code.

In referring to section 6 of the Labour Code, the Committee has quoted that "every person has the right to freely choose an occupation, provided that such occupation is not inconsistent with Islam, public interests and the rights of others". This section is clearly referring to the nature of the occupation and not the religion of the person. To give an example of the occupations which are inconsistent with Islam, the Government mentions the production and sale of alcoholic drinks, unauthorized sale of property of a third person and other examples. Therefore, these kinds of occupations are illegal. Section 6 itself is a legal provision for non-discrimination: the reference to "every person" is without restriction, and provides the right to freely choose an occupation. Similarly, in any country there are particular occupations which are considered illegal.

With reference to paragraph 8 of the observation, the Government would like to draw the attention of the Committee of Experts to the fact that the full name of the councils mentioned in that paragraph is "the Islamic Labour Councils". Nevertheless, members of the other religious minorities, as mentioned in the paragraph, can also be members of these councils.

Paragraphs 9 and 10 of the observation refer to United Nations documents. The Government has now eliminated grounds for the "particular concern" of the UN Committee, and the relevant information has been made available to it. (The Committee of Experts in paragraph 11 welcomed this information.)

With reference to paragraph 11 of the observation, the limitation on the number or quota for admission of women to study engineering, agriculture, mining or metallurgy which had been introduced previously is now completely repealed. The copy of the official document to this effect is submitted for the attention of the Committee of Experts. Thus, there is not any exclusion or limitation on admission to study any subject at university level. The statistics are being made available to the Committee, and show the trend after the total elimination of these quotas. The Government hopes these statistics will shed light on the progress in pursuit of a national policy to promote equality of opportunity in employment and occupation irrespective of sex.

The Committee has welcomed the bill amending the Act on Appointments to the Judiciary and has requested information on the passage of this bill. The Government would like to inform the Committee that the bill was discussed in Parliament and adopted; hence, it has become a law. Therefore, the law was published and was sent by the speaker of Parliament to the heads of the executive and judiciary branches of government for enactment.

The Government also requested comments from the judiciary in the preparation of this report. The reply from the judiciary in letter 15/87 dated 13 April 1996 states that "Article 20 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran provides that all individuals of the nation, whether women or men, are equally protected by the law and enjoy all human, political, economic, social and cultural rights according to Islamic principles. According to the law amending subparagraph 5 of the law annexing five subparagraphs to the law on the requirements for selection of judges adopted in 1984 by the Majlis shura Islami (Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran), the head of the judiciary can also recruit ladies holding the requirements for selection as judges. They hold judicial rank and undertake various judicial positions. Presently, up to 97 ladies are employed in various judicial positions all over the country, some of whom have been recruited in recent years."

The number of women lawyers and attorneys is about 250, which is 20 per cent of the total number of lawyers. Further statistics requested by the Committee are appended herewith.

In view of the aforementioned developments, there has been clear progress in eliminating of the causes of concern to the Committee. The Government hopes that these developments will bring about the satisfaction of the Committee of Experts.

With reference to paragraph 12 of the observation, the full text of Section 6 of the Labour Code is as follows:

"Section 6 - On the basis of articles 43(4), 2(6) and 19, 20 and 28 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran; forced labour and exploitation of others are prohibited; Iranians, whatever their tribe or ethnic group, enjoy equal rights and colour, race, language and the like do not constitute any privilege; all individuals, whether men or women, are equally under the protection of the law; and every person has the right to freely choose an occupation, provided that such occupation is not inconsistent with Islam, public interests and the rights of others."

Using the words "the like" right after colour, race and language in Section 6 of the Labour Code indicates that these are just examples, and the lawmakers did not intend to restrict the cases which are subject to Section 6. General references in this article to "Iranians", "whatever their tribal or ethnic group", "all individuals, whether men or women" and "every person" clearly manifests the intention of non-discrimination on any grounds whatsoever.

The first section of the Labour Code, which is devoted to definitions, is also quite clear that there can be no exceptions on any basis in the coverage of this Code. The text includes:

"1. All employers and workers, as well as workplaces and production, industrial, services and agricultural establishments are required to comply with the provisions of this Code" and

"5. All workers, employers, their representatives, trainees and workplaces are subject to the provisions of this Code".

The above-mentioned articles bear witness that the Labour Code adopted in 1991 is clearly in conformity with the non-discrimination principles of the Constitution and the Convention. Furthermore, the Labour Code of 1991 has also various merits which are worth mentioning. This code was drafted after a complete review of all the International Labour Conventions and Recommendations and also after extensive tripartite consultations. The new Labour Code incorporates higher labour standards than the previous code. It contains provisions on workers' and employers' organizations, a stricter ban on child labour, an extensive system of labour inspection, and inclusion of necessary provisions to guarantee the conformity of practice with the provisions of the code. Moreover, there are provisions on tripartism, employment security, and various other features of this Labour Code providing for sound, healthy and well-developed industrial relations and proper conditions of employment. There are extensive developments in the field of labour legislation. Progress achieved in this regard also deserves the attention of the distinguished Committee of Experts.

With regard to paragraph 13 of the observation, the Government will fully cooperate with the supervisory mechanism and supply comments, as well as the necessary information, including a reply to the direct request of the Committee of Experts.

In conclusion, the Government would like to recall that in recent years it has responded positively to the observations of the Committee of Experts by providing detailed and substantive reports. It has also undertaken to supply information and detailed statistics, as well as copies of relevant documents, thereby enabling the supervisory machinery to take them into account. The cooperative attitude of the Government was also manifested in the oral reply to the Conference Committee in 1993. The Government will continue this positive attitude and cooperation with the Committee of Experts and the supervisory mechanism of the ILO and report in detail to shed light on the real situation. The Government will also seek the advice and technical assistance of the ILO in improving the form and substance of its reporting obligations and in undertaking any other necessary action.

II. There has been continuous effort to promote participation of women in the labour market. Some of the steps taken include:

- an extensive campaign to raise awareness of the prominent role of women in development and civil society, and to bring this awareness to the forefront of public attention;

- creation of a department in charge of enhancing women's participation in the labour market. The Director General of this department is Madam Alafar, who has extensive experience in active labour market policies and also has experience working on an ILO project in this field;

- improvement of collection and processing of labour market information;

- various supports to self-employed women and small-business women entrepreneurs, as well as assistance to those intending to start their own businesses; these services include: marketing facilities through the provision of cost-free markets for direct sale of products; establishment of technical-service centres; establishment of training-production centres; support for small enterprises to prevent lay-offs; assistance in procurement of tools and equipment; extensive study on the potential areas of employment expansion and enterprise development;

- vast credit schemes with subsidized interest (practically negative interest) and requiring no asset guarantees against repayment;

- expansion of technical and vocational training for women;

- legal education intended to familiarize women workers with their rights, including job security and non-discrimination;

- expansion of employment services, vocational guidance and job placement services;

- increased welfare facilities for women workers;

- various assistance and support to the rural women workers and rural income-earning activities of women, including the expansion of rural production cooperatives;

- apart from programmes run by government agencies, there are also employment programmes specially targeted for women and implemented by welfare organizations;

- birth control aimed at reducing the growth rate of the population, thus enabling more women to enter the labour market. High fertility and high birth rates had been among the reasons for low labour market participation of women. The recent statistics illustrate the success of the family-planning campaign;

- government and non-governmental organizations have also carried out projects and joint activities related to women's issues with UNDP, UNICEF, FAO, UNFPA, UNESCO and UNHCR. An ILO/UNDP project has also addressed the employment of women;

- improvement of public health services offering increased health care and medical coverage;

- campaign against illiteracy among women resulting in a significant increase in the school enrolment of girls in all provinces;

- increased political awareness of women, as represented by activities of numerous women's NGOs and associations, female publications, increased numbers of women deputies in the parliament and an increase in the number of high-level government positions held by women (adviser to the President; deputy minister; ministerial advisers; directors-general; etc.);

- success in the campaign against unemployment in general has also been beneficial to women because higher rates of unemployment tend to further marginalize women entrants to the labour market.

In addition, a Government representative reaffirmed the Government's respect for the ILO supervisory machinery as well as its commitment to non-discrimination and to Convention No. 111. He informed the Committee of some new developments in the case. He noted that since 1993 the Government had engaged itself in a positive dialogue; had worked in the last few years in the Governing Body and the Working Group on Standards; and had cooperated with the United Nations Human Rights mechanisms, including inviting last year three special investigators on human rights to visit the country and study the situation. Concerning the 1981 directive of the Ministry of Labour, mentioned in the report of the Committee of Experts, he reiterated the written information provided to the Office, in particular that the directive had been repealed and that the relevant texts had been submitted to the ILO. However, the speaker welcomed the possible advice and technical assistance of the ILO, to take further steps to promote the objectives of the Convention.

With reference to paragraph 11 of the report of the Committee of Experts concerning the limitation on the number of women admitted to university to study various technical fields, he reiterated that, as was stated in the information supplied to the Office and mentioned that there had been an almost 294 per cent increase in the number of female students since 1977. Regarding gender discrimination in occupations, the Government had provided the Office with information on the number of women and men employed in 83 separate vocations, both in the public and private sectors. The speaker cited some of these statistics, including that since 1977 there had been a 260 per cent increase in the number of women employed in the public sector.

In relation to general measures concerning equality, mentioned in the report of the Committee of Experts, the speaker stated that the new Labour Code did not discriminate against any workers, employers, their representatives or trainees, as was mentioned in the written information submitted to the Office. Additionally, the rules and regulations concerning trades and cooperatives did not include any grounds for discrimination. And, as the Committee of Experts had acknowledged, Letter No. 10.35.12 dated 6 June 1990, signed by the Head of the Social Security Organization, showed there was no discrimination regarding pensions because any individual who fulfilled the general criteria of age and service would receive a retirement pension.

The speaker concluded by stating that apart from repealing several rules and regulations and providing detailed information and statistics, the Government was going to take an active approach to further promoting the objectives of the Convention and was going to see what else could be done to further promote equality of treatment. He again welcomed ILO technical assistance and informed the Committee that the Government had started consultations with the ILO in that regard.

The Workers' members stated that, upon reading the report of the Committee of Experts, they were disappointed because, after the change in the attitude of the Government in 1990 and 1993, they expected to see in the report some proof of a real change in legislation and practice concerning this Convention. The Committee of Experts had not seen such a change and, on the basis of the detailed information received, had concluded that discrimination based on religion and sex still existed, both specifically in labour and employment, and more generally, in the Islamic Republic of Iran. However, they welcomed once again the positive tone of the statement made by the Government and also the extensive written information provided.

The Workers' members commented on both the information communicated by the Government and the observations of the Committee of Experts. First, concerning the Baha'is, the Government had never admitted in its statements in 1990 and 1993 that the Baha'i had been discriminated against on the basis of religion, but it could be inferred and the Experts had always criticized this situation. The Government's position was quite different in the period from 1983 until 1990 when it had stated aggressively that the Baha'i were not at all a religious minority, and that they were excluded from certain activities because they were engaged in activities of espionage for foreign powers. The Employers' and the Workers' members from the Islamic Republic of Iran had supported the Government in saying that there was no place for the Baha'i in their country. This attitude seemed to have changed, but the Workers' members asked if the spirit which had inspired these statements was really dead and if the allegations and prosecutions for alleged espionage had changed by taking a few legal measures.

Second, the Workers' members referred to the Islamic Labour Councils. They considered that some functions of the Councils could deeply affect the position of Baha'i workers in labour and employment and were interested to know if these Councils had ceased to discriminate against the Baha'i and certain other religious groups and what had happened to the victims who had lost their jobs or who had been persecuted for alleged spying.

Third, as regarded discrimination against women, the Workers' members doubted that attitudes which had been practised for many years could be changed overnight. While they welcomed the Government's good intentions and changes in legislation and, hopefully, practice, they thought the scepticism of the Committee of Experts was justified and the questions put in the report were relevant, given the history of this case. They hoped that the statistics provided would enable the Committee of Experts to note progress in its next report on the issues raised.

The Workers' members hoped that the positive dialogue which had gone on for the last five years would continue. But they stated that good intentions were not enough because grave violations continued as the Government itself had acknowledged by its request for technical assistance. Having regard to the Committee of Experts' observation, the Workers' members thought that a renewed special paragraph mentioning Iran would be justified this year. The Workers' members suggested that a direct contacts mission would combine technical assistance with fact-finding regarding all of the questions raised by the Committee of Experts in its report and to interview the parties concerned, including representatives of the groups allegedly discriminated against. If the Government was ready to accept a direct contacts mission immediately the Workers' would refrain from proposing a special paragraph.

The Employers' members stated that since the mid-1980s the Committee had dealt with this case on at least nine occasions, the last being in 1993. They noted that the Government of Iran had been rather critical about the fact that documents from other UN organizations were included in the Committee of Experts' evaluation of the situation, but stated that as far as human rights were concerned, it was not just the ILO but many agencies of the United Nations organization which were competent and gave each other mutual support. So the evaluation of such documents was appropriate, particularly with regard to such an important question as discrimination.

The Employers' members noted that the Government had mentioned the existence of many documents which it had said would prove that there was no longer any discrimination. They awaited the results of a detailed examination of the documents concerning both the legislation and their effect in practice. They raised the specific question as to whether the concept of espionage, which had played such an important role in the past in cases of discrimination, had been eliminated from the legislative instruments once and for all, as that was an important basis of discrimination against members of certain political or religious groups, in particular the Baha'is, but also the Freemasons and Zoroastrians. In the reports of the UN Committee for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights there was still some concern about the violations of the rights of these individuals. Therefore it was important to know whether anything had changed, since neither the written information supplied to the Office nor the statement of the Government representative had contained a single word regarding these groups.

The Employers' members raised the question as to whether courts and the judiciary system continued to be connected with certain religious beliefs and whether certain religious groups were prevented from becoming judges. Likewise, with regard to the Islamic Labour Councils, they wondered whether members still had either to be practising Muslims or to belong to other specified religions.

Regarding equal rights for women and their access to studies and to many different occupations, the Employers' members noted that the Government representative had particularly emphasized that things had improved considerably and that conscious efforts were being made in order to give women an opportunity to take up certain activities and careers which had been closed to them in the past. They noted the information provided concerning women's access to the post of judge, but requested information on the access of women to the post of magistrate. They were interested in having the Committee of Experts examine the complete text of the new Labour Code and other relevant instruments concerning the elimination of discrimination.

They recalled that in the past discrepancies had existed between law and practice which lasted much too long and were much too wide-ranging and profound to be eliminated with a couple of decrees or regulations. Furthermore, the authorities in Iran had, in the past, quite actively argued against the rights of certain groups. Obviously there had to be a complete reversal of such a policy and they hoped the Government was ready to reverse the policy not only in law but in practice. They took note of the fact that the Government had twice asked for technical assistance from the ILO and had also stressed the need for cooperation in this area, and they suggested that a direct contacts mission to the country take place as quickly as possible. They requested that their concerns be expressed in the conclusions.

The Workers' member of Spain stated that he knew a little about Iran and he had thought that it was a case concerning discrimination in practice. But on closer examination, he had been surprised to observe that in Iran legal provisions existed which established distinct types of discrimination, and that discrimination was not only permitted but also that judges were obligated to uphold it. Lastly, he highlighted the gravity of this case and requested that Iran be mentioned in a special paragraph.

The Workers' member of Canada stated that this was not the first time this case had been discussed in the Committee and that the report of the Committee of Experts had concluded that evidently the Government did not have the political will to bring the practice into line with the provisions of the Convention. The report had identified two major aspects of discrimination, based on religion and sex. In the case of discrimination based on religion, it had been concluded that the situation had not improved, indicating that evidently this type of discrimination still existed, particularly concerning the Baha'is. The national policy was not in conformity with Article 2 of the Convention and in effect the Baha'is were not permitted to study at universities, nor to hold certain positions, and the Committee of Experts had requested that the circular of 25 February 1991 be repealed.

Concerning discrimination based on sex, it appeared that the situation had not improved. The inequality of social status made inequality of treatment and, above all, inequality in employment, inevitable. Consequently, it was impossible to reconcile the statement of the Government representative with the statistics evaluated by the Committee of Experts which had demonstrated that no progress was verified in implementing a policy of equality of opportunity in employment. During the 1993 Conference, this case had been discussed, at which time the Government had made the same statements which were made today, namely that the situation had been corrected and that the practice was in conformity with the Convention. But the detailed examination by the Committee of Experts showed that this was not the case. Lastly, he considered that Iran should be mentioned in a special paragraph, but he stated that, if the Government agreed, it would be useful to have a direct contacts mission to be able to obtain complete and verifiable information.

The Workers' member of Colombia stated that it was not comprehensible that, approaching the 21st century, they could be witnessing such high levels of discrimination. The deeply-rooted discrimination which existed in Iran based on religion and sex which affected students and thereafter people seeking employment, was unacceptable. He noted that to obtain a position in the civil service it was obligatory to be a practising Muslim, and women could not be employed in gas, petrol, electric or communications companies. The Government of Iran should make an effort to comply fully with the provisions of the Convention and to implement a policy of tolerance for all of its citizens, irrespective of religious beliefs. Lastly, he hoped that they would be able to observe progress concerning the questions raised, but he considered that the Committee should mention Iran in a special paragraph.

The Workers' member of the Islamic Republic of Iran stated that the report of the Committee of Experts had not dealt with the extensive problems of the Islamic Labour Councils but with less important aspects. Speaking as a member of an Islamic Labour Council, he expressed the hope that the Conference Committee would make the utmost effort to compel the Government and the employers to remove certain obstacles. He noted, in this regard, that, according to section 15 of the Islamic Labour Council Act, the formation of labour councils in large units was subject to the approval of Supreme Labour Councils. However, even though 12 years had elapsed since the promulgation of that legislation, large workers' units, such as the oil industry, some of the power stations and the steel industry, still did not have labour councils. Although, according to section 189 of the Labour Law, the courts had the power to punish employers who restricted the formation of labour councils, there had not been, up to the present time, any such noticeable punishment. He also stated that even though section 27 of the Islamic Labour Council Act prohibited the dismissal of members of the labour councils, there had been at least 20 members of labour councils who had been fired by their employers in different parts of Iran and support had not been given to those persons to enable them to return to their normal work. The labour councils also faced another problem in that the Boards of Directors of the relevant units did not invite them to attend their meetings, despite the fact that this was specified clearly by section 21 of the Act. During the year 1994-1995, workers in some units were threatened for holding their meetings. Particular obstacles were faced when labour councils were being formed in, for instance, the Pars Electric Co. and the Iran Khodrow Co. According to section 28 of the Act, and section 27 of the Labour Law, employers were obliged to inform the labour councils before dismissing workers, but unfortunately a large number of retrenchments had taken place without employers abiding by that requirement. In some cases, it had been noted that employers lodged undue and inappropriate complaints in the courts against the labour councils, as had been done by the Arin Yadak Company's management to prevent the labour council's activities. He concluded by hoping that the Committee would take due note of these matters and that it would attempt to compel the Government of Iran and the employers in the country to remove these discrepancies.

The Workers' member of Panama referred to the murder and imprisonment of trade union leaders, as well as to a protest letter from the World Federation of Labour denouncing the aggression and persecution against them. He considered that the Committee should strongly sanction the Government and that a special paragraph would be appropriate.

The Workers' member of Turkey first cited the provision of section 6 of the Labour Code of Iran and mentioned sections 75 to 78 of the Code and sections 899 to 902, 1122 to 1123, 1133 to 1134, 1169 and 1180 of the Civil Code of Iran, which he thought showed the mentality of discrimination against women. He thought that the prohibition or discouragement of women's wage employment in full freedom was driving them to undertake home work, which was an extreme exploitation of the workforce. He hoped that the Government would supply the text of legislation made under section 75 of the Labour Code concerning types of work prohibited for women and other relevant legislation. He finally supported the use of a special paragraph.

The Government member of Uruguay thought there was a contradiction between what was noted in paragraph 6 of the comment of the Committee of Experts and the statement in the written information that "with respect to the followers of the Zoroastrian faith and Freemasons, ... the Government would like to emphasize that all complaints are receivable". He emphasized that the Government should immediately ensure in practice that those people as well as any other group of citizens would enjoy equality in accordance with the Convention.

The Government representative felt that a constructive dialogue was being developed. Regarding the question of religious minorities, the Government intended to address individuals without taking into consideration their belonging to any minority or other group and to ensure that the same laws and regulations were applicable to everybody. The speaker had the impression that the Workers' members referred mainly to the situation that existed in 1983, that is, the past history of this case, while since 1993 the Government had consistently endeavoured to answer specific concerns in a positive manner. He emphasized that the Government was ready to continue a constructive dialogue with a positive attitude.

As to the question of a special paragraph, the Government representative considered it excessive in view of the contents and the tone of the report of the Committee of Experts, and the acknowledgement of the information contained therein.

Regarding the possibility of technical cooperation, the Government had already started preliminary contacts with the Office. This would be followed up so as to seek its advice and help in taking more practical steps. As to the reference to the possibility of a direct contacts mission, he considered it too early, not because there were too many problems but because it was necessary to see first the comments of the Committee of Experts on the recent reports of the Government.

Recalling the references made by the Workers' and Employers' members to UN documents, he explained that the Government wished to respond directly to the ILO observations instead of responding to UN observations in the ILO. Furthermore, there were other UN documents, for example the report of the special rapporteur on religious tolerance who visited the lslamic Republic of Iran only a few months ago. In its paragraph 43 on religious minorities, it was noted that no information referred to problems of access to universities for minority students or teachers. In paragraph 45, reference was made to discussions with minority representatives and to existing dialogue between them and the authorities. The report observed in paragraph 94 the apparently satisfactory situation of non-Muslim minorities. In paragraph 102, it was stated that the situation of Sunni Muslim minorities did not seem to give rise to problems of a religious nature. Paragraph 103 referred to a fairly satisfactory situation of the recognized Muslim and non-Muslim minorities. In addition, the United Nations special representative appointed to monitor human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran in his report of 1996, revealed in paragraphs 37 and 38 some information on the recruitment of women judges and referred in paragraph 51 to women members of the Independent Bar Association.

The Government representative agreed with the Workers' and Employers' members that the Committee of Experts had to study in detail the information and the statistics that had been supplied. He also agreed with the Employers' members in saying that it was a question of deeds and not of words. The speaker thought that references were made in some other interventions to laws and regulations that left him puzzled. He denied the allegations that some universities did not accept female students or Christians or Jews. He further denied the allegation that all persons working in the public sector had to be Muslim and that women could not be employed in gas, oil or telecommunications sectors. He hoped that the Committee of Experts would study all these issues.

Referring to the statements by the Workers' members of Canada and Turkey concerning the situation of women, he thought that the statistics supplied clearly showed the improvement in the situation and that the written information listed in its second part various practical steps taken to encourage the participation of women in the labour force. Regarding types of work prohibited for women under section 75 of the Labour Code, which had been raised previously in the Committee, he mentioned the example of work involving the handling of heavy weights which he thought was in conformity with international labour standards.

The Government representative thought that some interventions included allegations of a more political nature, which were not true and which were irrelevant to the dialogue concerning Convention No. 111. He stressed the Government's serious attitude and genuine willingness to move forward together with the Committee, with the help of the Office, in a transparent way, and assured that reports would be supplied to the Office for examination by the Committee of Experts and this Committee.

The Workers' members thanked the Government representative for his response. Recalling their earlier statement that the Committee of Experts had not seen proof of a real change in law and practice, they cited the following parts of the Experts' comments: paragraph 3, "the Committee notes from the above- mentioned UN documents that the situation of the Baha'i has not improved ..."; paragraph 4, "The Committee also expresses its concern at the lack of progress concerning repeal of the discriminatory provisions in the above-mentioned 1989 Directive No. M/11/4462..."; paragraph 5, which quoted the UN Committee's conclusion expressing concern about violation of the rights of the Baha'i community; and paragraph 8 asking the Government to reconsider the 1985 Act on Islamic Labour Councils so as to bring it into conformity with the Convention. On several other points the Committee of Experts noted information provided by the Government but still requested further clarification. The Workers' members requested the Government representative to point out references to real changes in case they had missed them in the Experts' report. As to the criticism by the Government representative that there was too much concentration on past history, the Workers' members stressed that they wished to see real changes as a result of the recent positive attitude of the Government which they welcomed.

Regarding the questions of a special paragraph, they recalled that in the past this case had been noted in a special paragraph on five occasions and as a continued failure to implement three times: seven years had passed since the last special paragraph and the Conference Committee had given the Government time to correct the shortcomings. The Workers' members considered a direct contacts mission would be beneficial since such a mission was not a punishment but a positive indstrument which could satisfy the request of the Government, provide technical assistance and, at the same time, make a study of the situation on the spot. They requested the Government to reconsider their reaction in this regard. If the Government would accept such a mission, the Workers' members would agree to drop the special paragraph and wait until next year for further examination of the situation.

The Employers' members requested the Government representative to state whether there had been any new provisions or information concerning Baha'is. They noted that there was a political will for cooperation but that something more was needed. While in the provision of technical assistance the ILO usually played a rather passive role, a direct contacts mission, where the ILO can play an active part in the wide ranging set of problems, would be the appropriate tool to help make progress. They requested the Government to give careful consideration to this question.

The Government representative stated, in reply to the Workers' members, that the Directive No. M/11/4462 had been submitted to the Committee of Experts. Regarding Islamic Labour Councils, there were discussions about revision of the regulations. He also referred to documents of the Labour Court and other bodies, which could be consulted by the ILO. As to the question of Baha'is, he reiterated that the more recent laws and regulations were referring to individuals and not to groups of people. It was explicitly stated in the Directive of the Prime Minister that allegations of espionage could not be the basis of any action, which could be initiated only by competent bodies. As regards the real progress, he thought that the statistics and other information supplied was its proof.

The Government representative did not deny the usefulness of a direct contacts mission but he was not in a position to commit himself on behalf of the Government. He stressed that the Government did not reject any possibility of a direct contacts mission but could not decide to accept it in a day or even a week's time. The speaker also reiterated the commitment of the Government to take further practical steps with the assistance of the Office and to keep the Committee informed.

The Government representative stated the Government would do its best to supply the information requested by this Committee. He considered that given the oral and written information already provided by the Government, a special paragraph was excessive.

The Committee took note of the report of the Committee of Experts and also of the detailed oral and written information provided by the Government representative. The Committee would await with interest the assessment which the Committee of Experts would make of this information. The Committee expressed the hope that the Government would provide additional and complete information to the Committee of Experts, to make it possible to assess whether the members of the Baha'i community and members of other religious communities did enjoy equality of treatment in practice. The Committee also urged the Government to provide complete and comprehensive information concerning the adoption of a national policy to promote equality without discrimination based on religion, particularly with regard to posts within the judiciary system, election to Islamic Labour Councils and access to university education. The Committee requested the Government to provide information on the results in practice of such a policy. The Committee noted with interest the elimination of restrictions concerning women's access to university studies and requested the Government to provide the Committee with additional information concerning the practical implications of this measure. Generally speaking, the Committee once again expressed its concern with regard to the lack of equality for women in society and at work. The Committee expressed the hope that the Government in the very near future would provide its comments on the observations made by the World Confederation of Labour on 4 December 1995, and that substantial and specific progress could be noted in the very near future. The Committee noted that the Government was ready to accept technical assistance from the International Labour Office. Since the Committee had been discussing the situation in this country for many years now, the Committee had proposed that the Government invite a direct contacts mission to visit the country. The Committee was obliged to note that the Government was not in a position to commit itself in this regard. Under these circumstances, the Committee decided to have these conclusions appear in a special paragraph of its General report.

The Government representative stated the Government would do its best to supply the information requested by this Committee. He considered that given the oral and written information already provided by the Government, a special paragraph was excessive.

The Committee took note of this statement.

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A Government representative first made it clear that his Government attached significant importance to the ILO, to international labour standards and to the work of the supervisory machinery. First, regarding discrimination based on religion, he stated that the statutory provisions in the public sector did not permit any discrimination in employment based on conviction, that there had been no case of dismissal based on conviction, and that a complaint on such dismissal, if any, could be filed under section 11 of the Administrative Justice Tribunal Code. As to the pension issue, section 76 of the Social Security Act and the Retirement Act of 1986 provided for age and length of service as the only criteria for eligibility for pension, therefore without any discrimination. He stated that 101 Baha'is were currently receiving pensions and that files in this regard would be submitted for examination. Regarding the question of dismissal, the existing legislative provisions prohibited any dismissal based on conviction, sex, colour, race, ethnic or social origin, and measures for reinstatement by the competent courts and authorities existed in the law. As to the closure of Baha'i businesses, section 39 of the Trades Regulatory Act concerning the closure of business units treated all nationals equally. The Prime Minister's Directive of 1989 had been formally re-endorsed by the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran and practical measures had been taken accordingly, including the non-discrimination concerning Baha'i businesses or education both in schools and universities. He denied the alleged closure of Baha'i classes in January 1991. He also denied the discrimination against the Zoroastrians including the right to conduct business and expressed the Government's willingness to examine any alleged case. He further stated that the circular of the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council had never been issued. Regarding point 7 of the comment of the Committee of Experts the document requested would be supplied. As to point 8, the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran required the judicial body to arrange courts according to the rites and religious regulations when the issue concerned civil statutes. With regard to Freemasonry, he stated that these organizations had terminated their activities in the country and that any complaint concerning dismissal on the basis of the membership would be received by the Administrative Tribunal. Secondly, regarding the situation of women workers, he provided the latest statistics on women pursuing higher education (3,286 women in a number of engineering and agricultural fields; the four state polytechnic universities had 533, 597, 836 and 557 women students, respectively, of which 34 studied metallurgy, 743 studied in agricultural courses and 559 studied law). He thus denied the alleged sexual discrimination in higher education or in vocational training and stated that the restrictions on women's occupations was meant to protect them from hazardous work. Regarding judges, women could obtain various judicial positions according to their judicial rank without restriction based on sex. He expressed the determination of his Government and the judiciary to promote the participation of women in judicial activities and mentioned the existence of more than 250 women attorneys. Thirdly, as regards general measures concerning equality, he stated that section 6 of the new Labour Code, like its section 38, originated in articles 19 and 20 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran which prohibited any kind of discrimination in employment and occupation. Section 6 of the Labour Code extended the protection of the Labour Code against discrimination on all the grounds set out in Article 1, paragraph 1(a) of the Convention including religion, political opinion and social origin.

The Employers' members first recalled that the case had been discussed in this Committee for many years although there had been interruption for two years, and that it had been included in a special paragraph, sometimes indicating the continued failure to implement. They referred to the legal texts mentioned in the Committee of Experts' report and requested the Government for further clarification concerning, for example, the circular of the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council of 25 February 1991 of which the publication and even the existence did not appear evident given the statement of the Government representative, and the directive of the Ministry of Labour of 8 December 1981 which seemed to have been repealed, and the text of which containing the report would be very useful for the work of the Committee of Experts as well as of this Committee. In addition, the Employers' members would be grateful to the Government if it would clarify how the Prime Minister's directive mentioned in the Committee of Experts' report had been regulated or modified, and if it was the case, if it had been repealed. Concerning the situation of women workers, the Employers' members stated that they could not comment on the statistical data supplied by the Government representative which, at first sight, appeared to indicate that women workers were no longer subject to the discrimination raised in the report of the Committee of Experts. They referred to the paragraphs of the Experts' comments regarding general measures concerning equality, and wondered, in light of the Government's statement that the Labour Code responded to all the requirements of the Convention, whether the Code had been amended since the comments of the Experts illustrated divergencies between the two texts. The Employers' members concluded by emphasizing that the attitude of the Government as was demonstrated in the statement of its representative contrasted with those of its predecessors who either denied the facts mentioned by the Committee of Experts or defended their viewpoint by stating that the measures taken by the Government were sufficient to the extent that they conformed with Islamic law, or combined these two attitudes.

The Workers' members appreciated the detailed replies provided by the Government representative, stressing, however, that the replies did not enable them to have a clear idea of the situation. Certain facts mentioned in the Committee of Experts' report - for example, the case of the circular of February 1991 pointed out by the Employers' members - were denied by the Government representative. Nevertheless, they were pleased to see the Government's willingness to supply the relevant information and documents to the Committee of Experts. Concerning the situation of women workers, they stated that the extensive information including statistics supplied by the Government should be examined by the Committee of Experts and be supplemented by separate figures on each economic sector, occupation or other relevant classification. As for point 13 of the above report, they noted that the exceptions only concerned the ban on women workers from carrying heavy loads or being present in dangerous places or other similar cases. They requested the Government to supply particulars in this regard, as well as on the situation of women occupying the highest posts in the judiciary. As regards the general measures concerning equality, the Workers' members also requested the Government to clarify further its indication that the national legislation would be perfectly in line with Article 1, paragraph 1(a) of the Convention. Furthermore, they appreciated the positive signs indicated in point 16 of the Committee of Experts' report. Finally, they hoped to receive more detailed information on the cases examined by the Supreme Labour Council, including examples of some representative cases. The Workers' members concluded by emphasizing that the Committee should remain prudent and insist that the Government should do more, provide more detailed information and intensify the dialogue with the Committee.

The Workers' member of the Netherlands stated that he had difficulty in reconciling the past and present positions of the Government. First, he wondered about the possible change of attitude of the Government towards international labour standards, especially whether to what extent it now considered them universal. Concerning the Baha'is, he recalled that in the past the Government had considered them to be spies and that, according to the statement of the Government representative, they could now receive the pensions which were legally due to them. Regarding the situation of women workers, he requested supplementary information on the Islamic Councils of Labour.

The Workers' member of Germany stated that he would be grateful to the Government for indicating the percentages corresponding to the figures which its representative had mentioned in his statement so that this Committee would be able to assess the situation of women workers. He wanted the Committee of Experts to receive the necessary information concerning the education and further education plan referred to by the Government. Finally, he agreed with the last speaker concerning uncertainty of the universal value of international labour standards for the Government.

The Government representative reaffirmed his Government's willingness to deal with the observations of the Committee of Experts frankly and sincerely. He reiterated the Government's efforts to provide the required information as much as possible including, for example, the copy of the text which endorsed the Prime Minister's directive and the directive of the Ministry of Labour. As regards the Islamic Labour Councils, he stated that the membership of these Councils was not a profession but of an advisory nature and that the philosophy of these Councils was to prepare programmes and establish coordination for the progress of workshops with the participation of workers and employers. He also referred to section 131 of the new Labour Code concerning the right to establish or join workers' or employers' organizations without discrimination. Regarding women workers, he stressed the importance that his Government attached to equality of opportunity between both sexes in the reconstruction and renovation after the war of 1981-89, and referred also to the principle of no wage discrimination based on sex, provided in the Labour Code. He further denied the existence of the circular of the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council. He finally referred to the Asian and Pacific Labour Ministers' Conference hosted by the Islamic Republic of Iran as an example of the Government's commitment to the universal standards.

The Committee heard the information submitted by the Government and took note of its statement that it adhered to the principles of the ILO. It also took note of the Government's statement that in the country there had been no discriminatory dismissals, that the social security system applied equally without any discrimination and that religious minorities were treated on an equal footing with nationals. The Government had also indicated that being a Freemason was not punishable by law and that vocational training for women was constantly increasing. Nevertheless, the Committee continued to express its concern because the discrepancies previously pointed out between the law and practice and the Convention had not been removed, as they should have been. The Committee expressed the hope that the Government would accomplish the removal of the conditions that constitute discriminatory treatment in the recruitment of members of certain religious groups which had been discussed in this Committee on many occasions and on which no progress seemed to have been made. The Committee also expressed its concern about the situation relating to women workers, in particular, the possibilities of equality as regards recruitment, although there were many women undertaking university studies. The Committee hoped that the next report from the Government would indicate in particular what steps had been taken to annul the circular of the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council of 25 February 1991 relating to recruitment of people who belonged to the Baha'i faith and that it would contain information requested by the Committee of Experts on progress made to eliminate restrictions on work by women which had been noted by the Committee of Experts. The Committee trusted that, on the basis of the detailed information announced by the Government, the Committee of Experts and this Committee would be able to note real progress in the very near future on the subjects that had been commented upon by the Committee of Experts.

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A Government representative stated that he would concentrate on describing the substantive measures taken by his Government to comply with the provisions of the Convention. While many of the points raised by the Committee of Experts were of a sensitive nature, he informed the Committee that they had now been discussed at the highest government level in his country. Drawing the attention of the present Committee to two reports prepared by the UN Commission on Human Rights (UN documents A/44/620 of 2 November 1989 and E/CN. 4/1990/24 of 12 February 1990), he stated that they contained examples of recent positive developments in the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran. These included a directive of January 1989 setting out official government policy on minority groups mentioned in the report with regard to Article 4 of the Convention. One practical result had been that 500 individals concerned had participated in the university entrance examinations. The directive had been brought to the attention of the relevant conciliation and arbitration bodies dealing with labour relations disputes. Despite the Government's preoccupation with international developments and the difficulties posed by the country's "no war, no peace" situation, another significant development had been the introduction of the first five-year national development plan. This plan was already operational and had been endorsed by legislation. The overall directives and policies of the plan were aimed at ensuring social justice and judicial security. This meant strengthening existing provisions and practice to ensure equality of all before the law as well as "the enforcement of justice and the protection of legitimate individual and social rights". The plan also specifically referred to "further participation of women in the social, cultural, educational and economic affairs...". The Government representative considered that this information should be sufficient to convince the present Committee of the Government's good faith in wishing to comply with the Convention and looked forward to constructive co-operation and dialogue within this Committee. While more detailed technical clarifications had been prepared and could be supplied if so re quested, he considered that these should be left for the detailed response in the Government's annual report on the application of the Convention, in accordance with normal procedures.

The Employers' members recalled that this Committee had often over the past years had to deal with the application of this Convention by Iran; for the first time in many years, there now appeared to be some shift in the Government's position. Some progress was reflected in the UN report quoted by the Committee of Experts; other points remained unchanged. The most important point concerned the treatment of the members of the Baha'i sect, freemasons and religious minorities. According to the UN report, these minorities were still excluded from the civil service and agricultral co-operatives. Many former civil servants among these minorities were still denied their pension rights. At the same time the Government had stated that members of these minorities had been able since 1988 to attend both primary and secondary schools but not yet universities, but that now more than 500 persons previously discriminated against had been allowed to take university entrance examinations. There appeared to be further change here which was to be noted with interest. It had also been stated that former shopkeepers had been allowed to reopen their shops and that under an agreement between the Prime Minister and the President, nobody henceforth could be divested of his rights, including social rights, unless classified as a spy by the competent authorities. Thus, there appeared to be a formal procedure under which no longer every Baha'i was a priori considered a spy. The Committee of Experts had asked about the practical application of the new rules; some details had now been given concerning the universities, and the Employers' members wished to be given more recent facts also on the other points. Actual practice was always the key to observance or violation of the Convention. One question was how the said agreement between the Prime Minister and the President affected persons not professing any religious faith, who were not mentioned here. The Employers' members agreed with the Committee of Experts that it was important for the Government to communicate the text which was supposed to have repealed the directive of 8 December 1981 requiring courts never to issue judgements in favour of practising members of the Baha'i group who had been dismissed. The statement of the Government representative seemed to refer to this text, which needed to be supplied for consideration by the Committee of Experts. The Employers' members also supported compensation for those who had been discriminated against in the past. A further point which required classification was the question of eligibility for workers' councils, as here again it seemed that there was discrimination on the basis of religion. All these points had been discussed by the present Committee many times. However, the information communicated by the Government representative seemed to intimate that at long last change was taking place for the first time in many years and that the long-lasting stalemate would seem to be coming to an end. The Employers' members would never accept that people should be globally discriminated against for belonging to a religious community without any regard to the individuals concerned. They hoped this violation of the Convention would now come to an end. Much remained to be done; the Employers' members were prepared to be patient, but further progress needed to be seen. They hoped that the Government would submit a detailed report and that substantially greater change could be noted next year.

The Workers' members considered the case under discussion to be one of the most serious cases to ever come before this Committee. They were fully aware that many difficulties in the application of the provisions of the Convention had been aggravated by the aftermath of revolution and war. Despite this situation, the Government representative had managed to show that positive progress had been made in aligning legislative provisions with the Convention. The Workers' members agreed that the United Nations report had contained many positive elements. While agreeing with the Employers' members that practical implementation was essential, the first hurdle was to bring the country's laws into conformity with the Convention. The Government representative had indicated that he had submitted the full report made by the UN to this Committee and was also submitting further legislation to the Committee of Experts. The legislation seemed promising and they hoped that the Committee of Experts would find that the provisions were in conformity with the Convention and would report back to the present Committee along these lines next year. The Workers' members agreed with the Employers' members that signs of progress could be seen and also agreed on the need for the texts mentioned by the Government representative to be examined by the Committee of Experts. If progress was confirmed by such an examination, the present Committee might at last be able to close the case.

A Workers' members of Liberia was pleased to note that the night sittings of past years had been replaced by a new positive approach based on genuine dialogue.

A Workers' member of France was pleased to see the changed attitude of the Government representative in his approach and in the replies that were being given. He felt that the Committee would respond positively to the Government representative's appeal for it to take a realistic and constructive approach to the situation in his country. He asked the Government representative for supplementary information on two key points mentioned in the report of the Committee of Experts. First, there was the question of whether or not workers could now stand for election to the Islamic Labour Councils irrespective of religious belief or cultural background, so that the sole qualification needed for being a candidate was that of being a "wage earner". Secondly, he would like to have more details on provisions authorising the appointment of women not only as judges and in the civil service but also in all other economic sectors.

A Government member of the United States acknowledged that the statement of the Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran indicated some improvements and in particular a more co-operative attitude. This had been one of the most difficult cases ever examined by the present Committee. It had been discussed every year since 1983 and during five of those years Iran had been cited in a special paragraph, four times for continuing to implement this Convention. While it was clear that there was a long way to go in both law and practice, it was also clear that proper dialogue had been established.

The Government representative appreciated the understanding shown by this Committee. He noted the various points that had been raised for further information and stated his willingness to provide supplementary details. The speaker pointed out that under article 13 of the Iranian Constitution all Iranian citizens were free in personal matters to act in conformity with their own religious beliefs and that this also included those persons not professing any faith. This was also quite clear under the 1989 directive. In this connection, a government survey showed that no claims of religious discrimination had been received by any conciliation or arbitration board. As to the questions raised by the Workers' member of France, he stated that women were not only entering the civil service but also a whole range of other occupations and professions. At present at least 52 women were employed in the judiciary of his country. Equality of opportunity and treatment was also reflected in the legislative measures being taken. As for the Islamic Labour Councils, he stressed that these Councils dealt primarily with welfare rather than employment conditions and that their function was to advise on such matters as training, promotions, wage rates and the allocation of housing. They were all tripartite bodies that had been constituted with the full participation of the workers. He questioned whether the eligibility of candidates for election to such Councils came within the scope of this Convention.

A Workers' member of Pakistan appreciated that Iran was going through a very difficult period of transition. However, he agreed that there had been some very positive developments including women's participation in all walks of life, the protection of individuals' social rights and the assurances that had now been given by the Government representative in relation ot the protection of minority groups.

A Workers' member of France repeated his request for more detailed explanations concerning discrimination permitted under section 2 of the 1985 Act on Islamic Labour Councils as regarded workers not practising any of the faiths mentioned under this section, and he hoped that this question would be reflected in the conclusions.

Both the Employers' and Workers' members felt that there were difficulties in discussing detailed questions relating to the five year development plan which contained some new fundamental principles of law, without having those texts in front of the Committee. They agreed that the correct course was to have these documents submitted to the Committee of Experts for examination. Precise questions could then be put to the Government representative of Iran in 1991.

The Committee noted with interest the information supplied by the Government. It welcomed the constructive attitude of the Government representative which had enabled a dialogue to take place within the Committee in accordance with the true spirit of the ILO. The Committee also noted the developments which had been mentioned and that further improvements seemed to be called for. It expressed the firm hope, based on the progress mentioned, that the Government would be in a position to report further positive developments and to provide the texts of measures that had been taken as well as those which were under consideration.

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A Government representative, the Assistant Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, stated that, whilst participating in the work of the present Committee with the aim of observing the true nature of the debate and the reasons for which the Islamic Republic of Iran was accused of injustice and violation of this Convention, he had observed that his country was asked questions which touched on the fundamentals of the Islamic revolution. His Government had undertaken a careful study of the report of the Committee of Experts, and, in its opinion, there had been no discrimination. The representative of his country had had a legal discussion about the question of the competence of the Committee, and technical reports had been sent; nevertheless, the case had not been settled. The Government had indicated that if there were any complaints, it was ready to examine them: but there had been no complainants. Numerous references had been made to human rights and indeed one might wonder about true human rights, about the role they had played and still played. Referring to the situation regarding human rights in his country before the Islamic revolution, he considered that at the time neither the Commission on Human Rights of the United Nations nor the present Committee had done anything against the regime. Whereas the question of the Freemasons and the Baha'is had been submitted to this Committee on many occasions and would no doubt be submitted again in future. The speaker then undertook an in-depth historical analysis of the role of the Baha'i movement and of Freemasonry in his country, of their links with the corrupt circles of the old regime, the leaders of which had largely been Baha'is or Freemasons or else had had close links with Baha'is or Freemasons, and with the Western powers which had controlled the country; they had even intended to establish Baha'ism as the state religion. Under the old regime, many of the present leaders of the country, including himself, had spent many years in prison and had been tortured, and he wished to know what the organisations concerned with human rights had been doing at that time.

Each year new problems were raised concerning the Baha'is and the question of women; the Committee of Experts had asked for religious minorities to have judges in the legal system, as well as for statistics on this point. The speaker drew the attention of the present Committee to the spies who are in prison in his country for having communicated such information to the outside world.

The speaker wished to point out that no Baha'i, no Freemason, no one holding beliefs other than the Muslim faith had ever been persecuted for his beliefs. Christians, Zoroastrians. Jews, were all represented in Parliament and had volunteered to serve in the defensive war. Baha'ism was merely a political and espionage movement, which acted against public order. Freemasons and Baha'is were prosecuted for acts concerning the misappropriation of public goods and for black-marketeering.

There cannot be any compromise on ideological questions; the Government would never, under any pretext, accept from the international organisations anything that was in opposition to its ideological objectives. The speaker recalled once again that if someone wished to make a complaint they could do so by submitting their case to the competent authorities. There had been no such cases as no minority was discriminated against. Non-discrimination was a fundamental precept of Islam. However, in order to maintain a healthy society. Islam rose up against all those opposed to the law and those people who showed too much indulgence for such actions would naturally have to be punished. In no case would Baha'is be allowed to emerge again in the country and their presence in the international organisations would be prejudicial to the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The speaker stated that in future any objection, any point raised against what was obvious, would not be accepted. The speaker asked a number of questions to which he wished to receive written answers: the definition of minorities, the definition of discrimination in general and in particular the definition of religion and the criteria enabling one to recognise a religion.

As the Workers' and Employers' members had asked the Government representative to restrict himself to the actual questions relating to the comments of the Committee of Experts, and as the Chairman had emphasised that it would be wise to deal with the essence of the questions, the Government representative indicated that he would send in his questions in writing. He pointed out that discussion had taken place previously within the Committee on the question of the application of the Convention, but it seemed that his Government's arguments were never taken up. He regretted that the report of the Committee of Experts had not mentioned certain measures that had been taken internally and also certain laws which had been passed. The question of the Baha'is was an internal matter and there was no reason to debate it within the Committee. Just like the other communities, this community had the right to work, the right to live, and the right to make representations to the legal authorities, as well as to the competent authorities which came under the Ministry of Labour, where their case would be considered attentively.

The Workers' members emphasised that, in employment and training matters, there was contradiction with the Convention, both in the law and in practice; that there was discrimination for politico-religious motives, which they considered an extremely dangerous state of affairs; and that this discrimination affected not only the Baha'i group but also other minorities. They mentioned tolerance and respect for civil liberties and hoped that certain signs now becoming perceptible would soon lead to a number of changes. They hoped that the workers would no longer suffer discrimination in employment and in training, a form of discrimination which undermined the reputation of the Convention, and whose existence was unanimously recognised by the international authorities and by a great many independent and objective individuals. Finally, they hoped that their concerns and those of the Committee of Experts and the United Nations would be reflected in the conclusions.

The Employers' members stated that the situation had been clearly described by the Committee of Experts; there was indeed discriminations in training, in employment and in the professions, discrimination against religious minorities, especially the Baha'is, the Freemasons and atheists. They had been disappointed in the statement by the Government representative, since they were not interested in hearing about the history of Iran and because the arguments advanced had been lacking in logic. In fact, they could not accept the reasoning which consisted of saying that, when the people responsible for bad government belonged to a particular religion, then that religion had to be condemned. Under such circumstances, all religions would have to be fought, since there were bad members in many religions. They would have preferred to have heard more specific information about the comments made by the Committee of Experts, in particular on discrimination in training and education. The Government representative had not referred to the changes that were becoming perceptible, and he had not provided any information about whether they were continuing. They expressed their concern about the statement by the Government representative to the effect that there were no more problems concerning Freemasonry because there were no more Freemasons. As for the Baha'is, it appeared that they had access to primary schools but that they encountered great difficulty in gaining access to secondary school and the higher educational levels, for which they had to renounce their faith. Women, for their part, were not allowed to exercised certain professions. They considered that the present Committee should take a position on all these points in a future report, and that it would be good to be able to note progress. They felt that considerable changes were necessary and, in view of the situation, they felt obliged to express their grave concern once more.

The Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran referred to the unusual step he was going to take, namely to support his Government. However, he felt that in fundamental problems of a religious nature one had to be guided by one's conscience. He recalled that the formulation of international labour standards usually led to the gratitude of the parties affected, notably the workers. As was well known, the Committee of Experts had to follow the principles of independence, objectivity and impartiality in its work. Unfortunately, he believed these principles had not been adhered to. He reiterated the opinion he had expressed in the Workers' group meeting, namely, that the views of members from non-industrialised countries were treated with greater severity by the present Committee than were the views of members from industrialised countries. In the case of the application of the present Convention in the Islamic Republic of Iran, these criteria had been set aside. As he had explained the previous year, the question of the treatment of Baha'is and Freemasons could not be taken into consideration in relation to this Convention. The reason was that the Baha'is were a network of spies, who had held key posts in pre-revolutionary Iran and had themselves been the main agents of discrimination in that period. As a result they had attracted the hatred of the people, including the workers, and this was why the speaker was supporting his Government's stand on this issue. He asked a number of questions, to which he requested written replies addressed to the workers' organisation he represented: (1) Some four years previously, his organisation had submitted documents to the present Committee as evidence of the spying of the Baha'is - he wished to know why the Committee had not replied with its views regarding this documentation and why no mention had been made of it in the report, (2) The Committee of Experts' report emphasised the role of the workers in the application of Conventions, and he wished to know why his organisation had never been contacted by the Committee of Experts in this regard; (3) He wished to know why there had been no reply to this Organisation's repeated invitation over recent years to the Vice-Chairman of the Workers' members to visit his country to observe the measures taken by his organisation to further the interest of the workers. In his view, the problems being discussed here by the present Committee were not the real problems of the workers of this country. He had things to say to this Committee about other problems but could not do so until this problem was dealt with, as his cause might be seen to be affiliated with spying organisations.

There were some doubts in the minds of the workers he represented with regard to the references in this case to the interim report on the situation of human rights in his country which had been transmitted to the General Assembly of the United Nations. He had noted that some countries which had ratified this Convention and had worse records on human rights had also been mentioned in the report of the Committee on Human Rights of the United Nations; however, he pointed out that the present Committee had not mentioned these by name. He also referred to the pressures being put on workers in the occupied Arab territories, and to a number of murdered Palestinian workers. He asked whether the ILO or this Committee did not have duties and responsibilities, quite outside their formulated functions, to defend the rights of the oppressed workers of the occupied Arab territories. He wondered about the operation of a double standard not in accordance with the principles of independence, objectivity and impartiality. He also referred to the time taken for the preparation of the report of the Committee of Experts in March 1989 and expressed doubts about the feasibility of the Committee of Experts having fully examined all the country reports in the short time available. Finally, he requested the present Committee to review their earlier investigations and decisions, and to consider whether indulging in international political questions was compatible with solving the problems of workers. He hoped that the Committee would be able to create an atmosphere of mutual understanding in which the real problems of the workers in his country could be addressed.

The Government representative stated that it was not correct to maintain that some people had had to change their religion and faith; many Baha'is had converted of their own free will, and there had been no pressure on them to change their religion. As regards access to educational establishments, the Government had harmonised the procedures and everyone was treated equally. As for vocational training, he was personally in charge of this and had no knowledge of either rejections or acceptances of Baha'is. There was no discrimination in the employment and investment fields; Baha'is were managers in enterprises and in economic and commercial services, from the lowest rank to the top management. the Public Inspection Organisation dealt with all complaints, without any discrimination. the administrative court dealt with offences committed by civil servants, without any discrimination with all the complaints referred to it. A law had been passed which broadened the scope of the right of appeal to the higher courts.

The speaker concluded by stressing once again that these political questions were polemical, particularly as regards the instructions given by the Committee on Human Rights of the United Nations, and by asking for this issue to be struck off once and for all.

The Committee had taken note of the oral explanations provided by the Government representative. It had observed with regret that there were no changes in the situation regarding the application of the Convention. As each year since 1983, the Committee had expressed once again its serious concern regarding the problems which continued as to the application of the Convention. The Committee had expressed the firm hope that the Government would abolish all forms of discrimination contrary to the Convention, whether on the grounds of sex, religion, political opinions or even social or national origin. The Committee expressed the hope that the Government would be in a position to report on decisive and substantial progress as to the application of the Convention already the following year.

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The Government has communicated the following information:

According to the Constitution of the ILO and the spirit of noninterference in the political affairs of independent member States, involvement in political affairs deviates from technical, professional and progressive objectives of the ILO. Unfortunately, the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, acting beyond its competence, has protected groups which plot to prejudice the national security and overthrow the legitimate and lawful Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This approach has led the members of the Committee of Experts to make unjust observations, which is unexpected from such an experienced and high-level legal body. This attitude is also partially followed in tripartite discussions at the Conference.

Laws and regulations in the Islamic Republic of Iran are compatible with the national Constitution, of which article 3, paragraphs 9 and 14 and articles 19, 20, 23 and 28 prohibit all forms of discrimination and are completly applied.

Also, article 173 of the Constitution provides that "in order to review appeals, complaints and grievances of people against authorities, public departments and rules, and to enjoy their rights, the Court of Administrative Justice is established under the auspices of the Supreme Judicial Council...". Fortunately, these bodies have been performing their duties successfully for years. Further, Article 174 provides that "based on the supervision right of the Judicial Power to ensure the proper performance and application of laws and regulations in the public administration sector, an organisation entitled the Organisation of Inspection of the Country is also organised under the auspices of the Supreme Judicial Council..." This Organisation has carried out its responsibilities since 1981. It will be noted that essential guarantees are thus provided to review the appeals, complaints and grievances of misguided groups such as the Bahai'is; cases have been considered, and complainants may, if they desire, appeal to the competent courts. Legal procedures recognised around the world require that the identify and other particularies of plaintifs bringing lawsuits to a court should be publicly known and that the defendant be informed of it before a case is determined. The anonymity of those who have referred their cases to the ILO makes those cases suspicious; reviewing such cases, even allowing preliminary examination of them by the Experts of the Committee, is far from expected. Notwithstanding the competence of national courts, these complaints have been appealed to the ILO; they are wholly motivated by policics.

The misguided group of Bahai'is not only patronised the former regime in Iran but also benefited from the oppression of elements within our nation during the beginning of the Islamic Revolution in 1963. It should be known that more than 15,000 Moslems were martyred and massacred in that revolt. Since then, this misguided group has collaborated and assisted in holding the anniversary ceremonies of 2,500 years of the notorious Imperial dynasty in Iran in 1971, during which billions of dollars were spent for ceremonies and festivities with the financial support of the Bahai'i group. These sums were spent despite the large population of disadvantaged persons living in rural areas of the country, who are deprived, for example, event of drinking water. In addition to propagating corruption and sedition in our country, this group has been directly involved in arresting, depressing and torturing revolutionaries and agents of the revolution. Further, they have been at the head of the ruling party of the former Iranian Government, a government which prejudiced the country's sovereign independence and, during the last days of the deposed regime in 1979, caused severe deterioration of the national economy by the illegal transfer abroad of hundreds of millions of dollars.

At the international level, this misguided group has had, from the beginning, illegitimate relationships with Great Britain; its founder was one of the obedient servants of the King of Britain, who granted him the title of "Sir".

An article of the Bahai'i group's constitution promotes relations with the regime occupying Palestine, as evidenced by a letter written by the Leader of the Group (Shoqi Afandi) to Ben Gurion (founder of Israel). Along with these developments, during the Arab-Israeli Wars, Bahai'i pilots intended to shell Arab positions. New documentary evidence indicates close and friendly relationships between the Bahai'i and the United States (great Satan). Current international assistance provided to this misguided group by arrogant world powers should not be ignored by the ILO.

Today, the above-mentioned group is a serious threat to Islam and Moslem people in all Islamic countries. Along with combating the atheistic group, the organisation of Islamic countries has called on the affiliated International Council for Islamic Theology to investigate the threat posed by Bahaism. Fortunately, this Council, in a recent session, adopted resolution (9) D4/8/88 on Condemnation of the Bahai'i Group.

The provisions of Convention No. 111, in particular Article 4, provide that measures taken against those who prejudice the security of the State ought not be regarded as discriminatory. The Bahai'i Group has so acted and is acting against the security of millions of Moslems. Unfortunately, the Committee of Experts has not carried out investigations of the nature of this group and has thus unintentionally supported their aims in a manner which is unexpected for such experienced experts. Before the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran, arbitrary dismissals, employment terminations and actual discrimination during the ex-regime were considered fair by the Committee of Experts. Matters such as these raise questions about the Committee's activities.

At present, there are no restrictions applied to education in the Islamic Republic of Iran; all are entitled to a free education without any discrimination. In the Iranian system, through a system of divided powers, the principle of non-discrimination is enforced in all fields by the Court of Justice, as well as the Court of Administrative Justice and National Inspection Organisation.

Hasty decisions by the Committee of Experts (including some with a Western-bias), made in absentia and without a view of the conditions and practices in the Islamic Republic of Iran, will not resolve existing problems or help maintain justice in member countries.

On the other hand, the Islamic Teachings, the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran and other laws are founded on abolition of all forms of discrimination based on colour, race, sex, creed and on other material advantages.

In addition a Government representative expressed the opinion that the discussion on discrimination in employment and occupation in the present Committee had gone beyond the normal technical and legal grounds that otherwise formed the basis for discussion. He felt that the issue had originally been raised with political motives behind it which had made it difficult to engage in a normal dialogue. Nevertheless, he was prepared to engage in a debate on grounds of common understanding. He noted that the Committee of Experts' report had been drawn up on the basis of three major sources of reference, namely the Government's report on the application of the present Convention, the discussions held at the Conference Committee in 1987, and the Economic and Social Council report on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran submitted to the United Nations General Assembly, document A/42/C48. He felt that since a direct reference had been made to document A/42/C48 the Committee of Experts should have made direct reference also to the statements made by the Government to the same United Nations organs and which had been documented by them. Referring to the Committee of Experts' request that his Government should supply full particulars to the Conference Committee, he stated that this had been done through the written communication which was presently available. The speaker then turned to Section 3 of the Committee of Experts' report in which the Committee had requested the Government to provide copies of any statutory instruments concerning the exclusion of certain categories of persons from governmental organisations. In another section of the report, however, the Committee had considered that the general provisions of the laws and regulations of the country indicated clearly that the dismissal of certain persons from their posts in the public service and State controlled bodies was based on their adoption of and holding onto a certain faith. The Committee had then requested the Government to repeal all the statutory provisions which were inconsistent with the policy of non-discrimination. To the Speaker, it was not clear on what grounds the Committee of Experts had come to the conclusion that certain statutory provisions of the national laws were not consistent with the present Convention. For if the national legislation had been available to the Committee of Experts there would have been no point in requesting the Government to supply copies of other texts; and if these texts had not been available to the Committee of Experts its judgements have been passed in vacuum or on the basis of certain preoccupations. In the same part of the report reference had also been made to article 163, paragraph 1, of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran under which, according to the Committee of Experts, women were barred from serving as judges. The speaker informed the present Committee that there was no such stipulation in that article and that the text of the Constitution could be made immediately available. He added that in practice women were engaged in and pursued their occupations in the national juridical apparatus. Referring to Section 2 of the report according to which primary and secondary schools were gradually being opened to Baha'i children but that the latter were subject to pressure unless they renounced their faith, and that admission to universities or any other higher education establishment was prohibited to Baha'is, the Government representative affirmed that no primary or secondary, nor any other levels of training and education, had ever been closed to any children on the grounds of their holding to a certain opinion and that no measures of harassment based on religion had been or were intended to be taken by the Islamic Republic of Iran. Turning to Section 1 of the report, the Government representative stated that the directive of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs according to which "the courts were bound to withhold the issuance of any judgment in favour of dismissed employees whose membership of the "misguided Baha'i group" or the organisations whose constitution implied atheism had been ascertained", had been misunderstood by the Committee of Experts. In fact, following the victory of the Islamic Revolution, in a considerable number of productive undertakings certain persons mostly holding key positions had decided to leave their jobs. These resignations and arbitrary work stoppages had resulted in a difficult situation for the national economy and were later coupled with a large number of appeals to the conciliation and arbitration bodies claiming compensations under the pretext of dismissal from work. This had resulted in even more economic and political pressure against the newly established Government. Under these circumstances, the Ministry issued the said circular to ascertain that claims under the guise of appeal for the consideration of dismissal from work would not distract its affiliated organs from their work. He stressed that the right of appeal did exist in accordance with constitutional provisions as well as other international laws and regulations and that pertinent organs had been created and were available to all those who chose to petition to them. The decision to maintain ratification of the present Convention was made by the Islamic Republic of Iran once it was established that the Convention called for non-discrimination, which fell in line with the objectives and the text of the Constitution. He considered that the Committee of Experts' request to repeal the terms of the Constitution was therefore tantamount to undermining the basis upon which the decision to remain a party to the Convention was made and that the Committee was not legally or constitutionally in a position to decide or impose on governments to recognise certain groups as religions. In view of what was said, the report of the Committee of Experts is unsubstantiated as regards the compatibility of the present Convention with the national laws, regulations and practice. Nevertheless the criterion of his Government is to invite the Committee to create appropriate grounds for constructive dialogue; a proposal aiming at establishing direct dialogue with the Committee of Experts was accepted by his Government. The Government representative requested that the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran be removed from the special clause in the Report of the Committee.

The Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran described the useful contacts that he had had with other members of the Workers' group. With respect to the present Convention, in his opinion, the real situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran could only be tangibly realised by persons who could witness the actual events. In fact, there was no discrimination at all in the country. At present, Baha'i children were studying like others and Baha'i workers were working in factories and other workplaces. He stressed the readiness of the workers of the Islamic Republic of Iran to receive some members of the Workers' group to ascertain these facts. However, he explained his understanding for the Government's inability to officially declare any positive measures in relation to the Baha'is and the Freemasons' organisations since these groups, in the last 120 years, had committed innumerable acts of treason and crime. Under these circumstances, it was not easy to change the prevailing negative atmosphere in the country. This would be noted as one of the major difficulties facing the Government in connection with the present Committee's discussion.

The Employers' members recalled that this Committee was dealing with this question for the seventh consecutive time. Basically the Committee's questions were always the same and always based on the report of the Committee of Experts which guided all their discussions. The matter here concerned discrimination and employment, access to professions, training, and working conditions. Those who suffered from discrimination were the Baha'is, the Freemasons and the atheists. The Employers' members recognised that the Government had always accepted discussion but that is where the positive aspect of the matter stopped. The Government never gave the Committee any information beyond the statements made to date, particularly concerning the most discriminated group, the Baha'is. The Government had given different versions for its accusations against the Baha'is. First they accused them of being a political organisation then they said they were spies and finally that they only had to give up their religion for discrimination to cease. For the Government the Baha'is' friendly relations with the United States constituted proof of the danger that the Baha'i group represented. The Committee of Experts had repeatedly proved that this discrimination was on religious grounds and that the Baha'is lacked constitutional guarantees to defend themselves because the courts were bound by a decree of the Ministry of Labour. The same applied to Freemasons and atheists. There was no change in the statement of the Government representative of the Republic Islamic of Iran. Further, his arguments focused on the last part of the report of the Committee of Experts while the heart of the matter appeared at the beginning of it and concerned the discrimination against the Baha'is which had become a long-standing tradition with the consequence that they were also discriminated against in training. The Government representative corrected the statement concerning the access of women to the position of judge and claimed that the Constitution had been misquoted. This proved that some things could be clarified if they were made clear. The Committee's questions and conclusions had remained unchanged but unfortunately so did the answers of the Government. The Employers' members felt that one could talk reasonably to every man, but had the impression that this was not yet the case today. The continued stalemate made the discrimination all the more serious, and the Employers' members concerns were not the lesser for it.

The Workers' members stressed the principles of the Convention and the uncooperative approach of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Government has stated that it would do nothing, that it disregarded the Committee of Experts' conclusions, and the Conference Committee's views. The Government believed that its ideological values had precedence over the values professed by the Conventions and it regarded the information of the Committee as partial merely because it came from Western sources. Furthermore, as regards the ability to judge the conformity of Islamic legislation and practice with the Convention, the Government had argued that the Committee of Experts should have Islamic members. The Workers' members believed that this would result in arbitrary interpretations of international Conventions, and strongly rejected this idea. They recognised only one interpretation for International Labour Conventions, that issued by the ILO supervisory bodies. The present Convention had existed for 30 years, long enough to create a solid basis for its interpretation. One should accept it or reject it but not compromise over it. The Workers' members could not but disagree with the reiterated statements, that the Constitutions was entirely in line with the principles of the ILO Convention, and responded completely to the aspirations of the Iranian people. Discrimination against any group and on any grounds is inacceptable. In their view, it was clear that the present Convention was not applied either in legislation or in practice. They requested the Government representative to give a clear answer on three questions: would the Government recognise the contradiction between the Convention and national legislation and practice? Was the Government ready to change legislation and practice? If so, would the Government inform the Committee of Experts accordingly?

An adviser wished to add some brief comments with reference to the application of the present Convention. Before the Islamic Revolution, Baha'is, Freemasons and Zionists monopolised the issue of certificates for the establishment of industrial enterprises and dominated every sphere of public life, including banking and credits, government facilities and public services. After the revolution, all Iranian people regardless of their ethnic or social origin, had gained access to all public services and social and economic activities. He himself established a modern factory after the revolution and there were now hundreds of modern factories run by people who had formerly been discriminated against. Before the revolution many workers in Iranian factories had been fifth columnists, and had sabotaged the Iranian economy. Having gradually been identify by revolutionaries, the fifth columnists had to leave their jobs, and they chose to do so freely. Later they began lodging false complaints with the authorities. However, under article 34 of the Labour Code those who left their jobs freely were not entitled to any dismissal compensation from the employers. If the Committee compared the situation before and after the revolution, would is still interpret this as discrimination, taking account of the above facts? As an answer, he extended an invitation to some of the Committee members to come to his country and see for themselves how modern production units were operating with the cooperation of devoted revolutionary workers without any discrimination.

The Government representative stated that this debate, like many previous ones, mentioned the same concerns that the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran had clarified formally, technically, and substantively. He reminded the. Conference Committee that the Committee of Experts requested the Government to provide full details at the 75th Session, In the debate, he had presented a number of technical points and would have expected some logical and technical response, but the judgement that was passed here was unsubstantiated, in the same way as it was done in the report of the Committee of Experts. The comments of the Workers' members were also emotional and unsubstantiated and did not match the technical quality of his own arguments. He wondered how the Conference Committee could discuss the aspects of the phenomena without taking account of the factors that had led to its creation. He reiterated that in the view of his Government, the Committee passed generalised judgements and made vague requests for unspecified information. For example, how would the ILO react to a request of all the literature about employment? The same held for the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran when it was requested by the Committee of Experts to provide unspecified information. He asked the Committee to specify what information was requested from the Government. He wished to reply to the three specific questions asked by the Workers' members. To the first question he replied that there was no contradictions between national legislation and practice and Convention No. 111, because otherwise the Government would have denounced it. To the second question, he replied that the Constitution was the essence of the Iranian people, and that this notion stemmed from the very essence of Convention No. 111 itself, which was meant to be ratified by States according to their individual national laws and practice. In reply to the third question, he stated that a direct contact mission according to ILO terminology was unnecessary in his Government's view because it strongly believed that there was no difficulty in the application of the present Convention. If there had been any difficulty the government would follow ILO procedures, which included direct contacts but was not the case. All of the three replies had been the same before, and remained the same now. He reiterated the invitation by the Employers' member of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Workers' spokesman so that he could see for himself the real situation.

The Workers' members noted that they now had three clear negative replies. It was with great sadness, and great regret that they had to state that for the third time that there was continued failure to apply the Convention and that the Committee's conclusion should be the same as in 1986 and 1987. They nevertheless hoped for an understanding on this matter one day.

The Employers' members wished to make two comments. First, the speaker who claimed he was an Employers' member of the Islamic Republic of Iran was not an Employer member of the Committee, although the Employers' members knew that before he took the floor. Second, the Employers' members noted no change in the situation, so they entirely supported the Workers' members' view, and agreed to state that there was continued failure to apply the Convention and that the legislation and practice in the Islamic Republic of Iran were not in conformity with Convention No. 111.

The Worker representative of the USSR believed that the source of the misunderstanding might be the consideration of two different dimensions of the problem. He himself had a very confused idea of what Baha'is were, and admitted that he did not understand their role before or after the revolution in the Islamic Republic of Iran. However, he shared the views of the Vice- Chairman of the Workers' members that a Convention should be applied. In this case, nevertheless, the Committee should perhaps analyse the situation in greater detail, as the Islamic Republic of Iran was a very special, particular example that could not be compared to any other country as regards its legal system. Perhaps the Committee should establish a special study group that could examine this question, or ask the Committee of Experts to deal with this question in greater depth and provide the Conference Committee with precise definitions so as to enable it to carry out is next discussion in greater precision. In any case, the question required further thought and study.

The Government representative noted that his Government was still waiting for replies to the question asked in his introductory remarks. He wondered whether these questions had been heard at all. He thought that it would be best to ask the Committee of Experts, whose repeated allegations were based on unsubstantiated reports of discrimination, who were those groups that were being discriminated against, and how did the Committee of Experts define a minority group? As far as he knew, there was no such definition in any United Nations literature. He would welcome such a definition in future. In addition, the Government had communicated a sufficient number of documents in its first report to the Committee of Experts. He was surprised to infer from the discussion that those documents had probably not been read or reviewed. In his opinion, the conclusion of the Committee of Experts and of the Employers' and Workers' members was indeed a foregone conclusion.

The Employer member of the Islamic Republic of Iran wished to state that he had asked his adviser to take the floor on his behalf.

The Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran put on record his strong objection to the conclusions and the manner in which they were drawn up.

The Committee noted with regret that the written and oral explanations given by the Government had not shown any change in the situation. As in 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986 and 1987, the Committee again expressed its deep concern regarding the problems which continued to exist in connection with the application of the Convention. The Committee again emphasised that the Government should abolish discrimination, particularly discrimination based on sex, religion, political opinion, and national or social origin, since such discrimination contravened the Convention. The Committee decided to mention this case of continued failure to implement in the general part of its report.

The Government representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran put on record his strong objection to the conclusions and the manner in which they were drawn up.

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The Government has communicated the following information:

As regards the observations made by the Committee of Experts, the following is emphasised:

(1) The activities of foreign-affiliated and espionage organisations and groups are illegal.

(2) Should it be proved in a competent court of law that certain people are members of such organisations or groups, they are excluded from employment in the government sector.

(3) This exclusion is merely due to the membership in illegal organisations.

It is not clear which Article of the Convention calls on the Government not to exclude from its employment the members of an espionnage or a foreign-affiliated organisation. Whereas Article 4 of the Convention stipulates that: "Any measures affecting an individual who is justifiably suspected of, or engaged in, activities prejudicial to the security of the State shall not be deemed to be discrimination...", in accordance with the irrefutable evidence and documents:

(a) The Baha'i organisation was established by the colonial Powers with a view to destroying Islamic values and creating disunion among Moslems. This organisation and its foreign supporters have been responsible for many instances of civil clashes in Iran.

(b) It has continuously been working in the interest of imperialist powers, and has given all-out assistance to them in disrupting Islamic unity in the Islamic countries.

(c) It has directly participated in many of the crimes of the previous regime through the management of the main departments of SAVAK (the Shah's dreadful secret security organisation).

(d) It has greatly shared in the economic exploitation of Iran during the previous regime.

(e) In the course of the victory of the Islamic Revolution, many of its members transferred hundreds of millions of dollars abroad.

(f) Today, this organisation is strongly supported by Western imperialism and international Zionism.

As regards the Freemason organisation the following is highlighted:

(a) The Freemason organisation was established in Iran by the British Empire in the 19th century. It was a secret organisation which was directed by the Embassy of that country. In the course of the victory of the Islamic Revolution important documents including the list of its members were obtained.

(b) The members of this secret organisation were among the most influential and powerful authorities in Iran. The majority of the prime ministers, the presidents of the Senate, and the speakers of the Majlis; a number of the cabinet ministers, members of the Majlis and Senate, capitalists, bankers, owners of the widely circulated papers, director-generals; and many other high officials whose treacheries have been unquestionable were members of this organisation.

(c) From the beginning of its establishment until 1953, when the National Government of Dr. Mossadegh was toppled by a CIA-backed coup d'état, this organisation had been the most powerful secret organisation in making the main policies of the country. Many of the colonialist treaties and agreements which intensified our country's dependency on colonial powers had been imposed by this organisation. After the coup d'état, in collaboration with the agents of the agents of the new imperialist power, Freemasons continued their destructive role until a short while before the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

(d) Many of its members and of those affiliated to the CIA network fled the country just before the victory of the Islamic Revolution and succeeded in transferring billions of dollars abroad.

(e) All the members of this organisation named in the list obtained have had a high level of education and training. Thus, any statement regarding the provision of equal access to training for this group cannot be relevant.

In view of the facts mentioned above, in accordance with the laws of the country, the Baha'i organisation and Freemasonry are illegal organisations and membership therein is also illegal. Every person who is proved by a competent court to be a member of these organisations is excluded from employment in the Government sector. The same applies to any organisation which acts against the principles of independence, national unity, Islamic precepts and the foundation of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

In addition, a Government representative stated that the information requested in the report forms and comments of the Committee of experts had mostly been already communicated. Some points, however, apparently required further discussion. He stressed that his Government had fulfilled its reporting obligations under the ILO Constitution. As for Convention No. 111, it had already been pointed out during the general discussion that the point at issue was the circumstances on which the ratification of international labour conventions was based. These were clearly set out in the ILO Constitution and in Convention No. 111 itself, namely national conditions and practice. A member State would decide on ratification after reflecting on the provisions of a Convention as regarded conformity with national conditions and practice. Therefore the criteria for assessing the extent to which a ratified Convention was applied also had to be based on national laws and regulations, national conditions and practice. In his country, as previous discussions had noted, all laws were based on Islamic precepts which had developed over a millennium and a half in the culture, tradition, practice and, indeed, all aspects of the nation's life. Islamic laws were comprehensive, detailed, precise and flexible. They covered all aspects of an individual's activity; Muslim's thoughts and behaviour were based on Islamic teachings.

The Workers' members stated that no change had taken place and that there was no choice but to note in the report that there was confirmed failure to implement as has been done last year.

The Government representative stressed that the Convention was being fully applied and highlighted the preoccupation just expressed by the Workers' spokesman. The gist of the matter was to hear whether Convention No. 111 was being applied in the Islamic Republic of Iran or not. He could state that it definitely was. The statement contained in the Committee of Experts' report which had been the basis of past discussions in the Committee had been clarified by the speaker during previous discussions, particularly over the past two years. What appeared to be lacking in this Committee today was full, mutual understanding based on good intentions. He felt obliged to deplore the manner in which important issues were being handled here; this was not the first time he had observed such behaviour. This Committee was meant to be objective and impartial. He was not prepared to continue dialogue in this atmosphere. This was unfortunate because he had commenced his statement in an attitude of mutual understanding. However, it appeared that this Committee wished to conclude this case now without hearing him out.

The Worker member of the Islamic Republic of Iran noted that this discussion concerned workers' rights, whether they be political or other rights, and that trade unions of workers in his country had been opposed to the harmful attitude adopted towards them and were trying to redress this. One could not exploit a people or a country which was trying to use its freedom. It was through production that a nation could earn the esteem of other countries, and production mobilised the active population. The report of the Committee of Experts did not reflect the facts and did not respect the rights of workers. For example, the language used by the Experts proved that, in the Islamic Republic of Iran, religion was of primary importance. The report mentioned the situation of the Baha'i group but did not state that Baha'is were spies who had been contributing secret information to foreign powers. The written information which had been sent to the Committee of Experts had indicated that there were many spies in the country who needed to be punished. Already last year, he has referred to the capitalist leaders of these entities and to the fact that, after the 1979 revolution, Iranian workers had been able to eliminate the Shah's regime which had supported these capitalists. The Baha'is had betrayed their country and were therefore a danger to national security. Before the revolution they had played a role in the repression of the workers' movement and the blood-thirsty acts of Baha'i leaders had not been forgotten. Iranian workers could not accept the return of capitalism.

The Workers' members recalled that in the general discussion the Workers' representative had raised the possibility of the Committee of Experts visiting his country to assess the situation on the spot. The Workers' members had replied that this was not customary but had noted that direct contacts were possible.

The Government representative noted that the question of direct contacts as to whether Convention No. 111 was being applied had already been put last year, and the same reply given, namely, that since it clearly was, there was no need for direct contacts.

The Employers' members noted that the Government had not spoken on the substance of the provisions of Convention No. 111. The Governments written reply was but a repetition of previous information. The Committee of Experts had noted that the Baha'is were considered to be spies and therefore suffered discrimination, particularly in their working life. This espionage and conspiracy theory was being referred to again now, but they noted that information contained in the United Nations Human Rights Commission document cited by the Committee of Experts agreed that there had been discrimination in employment. It appeared that Baha'is only got jobs if they renounced their religion. The Employers' members' reaction was therefore similar to the past. They believed that Islam did not permit discrimination on the grounds of beliefs and recalled that the Convention called for no discrimination on religious or political grounds. They were obliged to note that the Convention was not only not being complied with, but was being seriously violated.

The Government representative cited paragraph 40 of the United Nations report just referred to (E/CN4/1987/23) which had described the basis of Islam, including its respect for human beings and for differences of religion.

The Worker member of Pakistan recalled that, being from a brotherly nation, he was well aware of the atrocities under the Shah's regime. At the same time, however, he recognised the wish for a better life for all workers. He thought that this Committee should consider that Iranian legislation be brought into conformity with the Convention. He stressed that if some people behaved badly then they should be punished. A whole sect, however, could not be punished for the acts of a few members. Consequently, the Government should review the situation and continue dialogue with the Committee of Experts and the Office. He believed that Islam stood for justice and tolerance, and those who worked against this should be punished after a proper trial.

The Government representative, with all due respect to all the workers could not agree with them. The question under discussion was obscure; he had only commenced his statement and the rest of the information he had wished to give on the case had not been given. He therefore expressed his delegation's objection to the Conclusions and the manner in which they had been drawn up.

The Committee noted that the report due had not been received from the Government, and that, according to the information available, the situation had not changed. Consequently, as proposed by the Employers' and Workers' members, it adopted, as in 1986, the following conclusions:

The Committee took note of the oral and written information provided by the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran. As in 1983, 1984, 1985, and 1986, it again expressed its deep concern regarding the problems which continued to exist in connection with the application of the Convention. The Committee again emphasised that the Government should abolish discrimination, particularly discrimination based on sex, religion, political opinion, and national or social origin, since such discrimination contravened the Convention. The Committee decided to mention the present case in the general part of its report under the heading "Continued failure to implement".

The Committee decided to mention this case in the general part of the report in a special paragraph to this end.

The Government representative, with all due respect to all the workers could not agree with them. The question under discussion was obscure; he had only commenced his statement and the rest of the information he had wished to give on the case had not been given. He therefore expressed his delegation's objection to the Conclusions and the manner in which they had been drawn up.

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The Committee notes the discussion that took place in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in June 2010 and the resulting conclusions of the Conference Committee. The Committee also notes the observations of Education International (EI) of 31 August 2010, which have been forwarded to the Government, regarding discrimination against regional ethnic groups, religious minorities and women with respect to access to employment and education, and the persecution and prosecution of teachers, students and unionists advocating for social justice and for equal rights. The Committee asks the Government to respond to the issues raised in EI’s communication.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, while acknowledging that certain advances appeared to have been made, expressed its continued concern that, despite the commitment that had been made by the Government in 2006 to bring all the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by 2010, many outstanding issues raised by the Committee of Experts remained unanswered. The Conference Committee urged the Government to amend the discriminatory laws and regulations, to bring the practice into line with the Convention, and to promote public awareness of the right of women to pursue freely any job or profession, promoting the inclusion of women in the labour market and decent work for women. It also called on the Government to take decisive action to combat discrimination against ethnic and unrecognized religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i. The Committee notes that, although a report was provided by the Government in May 2010, no additional information has been received as specifically requested by the Conference Committee.

Legislative developments

The Committee notes the English translation of the Bill on Non‑discrimination in Employment and Education, which was provided by the Government. The Government indicates that this Bill has been submitted to the Commission of Social Affairs of the Cabinet of Ministers for further consideration. The Committee notes that, pursuant to section 1 of the Bill, all subjects of the Islamic Republic of Iran are to enjoy equal rights, and “colour, race, language, political or religious belief and the like, do not bestow or deprive them of any rights”. The provision goes on to provide more specifically for equal protection of the law in terms of access to jobs, employment and training opportunities, and to equal opportunities and treatment for all subjects, both men and women, given the prevailing circumstances and the national customs. It is then stated that any form of distinction, preference, differences and discrimination shall be forbidden in the following: access to education; access to technical and vocational training; access to jobs and employment opportunities, and similar working conditions for all nationals; and payment of wages, benefits, allowances and determination of working conditions. A definition of “discrimination” is provided in note 1 to the Bill, indicating that it “encompasses any unjustified exercise of distinction, exclusion, limitation, preference or privilege, which shall adversely affect or nullify equality of opportunity or treatment in occupation, employment, training or education”.

While recognizing the steps taken to adopt a specific law on non‑discrimination in employment and education, the Committee notes with concern that the Bill in its present form does not provide effective and comprehensive legal protection for all workers against discrimination in employment and occupation on the grounds enumerated in the Convention. The Committee notes that section 1 of the Bill summarizes general principles set out in the Constitution related to equal rights and equal protection of the law, and it is not clear whether the grounds enumerated in that context relate directly to the sentences that follow, which deal specifically with discrimination in occupation and employment. In addition, even if the grounds set out in section 1 of the Bill are intended to relate to non-discrimination in employment and occupation, the grounds of national extraction and social origin set out in Article 1(1)(a) of the Convention are not included. It is also not clear whether the law would apply only to nationals. The Committee notes further that the protection provided is subject to “prevailing circumstances and national customs”, which the Committee considers could allow a very broad scope for exemptions, which is not compatible with ensuring the fundamental right to equality and non-discrimination. The Committee also notes that note 3 of the Bill indicates that it is not to be deemed discrimination to define and categorize special jobs and occupations, to require conditions inherent to the job or special requirements for specified jobs, which appears to go beyond Article 1(2) of the Convention regarding inherent requirements of a particular job. The reference to legal and special measures or decisions regarding those in need of special support in note 5, should also be reconsidered in the light of Article 5 of the Convention, to ensure that special measures of protection and assistance are determined in consultation with representative employers’ and workers’ organizations, and do not reinforce discrimination and stereotypes, for example by limiting jobs women can do for reasons unrelated to maternity protection. The Committee notes that section 2 of the Bill provides for penalties, but does not indicate the avenue for obtaining effective redress for a violation of the right to non-discrimination. The Committee also notes that the Labour Law of 1990 is currently under review, and a specific objective of the review according to the Government is to bring the Law into conformity with international labour standards, including the Convention.

Noting that the Bill on Non-discrimination in Employment and Education has been submitted to the Commission of Social Affairs of the Cabinet of Ministers for further consideration, and that the Labour Law is also under review, the Committee urges the Government to ensure that effective and comprehensive legal protection for all workers, whether nationals or foreigners, against direct and indirect discrimination on all the grounds enumerated in the Convention is ensured, with respect to all aspects of employment and occupation. The Committee also requests the Government to review the procedures that would be available to bring a claim for a violation of the provisions related to discrimination, to ensure that they provide effective and accessible avenues for redress. Recalling its 2002 general observation, the Committee also asks the Government to consider including a specific provision in the Bill or the revised labour law aimed at preventing and addressing sexual harassment at work, both quid pro quo and hostile environment harassment. Noting that the information provided by the Government on complaints to the police seems to be limited to sexual assault, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in employment and occupation, which may or may not amount to sexual assault.

National equality policy

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs has presented a proposal to the Council of Ministers for the establishment of a national committee in order to guarantee the monitoring of the application of international labour standards, including this Convention. The Committee also notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the measures adopted by the judiciary to implement article 130 of the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan (Development Plan) empowering the judiciary to take measures towards the elimination of discrimination in the legal and judicial field. The Committee notes in particular the preparation of a range of bills, the public awareness raising, the courses for judges and lawyers, the joint project with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on advancing human rights and social justice development, the establishment of a Committee for Women’s Legal Studies in the Judicial Branch, and the establishment of a commission to remove discrimination. The Government also provides information on the role of the judiciary in implementing the Charter of Citizenry Rights, including abolishing six circulars which were in conflict with citizens’ rights and establishing a committee to monitor the observance of citizens’ rights and to take any necessary measures to ensure the maintenance of such rights. With respect to article 101 of the Development Plan, the Government states that the national plan referred to has been developed, and includes taking steps to amend the Labour Law to bring it into conformity with the Convention. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the progress in establishing the national committee on monitoring the application of international labour standards, and any reports or recommendations that have been issued by that committee, and any follow-up thereto. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken by the judiciary with a view to the elimination of discrimination in the legal and judicial fields, including specific reference to any impact of these measures on non-discrimination in employment and occupation. The Committee again requests the Government to provide translated summaries of the evaluation reports prepared pursuant to article 157 of the Development Plan, and any other information on the implementation of the Development Plan in practice, and the results achieved with respect to furthering equality in employment and occupation. The Committee also requests the following:

(i)    information on whether any of the circulars abolished or any of the cases addressed by the Central Monitoring Board on Maintaining Citizens’ Rights related to discrimination in employment and occupation and, if so, the details thereof;

(ii)   a copy of the Charter of Citizenry Rights;

(iii)  a copy of the national plan adopted pursuant to article 101 of the Development Plan;

(iv)  a copy of the sample labour contracts prepared pursuant to the national plan;

(v)   as the period covered by the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan ends in 2010, information on any new development plan that has been adopted or is envisaged;

(vi)  a copy of the Family Support Bill which has replaced the Charter of Women’s Rights; and

(vii) copies of relevant judicial decisions.

Equal opportunity and treatment of men and women

The Committee notes that measures continue to be taken to improve women’s access to university and technical and vocational training and, in particular, welcomes the information provided by the Government on the number of women and men in the different fields of study and training, with women making up the majority of those in a number of training courses in non-traditional fields, such as auto mechanics, electronics, welding, metallurgy, management and industries, and civil engineering. With respect to the quota system in universities in 39 fields of study, the Committee notes the Government’s explanation that the quota was introduced to ensure gender balance in those fields. The Committee notes, however, from official statistics provided to the Office, that women’s labour market participation in 2008 was 14.9 per cent for those over 15 years, which was a decrease from 2007 (17.3 per cent ), and even lower than the level in 2005 (19.2 per cent). The Committee therefore continues to be concerned that progress achieved in women’s education and training is not being translated into increased women’s economic participation. The Committee requests the Government to reinforce its efforts to ensure that increased educational and technical qualifications translate into decent jobs for women, and to provide information on measures taken in this regard. Please also provide specific information on the quota system in universities and how it is applied in practice, including the specific fields targeted. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide detailed statistics, disaggregated by sex, regarding participation in education, vocational training, and in the various sectors and occupations in employment.

The Committee notes the establishment in 2009 of the Socio-Cultural Council of Women with a mandate to make policy and to coordinate among various government institutions to promote women in education, law, public culture, social affairs, the economy, employment, international affairs and health. The Government also provides detailed information on women’s empowerment projects, the activities of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Association, the Association of Women Managers, and of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs. The Committee also notes that the Centre for Women’s Affairs of the President’s Office submitted a proposal to the Cabinet of Ministers in 2009 to amend the Labour Law with respect to family leave and to reduce the working hours of women. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on women’s empowerment projects, the activities of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Association, the Association of Women Managers, and of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs and also to provide information on the following:

(i)    the progress achieved by the Socio-Cultural Council of Women to promote women in education and employment, including specific measures taken in this context;

(ii)   details of the contents of the bills on family leave and decreasing women’s working hours, as well as the bill on home-based jobs which was referred to by the Government in the Conference Committee;

(iii)  any follow-up to the recommendations of the study undertaken for the development of women and family affairs, including for the development of plans for women’s empowerment.

The Committee notes the Government’s reply to the concerns raised regarding the increasing number of women working in temporary jobs and contract employment where they are not covered by legal entitlements and conditions, including maternity protection. The Government acknowledges that there is a regulation exempting companies employing less than ten people from certain provisions of the Labour Law, including the section requiring pregnant women to be given light work, but that these companies are not exempted from the section providing for maternity leave. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that women in temporary and contract employment benefit from all the legal entitlements and facilities. The Committee requests the Government to provide a full list of the provisions of the Labour Law from which companies with less than ten employees are exempted, and a copy of the regulation.

On the issue of reconciling work and family responsibilities, and the measures that had been aimed solely at women, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the law on the payment of stipends for those with large families has been amended to provide such payment to both men and women. The Committee requests the Government to provide more information on the amendment to the law on the payment of stipends, and to indicate whether it has been adopted. The Committee also requests information on any further measures taken to assist both men and women workers to balance work and family responsibilities, and to improve awareness of and access to protection and benefits aimed at balancing work and family responsibilities.

With respect to the concern raised in previous comments regarding the prevalence of discriminatory job advertisements, the Committee notes that the Government has undertaken an examination of job advertisements, which clearly indicates that a large number of advertisements call for only men or only women applicants. The Committee recalls that, unless being a man or a woman is an inherent requirement of the particular job, in the strict sense of the term, such a requirement is indeed discriminatory, and may be based on stereotyped assumptions of which jobs are considered “suitable” for women or men. The Committee requests the Government to take measures to prohibit discriminatory job advertisements and to ensure such prohibition is effectively enforced. Please provide detailed information on steps taken in this regard.

Discriminatory laws and regulations

The Committee, as well as the Conference Committee, has raised over a number of years the need to repeal or amend discriminatory laws and regulations. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a committee was established in April 2010, consisting of representatives of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Justice and the President’s Office, mandated to identify all legal regulations that could be in conflict with the Convention, and to present them to the Council of Ministers within six months. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the findings and recommendations of the committee reviewing the legal regulations that could be in conflict with the Convention and any steps taken by the Council of Ministers as a result.

With respect to section 1117 of the Civil Code, pursuant to which a husband can prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession, the Government once again states that, due to the existence of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, section 1117 is automatically repealed and courts are not authorized to hear complaints regarding section 1117. The Government clarifies that this is not related to the Family Support Bill. The Government provides information on proposals in 2006 and 2008 to amend the section, which were rejected by the Judicial Commission of Parliament as such amendment was not considered necessary. Recalling the concerns raised previously by this Committee and the Conference Committee that in the absence of an express repeal of section 1117, it would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities, the Committee again urges the Government to take steps to repeal the provision and to promote public awareness of the right of women to pursue freely any job or profession, and indicate the concrete measures taken in this regard.

Regarding the discriminatory provisions in social security regulations that favour the husband over the wife in terms of pension and child benefits, the Committee notes the Government’s general indication that some proposals have been made by the Centre for Women and Family Affairs, and that an agreement has been approved between the Rehabilitation Organization and the Ministry of Welfare and Social Security covering 34,000 female heads of household. With respect to women in the judiciary, the Committee notes that a proposal has been put forward by the Centre for Women and Family Affairs to amend the 1982 law on the selection of judges, so that women could be appointed to positions as judges qualified to hand down judgements. On the obligatory dress code, the Government states that there is no specific regulation, but that observing the dress code is a national norm and, if determinations of administrative violations are made, they can be taken to a review board. The Government also states that no cases of complaints of dismissal for non-observance of the dress code have been received by the judicial or administrative bodies. Regarding the age limit for hiring women, the Government again states that the maximum age for employment is 40 years and a five-year extension is possible exceptionally in the civil service. The Government states that the age limit is due to some capabilities and conditions and is a necessity. The Committee again urges the Government to take measures to address any barriers, in law or in practice, to women being hired after the age of 30 or 40. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the status of the various proposals concerning amendments to the laws and regulations raised previously by the Committee, including regarding social security and the role of women in the judiciary, as well as details on the agreement covering 34,000 female heads of household, and on any cases of dismissal or discipline due to non-observance of the dress code.

Discrimination on the basis of religion and ethnicity

The Committee notes that this Committee and the Conference Committee have on a number of occasions highlighted the seriousness of the situation of unrecognized religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, and the urgency of taking decisive action to combat discrimination against them. The Committee notes that the information provided by the Government is again limited to providing examples of companies owned by Baha’i, some cases addressed by the Human Rights Commission, and one specific case regarding the land rights of a Baha’i community. The Committee also notes that EI has expressed concern regarding the religious-based discrimination against the Baha’i in terms of access to education, universities, and to particular occupations in the public sector.

With respect to the practice of gozinesh, a selection procedure requiring prospective state officials and employees to demonstrate allegiance to the state religion, the Government states that two positions have been put forward regarding the Selection Law based on Religious and Ethical Standards, 1995: one group proposed that it be abolished, with selection decisions being solely based on qualifications; the second group proposed the amendment of some of the provisions of the Law. Both proposals were rejected, the first by a majority of members of Parliament, and the second by the Guardian Council. The Government states that the Law recognizes not only Islam but also the religions officially recognized in the Constitution. The Committee notes, however, that unrecognized religious minorities remain subject to the practice of gozinesh.

The Committee notes with deep regret that the Government has not taken action along the lines called for by this Committee and the Conference Committee over a number of years to address the very serious situation of discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i. The Committee, therefore, urges the Government to take decisive action to combat discrimination and stereotypical attitudes, through actively promoting respect and tolerance for religious minorities, including the Baha’i, to repeal all discriminatory legal provisions, including regarding gozinesh, and withdraw all discriminatory circulars and other government communications. The Government should also ensure that authorities and the public are informed that discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, is unacceptable, including in education, training, employment and occupation, and provide specific information on the concrete measures taken in this respect.

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government regarding the number of management positions filled by those belonging to ethnic minorities in selected provinces. The Committee also notes the concerns raised by the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) regarding the double discrimination faced by women of minority origin, and the discrimination faced by, among others, Arab, Azeri, Balochi and Kurdish communities in a number of areas, including employment (CERD/C/IRN/CO/18–19, 27 August 2010, paragraphs 9 and 15). The Committee notes further that EI indicates that regional ethnic groups are poorer, less educated, less represented in decision-making, and have less employment, and that the failure to provide all ethnic groups with access to quality education results in discrimination in accessing decent jobs. EI refers specifically to the Balochs, southern Azerbaijanis, Ahwaz, Turkmen and Kurds. The Committee asks the Government to provide detailed information on the education and employment situation of ethnic minority groups, disaggregated by sex, in both the public and private sectors, and at the various levels of responsibility. The Committee requests the Government to take concrete measures to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, vocational training, employment and occupation for members of these groups.

Dispute settlement and human rights mechanisms

The Committee notes that some information has been provided on the number of cases dealt with by the Islamic Human Rights Commission and the general nature of those cases. However, the information on cases addressed by other bodies is too general for the Committee to assess whether the dispute settlement mechanisms to address discrimination in employment and occupation is effective. The Committee also notes the information provided on the measures adopted by the secretariat of the Central Monitoring Board to maintain citizen rights, including awareness raising, inspection processes and educational programmes. The Committee notes further the concerns raised by EI regarding discrimination in access to justice. The Committee requests the Government to provide more detailed information on the nature and number of complaints lodged with the various dispute settlement and human rights bodies and the courts which relate to discrimination in education, training, employment and occupation, including any sanctions imposed and remedies provided. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken to raise awareness of the existence and mandate of the various dispute settlement and human rights bodies, and to ensure the accessibility of the procedures to all groups. Please also provide information on any progress made in the establishment of specific courts to address religious discrimination and councils of dispute settlement for religious minorities, which are referred to in the Government’s report.

Social dialogue

The Committee previously raised concerns that, in the context of the freedom of association crisis in the country, meaningful national-level social dialogue regarding issues related to the implementation of the Convention would not be possible. The Committee notes that the Conference Committee urged the Government to accept a high-level mission which would address freedom of association principles as well as the implementation of the Convention. The Committee once again urges the Government to make every effort to establish constructive dialogue with the social partners to address the continuing gaps in law and practice in the implementation of the Convention. The Committee also asks the Government to provide information on any developments regarding the mission referred to by the Conference Committee.

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The Committee notes the discussion that took place in the Conference Committee in June 2009. In its conclusions, the Conference Committee noted that, during its examination of this case in June 2008, it had requested the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues with a view to fulfilling its promises of 2006 that it would bring all the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by no later than 2010. The Conference Committee noted with concern the lack of information that had been provided to the Committee of Experts, and the range of serious issues that remained outstanding.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee, while acknowledging that certain achievements had been made in the past in respect of education, vocational training and employment of women, remained concerned at the lack of evidence of any real progress made with respect to their situation in the labour market. Detailed information on the number of women actually finding employment after their education and training was still lacking, and concerns remained with respect to existing and draft legislation limiting women’s employment. The Conference Committee also noted the need for information on the quota system in universities and how it was applied in practice, as well as information on the impact on women’s employment of the recent bill limiting working hours for women with children. The Conference Committee expressed continuing concern about the situation of religious and ethnic minorities with regard to their equal access to employment and occupation, and the failure to provide adequate statistical information in this regard. It concluded that the Baha’i continued to be subjected to discrimination as regards access to education and employment without any significant measures being taken by the Government to bring discriminatory practices, including on the part of the authorities, to an end.

The Conference Committee urged the Government to take immediate and urgent action to ensure the full application of the Convention, both in law and practice, and to establish genuine social dialogue in this context. It urged the Government to provide full, objective and verifiable information in its report of 2009 on the application of the Convention, in reply to all the issues raised by the Conference Committee and by the Committee of Experts.

However, the Committee notes with regret that the Government’s report has not been received. It must therefore repeat its previous observation which, in relevant parts, read as follows:

[…]

Legislative developments

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a comprehensive Bill prohibiting any form of discrimination in employment and education has been drafted. The Bill relates to access of all Iranian nationals, irrespective of gender, colour, creed, race, language, religion, ethnic and social background, to education, technical and vocational training, and to job and employment opportunities and similar working conditions. The Government states that violations of the proposed Bill would be subject to very heavy penalties and sanctions, unlike violations of the Constitution or the Labour Law. The Committee notes that this Bill is awaiting approval of the Cabinet of Ministers, and that the Government hopes to receive comments of the Office on the Bill. The Committee understands that the proposed Bill has not yet been sent to the Office with a request for comment thereon. The Committee urges the Government to forward the proposed Bill on non-discrimination to the Office for its comments as soon as possible. The Committee hopes that in drafting the new law, the opportunity will be taken to prohibit direct and indirect discrimination against nationals and non-nationals, on all the grounds enumerated in the Convention, including political opinion, national extraction and social origin. Noting the concern expressed by the Conference Committee that over the years a number of bills, plans and proposals had been referred to which had not come to fruition, the Committee hopes that every effort will be made to adopt a comprehensive law on non-discrimination which is fully in conformity with the Convention, in the near future.

National equality policy

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Charter of Citizenry Rights referred to in article 100 of the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan (the Plan) was approved by Parliament in 2007. The Committee also notes from the Government’s report that disciplinary measures, including dismissal, were taken by the head of the judiciary against the judges who failed to apply the Charter. As regards article 101 of the Plan, calling for the elaboration of a national plan for the development of “meritorious work” on the basis of a number of principles, including “prohibition of discrimination in employment and profession”, the Government indicates that regular meetings with the social partners are held in order to survey and monitor the implementation of this provision. No information is provided with regard to article 130 of the Plan empowering the judiciary to take measures towards the elimination “of all types of discrimination – gender, ethnic and group – in the legal and judicial [field]”. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Citizenry Rights as well as information on its application in practice, and detailed information on any measures taken against judges and other officials failing to respect and apply the rights set forth in the Charter, including any disciplinary sanctions imposed. The Committee also reiterates its request for information on the status of the adoption of the National Plan foreseen under article 101 of the Plan and on any measures taken to implement article 130. The Committee would also appreciate receiving specific information on the outcome of the meetings held to survey and monitor the implementation of article 101 of the Plan, including detailed information on the measures taken to implement this provision. The Committee again requests the Government to provide translated summaries of the evaluation reports prepared pursuant to article 157 of the Plan, and any other information on the implementation of the Plan in practice, and the results achieved with respect to furthering equality in employment and occupation. Please also provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to raise awareness of the Plan, in particular with respect to equality rights. The Committee again requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Women’s Rights, to clarify how the Charter and the Plan interrelate, and to provide information on any measures taken to implement the provisions of the Charter of Women’s Rights.

Equal opportunity and treatment of men and women

With regard to the measures taken to improve women’s access to employment and occupation, through increasing access to university and technical and vocational training, the Committee recalls that in June 2008 the Conference Committee, while noting the efforts to promote women’s access to university education, also noted the Government’s acknowledgement that there remained a long way to go in practice to remove the barriers to women’s employment. The Committee notes that in his report on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the UN Secretary-General pointed out that “women have limited participation in wage labour outside of the agricultural sector, estimated at 16 per cent, which signifies that the progress achieved in female education in the recent past has not as yet translated into increased women’s economic participation” (A/63/459, 1 October 2008, paragraph 51). The Committee also notes the ITUC’s allegation that quotas restricting women’s access to university have been secretly applied since 2006 in up to 39 fields of study.

The Committee notes that, according to official government statistics collected by the ILO, the unemployment rate for women decreased from 17 per cent in 2005 to 15.8 per cent in 2007. In the same period, however, the number of women in the occupational category of legislators, senior officials and managers, decreased by almost 20 per cent. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that the Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations is responsible for the supervision of the Presidential Circular calling for the guarantee of equal access to women and religious minorities to employment opportunities. Moreover, the Government indicates that various empowerment programmes for women were implemented under article 101 of the Plan. The Committee recalls that the Conference Committee urged the Government to provide the Committee of Experts with the detailed statistics it had been repeatedly calling for in order to allow it to make an accurate assessment of the situation of women in vocational training and employment. The Committee notes that these statistics were not provided. The Committee urges the Government to provide detailed statistics on the number of women and men in public and private sector employment, disaggregated by category and level of employment. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the number of women participating in the empowerment programmes mentioned in the Government’s report. Please also provide more information on the content and impact of these programmes. The Committee also asks the Government to provide a copy of the Presidential Circular referred to above and more detailed information on the role of the Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations in supervising the implementation of the Circular. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on the number of women trained through the Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO) and on the participation rate of women and men in the various disciplines of technical and vocational training in privately run institutes. The Committee further reiterates its request for information on the activities of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Guild as well as on the activities of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs.

The Committee notes from the ITUC’s submission that an increasing number of women are working in temporary jobs and contract employment, and thus are not covered by legal entitlements and facilities, including maternity protection. The ITUC states that since Iranian labour law does not require companies employing less than 20 people to abide by these regulatory protections and women often work in small and medium-sized enterprises, they may in practice face serious discrimination in the labour market. The Committee recalls that the Conference Committee had urged the Government to ensure that all entitlements and facilities are made available to women working in temporary and contract employment. Noting that no information has been provided by the Government on this point, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that women in temporary and contract employment benefit from all the legal entitlements and facilities, and to provide information on progress made in this regard.

The Committee recalls the Government’s acknowledgement that the existing imbalance in women’s participation in the labour market in comparison with that of men “is a direct result of cultural, religious, economic and historical factors”. The Government also raised the issue of the difficulty of women balancing work and family responsibilities. The Government indicates that the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs held regular workshops throughout the country to raise public awareness about ILO standards and the rights set out in the Labour Law. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that various workshops were held at provincial level with a view to “teaching Iranian women how best to balance work and family responsibilities”. The Committee refers to its previous comments and stresses that restricting measures to reconcile work and family responsibilities to women reinforces the assumption that women are solely responsible for caring for children. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the measures taken to improve awareness, access and enforcement of equality and non-discrimination rights and policies, as well as on protection and benefits aimed at balancing work and family responsibilities. It also again requests the Government to consider extending the special measures for workers with children to men as well as women.

The Committee recalls the findings of the technical assistance mission regarding the prevalence of discriminatory job advertisements. In the absence of the information previously solicited, the Committee again requests the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to prohibit such practice. Further to its 2002 general observation, the Committee also reiterates its request for information on measures taken or envisaged to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in employment and occupation.

Discriminatory laws and regulations

The Committee, as well as the Conference Committee, has raised over a number of years the need to repeal or amend discriminatory laws and regulations. In June 2008, the Conference Committee expressed deep regret that despite the Government’s statements that it was committed to repealing laws and regulations that violated the Convention, progress in this regard was slow and insufficient. The Committee notes with regret that despite the repeated call from this Committee and the Conference Committee for the amendment or repeal of the laws and regulations restricting women’s employment and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation, the Government reports no new developments since the Conference Committee discussion.

Regarding section 1117 of the Civil Code pursuant to which a husband can prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession, the Government states that due to the existence of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, section 1117 is automatically repealed and courts are not authorized to hear complaints regarding section 1117. The Committee notes from the UN Secretary-General’s report that a family protection draft Bill was being debated. However, it is not clear if the reference to section 18 in the Government’s report is a provision in the draft Bill. The Committee also notes that the same explanation was provided to the Conference Committee, which nonetheless expressed concern that in the absence of the express repeal of section 1117, the provision would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities. The Committee requests the Government to clarify the content of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, and how it automatically repeals section 1117, as well as to provide information on the status and content of the family protection draft Bill. Noting the concern expressed by the Conference Committee that in the absence of an express repeal of section 1117, it would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities, the Committee urges the Government to take steps to repeal the provision or to ensure that the public is aware of any consequential repeal due to the adoption of new legislation, and the fact that a husband can as a result no longer prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession. Please provide the Committee with detailed information of steps taken in this regard.

Regarding the discriminatory provisions in social security regulations, the Government indicates that it is collaborating with the social partners to launch a global plan for social security that would address amendments to the social security regulations. With respect to the limitations on women’s access to all positions in the judiciary, with particular reference to Decree No. 55080 of 1979, the Government once again refers to a Bill addressing this issue having been drafted. The Government rejects the existence of any administrative rules restricting the employment of wives of government employees. With respect to the age barrier to women’s employment, the Government states that the maximum age for employment is 40 years, not 30, and a five-year extension is possible exceptionally in the civil service. On the issue of the obligatory dress code, the Committee notes that no information has been provided by the Government. The Committee urges the Government to repeal or amend all laws and regulations restricting women’s employment, and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation. The Committee also urges the Government to take measures to address any barriers to women being hired after the age of 30 or 40. Please also provide details of the content and status of the most recent Bill regarding women in the judiciary.

Discrimination on the basis of religion

In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the situation of unrecognized religious minorities, and in particular the Baha’i, appeared to be very serious, and called on the Government to take a range of measures. The Conference Committee also strongly urged the Government “to take decisive action to combat discrimination and stereotypical attitudes, through actively promoting respect and tolerance for the Baha’i”, to withdraw all discriminatory circulars and other government communications, and to ensure that authorities and the public were informed that discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, would not be tolerated. In reply, the Government states generally that a circular was recently issued by the President of the Technical and Vocational Training Organization, providing that all Iranian nationals had free access to vocational training. Noting that the Committee has been urging the Government to take decisive action to address the very serious situation of discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, and the urgency expressed by the Conference Committee with respect to this matter, the Committee deeply regrets that the Government appears to have taken no action along the lines called for by this Committee or the Conference Committee, and urges it to do so without further delay. The Committee is also once again obliged to request information on the practice of “gozinesh” and on the status of the Bill that had been before Parliament asking for a review of this practice.

Ethnic minorities

Noting the very general information provided by the Government to the Committee’s previous request, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide information on the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, including the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks, including statistics on their employment in the public sector, and information on any efforts taken to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups. The Committee also reiterates its request for information on the positions from which members of ethnic minorities are excluded on the ground of national security.

Dispute settlement and human rights mechanisms

As no information has been provided regarding the Committee’s previous request on this issue, the Committee, stressing the importance of accessible dispute resolution mechanisms to address cases of discrimination, again requests the Government to provide information on the nature and number of complaints lodged with the various dispute settlement and human rights bodies and the courts, including the outcome thereof. The Committee urges the Government to take measures to raise awareness of the existence and mandate of the various bodies, and to ensure the accessibility of the procedures for all groups.

Social dialogue

The Committee previously raised concerns that in the context of the freedom of association crisis in the country, meaningful national-level social dialogue regarding issues related to the implementation of the Convention would not be possible. The Conference Committee also expressed deep concern in this regard. The Committee regrets that the Government has provided no information on this issue. The Committee understands, however, that there has been no improvement in the social dialogue situation in the country. The Committee, expressing its deep concern at the social dialogue situation in the country, urges the Government to make every effort to establish constructive dialogue with the social partners to address the considerable gaps in law and practice in the implementation of the Convention, and to demonstrate concrete results by 2010.

The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to take the necessary action in the near future.

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The Committee notes the discussion that took place in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in June 2008 and the resulting conclusions of the Conference Committee. The Committee also notes the observations of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) of 29 August 2008, regarding discrimination against women, which were sent to the Government for its comments.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee expressed its disappointment with the absence of progress achieved since it had discussed the case in 2006. The Conference Committee requested the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues, with a view to fulfilling its promises of 2006 that it would bring all its relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by 2010. The Conference Committee requested the Government to provide complete and detailed information to this Committee at its present session in reply to all the issues raised in its previous observation and those raised by the Conference Committee. The Committee regrets that despite this specific request, the information provided in the Government’s report is virtually identical to the information it put before the Conference Committee. In its report and the letter of 24 November 2008 accompanying the report, the Government acknowledges that it has had difficulties in obtaining the information requested, and that what has been provided is an “abridged report”.

Legislative developments

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a comprehensive Bill prohibiting any form of discrimination in employment and education has been drafted. The Bill relates to access of all Iranian nationals, irrespective of gender, colour, creed, race, language, religion, ethnic and social background, to education, technical and vocational training, and to job and employment opportunities and similar working conditions. The Government states that violations of the proposed Bill would be subject to very heavy penalties and sanctions, unlike violations of the Constitution or the Labour Law. The Committee notes that this Bill is awaiting approval of the Cabinet of Ministers, and that the Government hopes to receive comments of the Office on the Bill. The Committee understands that the proposed Bill has not yet been sent to the Office with a request for comment thereon. The Committee urges the Government to forward the proposed Bill on non-discrimination to the Office for its comments as soon as possible. The Committee hopes that in drafting the new law, the opportunity will be taken to prohibit direct and indirect discrimination against nationals and non-nationals, on all the grounds enumerated in the Convention, including political opinion, national extraction and social origin. Noting the concern expressed by the Conference Committee that over the years a number of bills, plans and proposals had been referred to which had not come to fruition, the Committee hopes that every effort will be made to adopt a comprehensive law on non-discrimination which is fully in conformity with the Convention, in the near future.

National Equality Policy

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Charter of Citizenry Rights referred to in article 100 of the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan (the Plan) was approved by Parliament in 2007. The Committee also notes from the Government’s report that disciplinary measures, including dismissal, were taken by the head of the judiciary against the judges who failed to apply the Charter. As regards article 101 of the Plan, calling for the elaboration of a national plan for the development of “meritorious work” on the basis of a number of principles, including “prohibition of discrimination in employment and profession”, the Government indicates that regular meetings with the social partners are held in order to survey and monitor the implementation of this provision. No information is provided with regard to article 130 of the Plan empowering the judiciary to take measures towards the elimination “of all types of discrimination – gender, ethnic and group – in the legal and judicial [field]”. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Citizenry Rights as well as information on its application in practice, and detailed information on any measures taken against judges and other officials failing to respect and apply the rights set forth in the Charter, including any disciplinary sanctions imposed. The Committee also reiterates its request for information on the status of the adoption of the National Plan foreseen under article 101 of the Plan and on any measures taken to implement article 130. The Committee would also appreciate receiving specific information on the outcome of the meetings held to survey and monitor the implementation of article 101 of the Plan, including detailed information on the measures taken to implement this provision. The Committee again requests the Government to provide translated summaries of the evaluation reports prepared pursuant to article 157 of the Plan, and any other information on the implementation of the Plan in practice, and the results achieved with respect to furthering equality in employment and occupation. Please also provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to raise awareness of the Plan, in particular with respect to equality rights. The Committee again requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Women’s Rights, to clarify how the Charter and the Plan interrelate, and to provide information on any measures taken to implement the provisions of the Charter of Women’s Rights.

Equal opportunity and treatment of men and women

With regard to the measures taken to improve women’s access to employment and occupation, through increasing access to university and technical and vocational training, the Committee recalls that in June 2008 the Conference Committee, while noting the efforts to promote women’s access to university education, also noted the Government’s acknowledgement that there remained a long way to go in practice to remove the barriers to women’s employment. The Committee notes that in his report on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the UN Secretary-General pointed out that “women have limited participation in wage labour outside of the agricultural sector, estimated at 16 per cent, which signifies that the progress achieved in female education in the recent past has not as yet translated into increased women’s economic participation” (A/63/459, 1 October 2008, paragraph 51). The Committee also notes the ITUC’s allegation that quotas restricting women’s access to university have been secretly applied since 2006 in up to 39 fields of study.

The Committee notes that according to official government statistics collected by the ILO, the unemployment rate for women decreased from 17 per cent in 2005 to 15.8 per cent in 2007. In the same period, however, the number of women in the occupational category of legislators, senior officials and managers, decreased by almost 20 per cent. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that the Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations is responsible for the supervision of the Presidential Circular calling for the guarantee of equal access to women and religious minorities to employment opportunities. Moreover, the Government indicates that various empowerment programmes for women were implemented under article 101 of the Plan. The Committee recalls that the Conference Committee urged the Government to provide the Committee of Experts with the detailed statistics it had been repeatedly calling for in order to allow it to make an accurate assessment of the situation of women in vocational training and employment. The Committee notes that these statistics were not provided. The Committee urges the Government to provide detailed statistics on the number of women and men in public and private sector employment, disaggregated by category and level of employment. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the number of women participating in the empowerment programmes mentioned in the Government’s report. Please also provide more information on the content and impact of these programmes. The Committee also asks the Government to provide a copy of the Presidential Circular referred to above and more detailed information on the role of the Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations in supervising the implementation of the Circular. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on the number of women trained through the Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO) and on the participation rate of women and men in the various disciplines of technical and vocational training in privately run institutes. The Committee further reiterates its request for information on the activities of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Guild as well as on the activities of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs.

The Committee notes from the ITUC’s submission that an increasing number of women are working in temporary jobs and contract employment, and thus are not covered by legal entitlements and facilities, including maternity protection. The ITUC states that since Iranian labour law does not require companies employing less than 20 people to abide by these regulatory protections and women often work in small and medium-sized enterprises, they may in practice face serious discrimination in the labour market. The Committee recalls that the Conference Committee had urged the Government to ensure that all entitlements and facilities are made available to women working in temporary and contract employment. Noting that no information has been provided by the Government on this point, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that women in temporary and contract employment benefit from all the legal entitlements and facilities, and to provide information on progress made in this regard.

The Committee recalls the Government’s acknowledgement that the existing imbalance in women’s participation in the labour market in comparison with that of men “is a direct result of cultural, religious, economic and historical factors”. The Government also raised the issue of the difficulty of women balancing work and family responsibilities. The Government indicates that the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs held regular workshops throughout the country to raise public awareness about ILO standards and the rights set out in the Labour Law. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that various workshops were held at provincial level with a view to “teaching Iranian women how best to balance work and family responsibilities”. The Committee refers to its previous comments and stresses that restricting measures to reconcile work and family responsibilities to women reinforces the assumption that women are solely responsible for caring for children. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the measures taken to improve awareness, access and enforcement of equality and non-discrimination rights and policies, as well as on protection and benefits aimed at balancing work and family responsibilities. It also again requests the Government to consider extending the special measures for workers with children to men as well as women.

The Committee recalls the findings of the technical assistance mission regarding the prevalence of discriminatory job advertisements. In the absence of the information previously solicited, the Committee again requests the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to prohibit such practice. Further to its 2002 general observation, the Committee also reiterates its request for information on measures taken or envisaged to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in employment and occupation.

Discriminatory laws and regulations

The Committee, as well as the Conference Committee, has raised over a number of years the need to repeal or amend discriminatory laws and regulations. In June 2008, the Conference Committee expressed deep regret that despite the Government’s statements that it was committed to repealing laws and regulations that violated the Convention, progress in this regard was slow and insufficient. The Committee notes with regret that despite the repeated call from this Committee and the Conference Committee for the amendment or repeal of the laws and regulations restricting women’s employment and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation, the Government reports no new developments since the Conference Committee discussion.

Regarding section 1117 of the Civil Code pursuant to which a husband can prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession, the Government states that due to the existence of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, section 1117 is automatically repealed and courts are not authorized to hear complaints regarding section 1117. The Committee notes from the UN Secretary-General’s report that a family protection draft Bill was being debated. However, it is not clear if the reference to section 18 in the Government’s report is a provision in the draft Bill. The Committee also notes that the same explanation was provided to the Conference Committee, which nonetheless expressed concern that in the absence of the express repeal of section 1117, the provision would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities. The Committee requests the Government to clarify the content of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, and how it automatically repeals section 1117, as well as to provide information on the status and content of the family protection draft Bill. Noting the concern expressed by the Conference Committee that in the absence of an express repeal of section 1117, it would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities, the Committee urges the Government to take steps to repeal the provision or to ensure that the public is aware of any consequential repeal due to the adoption of new legislation, and the fact that a husband can as a result no longer prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession. Please provide the Committee with detailed information of steps taken in this regard.

Regarding the discriminatory provisions in social security regulations, the Government indicates that it is collaborating with the social partners to launch a global plan for social security that would address amendments to the social security regulations. With respect to the limitations on women’s access to all positions in the judiciary, with particular reference to Decree No. 55080 of 1979, the Government once again refers to a Bill addressing this issue having been drafted. The Government rejects the existence of any administrative rules restricting the employment of wives of government employees. With respect to the age barrier to women’s employment, the Government states that the maximum age for employment is 40 years, not 30, and a five-year extension is possible exceptionally in the civil service. On the issue of the obligatory dress code, the Committee notes that no information has been provided by the Government. The Committee urges the Government to repeal or amend all laws and regulations restricting women’s employment, and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation. The Committee also urges the Government to take measures to address any barriers to women being hired after the age of 30 or 40. Please also provide details of the content and status of the most recent Bill regarding women in the judiciary.

Discrimination on the basis of religion

In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the situation of unrecognized religious minorities, and in particular the Baha’i, appeared to be very serious, and called on the Government to take a range of measures. The Conference Committee also strongly urged the Government “to take decisive action to combat discrimination and stereotypical attitudes, through actively promoting respect and tolerance for the Baha’i”, to withdraw all discriminatory circulars and other government communications, and to ensure that authorities and the public were informed that discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, would not be tolerated. In reply, the Government states generally that a circular was recently issued by the President of the Technical and Vocational Training Organization, providing that all Iranian nationals had free access to vocational training. Noting that the Committee has been urging the Government to take decisive action to address the very serious situation of discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, and the urgency expressed by the Conference Committee with respect to this matter, the Committee deeply regrets that the Government appears to have taken no action along the lines called for by this Committee or the Conference Committee, and urges it to do so without further delay. The Committee is also once again obliged to request information on the practice of “gozinesh” and on the status of the Bill that had been before Parliament asking for a review of this practice.

Ethnic minorities

Noting the very general information provided by the Government to the Committee’s previous request, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide information on the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, including the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks, including statistics on their employment in the public sector, and information on any efforts taken to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups. The Committee also reiterates its request for information on the positions from which members of ethnic minorities are excluded on the ground of national security.

Dispute settlement and human rights mechanisms

As no information has been provided regarding the Committee’s previous request on this issue, the Committee, stressing the importance of accessible dispute resolution mechanisms to address cases of discrimination, again requests the Government to provide information on the nature and number of complaints lodged with the various dispute settlement and human rights bodies and the courts, including the outcome thereof. The Committee urges the Government to take measures to raise awareness of the existence and mandate of the various bodies, and to ensure the accessibility of the procedures for all groups.

Social dialogue

The Committee previously raised concerns that in the context of the freedom of association crisis in the country, meaningful national-level social dialogue regarding issues related to the implementation of the Convention would not be possible. The Conference Committee also expressed deep concern in this regard. The Committee regrets that the Government has provided no information on this issue. The Committee understands, however, that there has been no improvement in the social dialogue situation in the country. The Committee, expressing its deep concern at the social dialogue situation in the country, urges the Government to make every effort to establish constructive dialogue with the social partners to address the considerable gaps in law and practice in the implementation of the Convention, and to demonstrate concrete results by 2010.

[The Government is asked to supply full particulars to the Conference at its 98th Session and to reply in detail to the present comments in 2009.]

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1. The Committee notes the Government’s report, as well as the discussion that took place in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in June 2006, the resulting conclusions of the Conference Committee, and the report of the technical assistance mission that took place in October 2007.

2. National equality policy. The Committee notes the Conference Committee’s request that the Government provide a mid-term assessment in its report to this Committee on the steps taken to bring all its relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by no later than 2010, as this would mark the end of the period covered by the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan (the Plan). The Plan provides guiding principles for the drafting of laws and policies. Articles 100 and 101 stress the importance of human rights. Article 100 requires the Government to formulate a “Charter of Citizenry Rights”, encompassing a number of principles, including “securing freedom and security needed for the development of the social organizations in the area of preservation of the rights of women and children” and “propagating the unification and respectability concepts toward social groups and different ethnic groups in the national culture”. Article 101 requires the Government to prepare a national plan for the development of “meritorious work” on the basis of a number of principles, including “prohibition of discrimination in employment and profession”. Article 130 empowers the judiciary to take measures towards the elimination “of all types of discrimination – gender, ethnic and group – in the legal and judicial [field]”.

3. The Committee also notes the findings of the technical assistance mission that annual monitoring and evaluation reports required under article 157 of the Plan have been prepared, and that translated summaries will be provided to the Committee. The mission also notes that the Plan does not seem to have been well publicized as there was generally little awareness of its contents beyond certain government departments. The Government also refers to the Charter of Women’s Rights adopted in 2004. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the status of the adoption of the Charter of Citizenry Rights and of the National Plan foreseen under articles 100 and 101, and any measures taken to implement article 130. The Committee looks forward to receiving the translated summaries of the evaluation reports prepared, and any other information on the implementation of the Plan in practice, and the results achieved with respect to furthering equality in employment and occupation. Please also provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to raise awareness of the Plan, in particular with respect to equality rights. The Committee also requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Women’s Rights, to clarify how the Charter and the Plan interrelate, and to provide information on any measures taken to implement the provisions of the Charter.

4. Equal opportunity and treatment for men and women. The Committee notes the various initiatives to which the Government refers in its report aimed at improving women’s access to employment and occupation, in particular through increasing access to universities and technical and vocational training, establishing women’s cooperatives, and promoting women’s entrepreneurship. The Government emphasizes the importance of supporting women’s entrepreneurship, and to this end refers to a number of measures, including the establishment of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Guild, easing requirements for women to access loans and grants to start a business, designing a data bank for women’s entrepreneurship, and technical assistance provided by the ILO. The various initiatives of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs regarding skill development, women’s cooperatives and entrepreneurship are also enumerated. According to the figures provided in the Government’s report, in 2006, 55 per cent of the new students admitted to state universities were women, with representation in all faculties. Women’s participation in vocational and technical training has also increased. In the public Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO), in 2006, a number of women undertook training in financial and business affairs, “wood industries” and civil engineering, though the largest proportion of women were concentrated in the area of information technology. The Committee welcomes the information regarding the number of women trained through the TVTO in a range of disciplines, and requests the Government to continue providing updated information in this regard. Given that the large majority of women are trained through private institutes, please also provide information on the participation rate of women and men in the various disciplines of technical and vocational training in institutes that are privately run. The Committee would also like to receive information regarding how the education and training received by women translates into employment opportunities once they have completed the courses. The Committee also requests information on the activities of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Guild, as well as other initiatives to promote women’s entrepreneurship. The Committee would also appreciate continuing to receive information on the activities of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs.

5. The Committee notes that while the level of women’s participation in the labour market remains low, it has increased from 12.2 per cent in 2003 to 13.8 per cent in 2006, and the unemployment rate for women has decreased from 19.6 per cent in 2002 to 17 per cent in 2006, according to official government figures collected by the ILO. The Government has provided some general statistics in the report regarding the rate of employment of women and men. The Committee understands from the report of the technical assistance mission that the national statistical centre and the bureau of statistics have considerable data available, disaggregated by sex, on the employment situation in the country, but that much of it is not available to the public. However, the relevant tables have been requested by the mission team. The Committee hopes that detailed statistics on the number of women and men in public and private sector employment, disaggregated by category and level of employment, will be provided without delay, to allow the Committee to make an accurate assessment of the extent of progress made in the situation of women in accessing higher level and non-traditional jobs.

6. The Government acknowledges that the existing imbalance in women’s participation in the labour market in comparison with that of men, “is a direct result of cultural, religious, economic and historical factors”. The Government also raises the issue of the difficulty of women balancing work and family responsibilities. The Committee notes the findings of the mission also pointing to the difficulty for women in taking on increasing work responsibilities, without any decrease in their family responsibilities. Some measures exist, such as a legal requirement for childcare facilities at or near the workplace, and a reduced working day. They are, however, available only to women, thus reinforcing the assumption that women are solely responsible for caring for children. Many women are unable to benefit from the measures because they are often not provided in practice, and also due to the fact that a large proportion of women are hired under temporary contracts. With respect to awareness raising, the Committee notes that the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs has held a number of workshops in labour offices since 2005, on the issue of discrimination, addressing over 1,000 participants, and on “women’s labour”, with over 19,000 participants. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on measures taken to improve awareness, access and enforcement of equality and non-discrimination rights and policies, as well as on protections and benefits aimed at balancing work and family responsibilities. The Committee asks the Government to consider extending the special measures for workers with children to men as well as women.

7. Noting the findings of the mission regarding the prevalence of discriminatory job advertisements, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to prohibit such practice. Further to its 2002 general observation, the Committee again requests the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in employment and occupation.

8. Discriminatory laws and regulations. The Government indicates that it has taken steps to involve law makers more closely on the issue of the need to amend or repeal discriminatory laws and regulations, and that it is constantly seeking the assistance of the social partners and non-governmental organizations in processes and negotiations that will hopefully lead to the revision of the laws and practices that are in contradiction with the Convention. However, the Committee notes that none of the provisions to which the Committee has been referring for a number of years, as set out below, have yet been amended or repealed.

9. The Committee notes the finding of the mission team that there was general acknowledgement that section 1117 of the Civil Code and the discriminatory provisions in social security regulations need to be repealed. According to the report of the mission, section 1117 of the Civil Code, which allows a husband to bring a court action preventing his wife from taking up a job or profession, has a negative impact in practice on the ability of women to enter the workforce. Attempts in the past to have this provision repealed have been unsuccessful and new initiatives have been launched; however, the report of the mission states further that “it remains to be seen whether these initiatives will be successful”. There are also a number of initiatives under way with the aim of amending the provisions of the social security regulations that favour the husband over the wife in terms of pension and child benefits, as these provisions give rise to considerable difficulties for women. With respect to the administrative rules restricting the employment of wives of government employees, the Committee regrets to note that once again the Government has provided no information on this matter. The Committee also notes that according to the mission report, there appears to be a legal barrier to being hired after the age of 30, thus impeding women who take career breaks for reasons of maternity or caring for young children from re-entering the labour market. Noting that the Committee has asked the Government over many years to repeal legal and administrative provisions that are not in conformity with the Convention, and noting further the urgency expressed by the Conference Committee with respect to this matter, the Committee urges the Government to repeal the relevant provisions without delay, and to inform the Committee of the concrete steps taken in this regard. Please also provide information on any legal obstacles to applying for jobs after the age of 30, and on any measures taken or envisaged to amend or repeal such provisions.

10. With respect to women’s access to the judiciary, from the Government’s report, it appears that Decree No. 55080 of 1979 changing the status of female judges from judicial to administrative, thus preventing them from issuing verdicts, remains in force. The Government stresses, however, that due to recent reforms in the judiciary, women now occupy a range of judicial positions, including assistant prosecutor, remand judges, adviser to the court of appeal, adviser to the family court, and judge of guardianship and minors. The Government goes on to note that a new Bill has been introduced to elevate women as adviser judges in other types of cases, and that granting them full authority “is being seriously looked into”. The Committee notes from the report of the mission that statistics on the number of men and women in the judicial system and their rank have been requested. The Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that there are no obstacles in law or in practice to women having access on an equal footing with men to all positions in the judiciary and with the same powers, and asks the Government to provide details of the measures taken in this regard. Please also provide details of the content and status of the most recent Bill regarding women in the judiciary that has been introduced, as well as statistics on the number of women and men at each level of the judiciary.

11. Regarding the obligatory dress code for women and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on administrative infringements, the Committee has for a number of years raised concerns that this could have a negative impact on the employment of non-Islamic women in the public sector. The Committee has also raised similar concerns regarding the disciplinary rules for university and higher education institutes students. In the absence of any information in the Government’s report on this issue, the Committee urges the Government to provide detailed information on the manner in which the abovementioned administrative and disciplinary rules regarding the dress code are being applied in practice with respect to education and employment, including information on the number of violations of the dress code and the sanctions imposed. The Committee must also again repeat its request for information on the status, contents and objectives of a bill concerning the dress code that was forwarded to Parliament in 2004.

12. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The Committee notes from the report of the mission that a clear distinction is made in law and practice between recognized and unrecognized religious minorities. Recognized religious minorities have reserved seats in Parliament, are entitled to apply for positions in the public sector, and there is a quota system for hiring teachers from recognized religious minorities. However, the report of the mission goes on to state that the situation with respect to unrecognized religious minorities, and in particular the Baha’i appears to be very serious, “and there is no indication that the situation will change in the near future”. They cannot apply for public sector positions, and under the circular of the Presidential High Screening Board, cannot be hired as teachers. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that statistics pertaining to the employment of the Baha’i and other religious and ethnic minorities are not collected “because of the likely misinterpretation such an attempt may cause among the minorities of Iran”.

13. With reference to the Baha’i, the Committee notes from the report of the mission, that out of a university population of 3.6 million students, the Government could identify only 23 Baha’i. The mission also learned that the Baha’i are not permitted to attend TVTO training. They have also been denied their pension entitlement on the express ground of being Baha’i, though the mission was informed that some measures are being taken to ensure that these pension entitlements are paid. The Committee notes the information from the mission that there appears to be “a general and deeply rooted climate of intolerance against the Baha’i that has a negative impact on their equality of opportunity and treatment in education, employment and occupation”. The Committee also notes the circular referred to by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief on increasing the surveillance of the Baha’i, as well as her reference to an increasing media campaign against the Baha’i faith (Human Rights Council, A/HRC/4/21/Add.1, 8 March 2007, paragraphs 181–183). The Committee is deeply concerned that the climate of intolerance against the Baha’i is a serious obstacle to their equality of access and opportunities to education, training, employment and occupation, and urges the Government to take active and effective measures to promote respect and tolerance for unrecognized religious minorities. The Committee urges the Government to ensure that all circulars or other government communications relating to limiting activities of the Baha’i in education, training, employment or occupation, are withdrawn without delay, and to take proactive measures to address the existing discrimination against the Baha’i. The Committee must also reiterate its previous comment on the practice of “gozinesh”, and requests information on this practice, and on the status of the Bill that had been before Parliament asking for a review of this practice.

14. Ethnic minorities. The Committee had previously requested the Government to provide statistics referred to by the Government on the increasing number of public sector positions filled by members of ethnic minorities. The Committee welcomes the information provided by the Government on the number of political positions occupied by ethnic minorities. The Committee notes from the report of the mission that members of ethnic minority groups are excluded from some positions on the ground of national security. The Committee again asks the Government to provide information on the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, including the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks, in particular the statistics on their employment in the public sector, and information on any efforts taken to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups. Please also provide information on the positions from which members of ethnic minorities are excluded on the ground of national security.

15. Dispute settlement and human rights mechanisms. The Committee notes that there are a number of potential avenues for bringing complaints of discrimination, including the National Commission on Human Rights, the Islamic Commission on Human Rights, Parliamentary Article 98 Commission, the courts and the dispute settlement boards. The Committee notes that the National Commission on Human Rights was established in December 2005, and is mandated to deal with the rights of minorities. The Committee notes from the report of the mission that there appears to be a lack of awareness of the various bodies and procedures, and in some cases fear of victimization may be an obstacle to lodging a complaint. The issue of accessibility of the procedures, in particular for those alleging religious discrimination, was also raised. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number and nature of complaints lodged with the various dispute settlement and human rights bodies and the courts, including their outcome. The Committee also requests the Government to take measures to raise awareness of the existence and mandate of the various bodies, and to ensure the accessibility of the procedures for all groups.

16. Social dialogue. The Government in its report stresses its strong commitment for constructive dialogue with the social partners and intensifying its cooperation with the ILO regarding implementation of the Convention. However, the Committee is concerned that in the context of the present freedom of association crisis in the country, as described in the report of the technical assistance mission, meaningful social dialogue on these issues at the national level is not currently possible. The Committee also notes that while some steps have been made towards meeting the objective of bringing the relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention, much still remains to be done. The Committee requests the Government to intensify its efforts to bring its legislation and practice into conformity with the Convention, in order to be able to demonstrate tangible results by 2010.

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Further to its observation, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the following points.

1. Discrimination on the basis of political opinion or religion. The Committee recalls the discussion in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in 2003. It notes that the Worker members, referring to a report prepared by Amnesty International for the 2003 International Labour Conference, raised questions relating to the practice of "gozinesh", which impaired equality of opportunity and treatment on the basis of political opinion, previous political affiliation or support, or religious affiliation for all those seeking employment in the public sector and in parts of the private sector, contrary to article 23 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Committee notes that in reply to these comments, the Government indicated that a Bill had been adopted in Parliament asking for a review of this practice. Noting that no further information regarding this issue has been received, the Committee requests the Government to provide further information in its next report regarding this practice and the impact of the Bill to which the Government refers.

2. Discrimination based on sex. Sexual harassment. Further to its 2002 general observation on Convention No. 111, the Committee requests the Government to provide further information in its next report on the measures taken or envisaged to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in employment and occupation.

3. Employment of women. The Committee notes the Government’s statement in its 2004 report that, when assessing women’s participation in the labour market, account should be taken of the large number of women engaged in domestic work, home work, work on family farms, part-time work and casual work, which are not reflected in the statistics. While appreciating that these jobs may provide employment opportunities for women and may assist them in reconciling work and family responsibilities, the Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that care should be taken that these "atypical" employment relations, many of which are prejudicial to income and job security, do not unduly disadvantage women on the labour market. The Committee would therefore encourage the Government to continue to take measures and even increase its efforts to improve the economic status of women and to increase their participation in quality employment, including higher level decision-making positions, and to provide information on the measures taken to ensure that "atypical" employment relations do not disadvantage women in the labour market.

4. Social dialogue. The Committee notes the statement by the Government that, with the emergence of dispute settlement boards, the ground necessary for the active participation of women in issuing verdicts in dispute settlement boards has been created. Emphasizing the importance of women participating in social dialogue for the promotion of equality, the Committee requests the Government to provide information, disaggregated by sex, in its next report on the representation of men and women in dispute settlement boards.

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The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its reports submitted in June 2004 and November 2005, including the report on the National Conference on Women’s Employment, Empowerment and Equality, held in March 2004.

1. Discrimination on the basis of sex. Over the past few years the Committee has been noting the positive initiatives taken by the Government to improve the access of women to education, training and jobs. Despite these efforts, however, the level of women’s participation in the labour market remained low (12.2 per cent in 2003) and women’s unemployment rate continued to be twice as high as men’s (19.6 per cent and 10.9 per cent respectively in 2002). The Committee notes from the latest information submitted by the Government that although women’s participation levels in universities continue to increase, women’s unemployment rate is also increasing (21.3 per cent in 2003). The Committee further notes from the information submitted that despite progress made over the past few years, vertical and horizontal occupational segregation prevails, and women continue to face inequalities with respect to promotion and access to decision-making and management positions. Most female managers are in the education sector, and the ratio of women’s employment as legislators, high-ranking officials and managers is less than 0.6 per cent. Recent studies also indicate that the reinforcement of stereotypical attitudes on gender roles over time has become an obstacle to the improvement of women’s participation in employment.

2. The Committee notes that a High-level Tripartite National Conference on Women’s Employment, Empowerment and Equality was held in Tehran in March 2004, organized by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in close collaboration with the ILO. During this Conference, many of the issues previously raised by the Committee were discussed. The Committee notes that the Conference adopted the National Strategy for Promoting Women’s Employment, Empowerment and Equality containing recommendations in the areas of legislation and policy-making, labour market policies, entrepreneurship development and poverty eradication. It also notes that during the Conference, the Government expressed its commitment to integrate these recommendations into the 4th Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan (2005-10). The Committee particularly welcomes the proposal to set up a tripartite subcommittee of the National Tripartite Council on Gender Equality and Women Workers’ Issues along with activities aimed at raising awareness on women’s rights at work and gender issues. It also notes the recommendation to further review, amend and adopt legislation to promote non-discrimination against women and gender equality in employment, to improve vocational training and employment of women in non-traditional skills and to promote women’s entrepreneurship. With respect to the latter, the Committee notes that assistance has been requested from the ILO to develop a programme on women’s entrepreneurship. The Committee notes that the Government, in its report of June 2004, reaffirmed its commitment to promote and protect non-discrimination and its intention to move forward in a positive direction with the process of reform. However, there is no information in the report of November 2005 of any further progress made regarding these reforms. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the specific activities undertaken to implement the recommendations of the National Strategy on Women’s Employment, Empowerment and Equality, in particular the establishment of a subcommittee on gender issues, and any activities undertaken or planned to raise awareness on women’s rights and gender issues. The Government is also requested to provide up-to-date statistics disaggregated by sex, demonstrating the progress made in eliminating discrimination against women in the labour market and in promoting equality of opportunity and treatment with respect to employment and occupation, vocational training and conditions of work.

3. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the measures taken under the 3rd Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan (2000-04) have continued to improve the status of women in their economic and social life including the establishment of more women’s cooperatives to help the empowerment of rural women, and the promotion of women’s entrepreneurship, for example through the Job Opportunities Fund. The Committee notes in this regard the specific role of the Women’s Participation Centre, the Women’s Employment Department of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and the Centre for Women Workers of the Workers’ House, as well as the network of women’s NGOs. The Committee further notes that a draft employment strategy is being prepared with the assistance of the ILO and that a Decent Work Bill has been submitted to Parliament to be incorporated in the 4th Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan (2005-10). The plan is intended to generate more than 850,000 jobs annually and to lower the overall unemployment rate of 12 per cent in 2005 to 8 per cent by 2010. The Government further states in its 2005 report that it has undertaken to implement the Decent Work Bill, once adopted, including through the promotion of fundamental rights at work, and in particular the elimination of discrimination in employment and occupation and ensuring equal remuneration for men and women. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on specific activities and initiatives of the abovementioned institutions and organizations, including activities to address existing stereotypes regarding the role of men and women in society and the labour market. The Committee also requests the Government to provide copies of the Decent Work Bill, the employment strategy and the 4th Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan, once adopted. The Government is further requested to provide details of the activities undertaken or envisaged for their implementation, particularly with respect to the promotion of equality and the elimination of discrimination in employment and occupation, as well as information on their impact on improving the position of women in education, training and access to jobs.

4. Access of women to vocational training and guidance. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government that training in the private sector covers 40 per cent of the total trainees outside the education system, and that around two-thirds of private sector trainees are women. The Government indicates that in 2003-04, the Technical and Vocational Training Organization provided courses to 800,000 male and female trainees and that half of the women graduates found employment. While appreciating the Government’s indication that the training system in the Islamic Republic of Iran continues to prove attractive to women, whose participation has expanded rapidly, the Committee notes that the Government does not provide further details on the actual number of women participating in the various courses and the type of jobs in which they have been subsequently employed. It also notes from the information submitted by the Government that many vocational training courses provide skills which also help women with their tasks in the home, and that women tend to choose areas of study such as teaching, health-care services and cooking, which may restrict their access to jobs. While recognizing that the progress made in vocational training and education of women and girls and their access to university studies has already had important implications on the status of women in society and the family, the Committee asks the Government to increase its efforts to provide women with training in non-traditional skills and avoid directing them predominantly towards traditionally female-oriented occupations, in keeping with the abovementioned national strategy. It also hopes that the Government’s next report will include statistics, disaggregated by sex, on the participation rates of men and women in the various training courses offered and areas of studies at university or higher education.

5. Article 3(b) of the Convention. Legislative reforms. While noting the legal reforms in the area of family law, particularly relating to inheritance and child custody as well as other amendments to the Civil Code providing equal rights for men and women, the Committee regrets that little progress has been made with respect to the review, repeal or amendment of certain legal provisions, which the Committee has found to be contrary to the Convention:

-  With respect to section 1117 of the Civil Code, under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interest of the family or to his wife’s prestige, the Committee had indicated that the extension of the right to women in the 1975 Protection of Family Act did not respond fully to the concerns of the Committee. It notes with regret that the proposal to amend section 1117 of the Civil Code, submitted by the Women’s Participation Centre, has not yet been adopted and is still being discussed by the judiciary. The Committee urges the Government to make every effort to amend or repeal this provision.

-  With respect to women’s access to the judiciary, in particular Decree No. 55080 of 1979 concerning the change of judicial status of women to administrative status, which in effect prevented women from being judges with power to issue verdicts, the Committee notes the Government’s statement in its 2005 report that the judiciary has proposed a Bill to Parliament under which a female judge can issue verdicts in "female cases". Article 2 of the Bill provides that "the head of the judiciary can appoint women as head judge if they are married and have more than six years of experience". The Committee recalls that, under the Convention, women should be able to exercise judicial functions fully on an equal basis with men. It asks the Government to take the measures necessary to ensure that the power of female judges to issue verdicts will not be limited to cases involving only women or women’s issues, and that no discriminatory requirements for the appointment of judges are established. The Committee asks the Government to clarify whether the existing or draft legislation imposes comparable requirements for the appointment of male judges (i.e. being married and having at least six years experience).

-  With respect to the obligatory dress code for women and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on administrative infringements for violations of the Code, the Committee has raised concerns, inter alia, over the negative impact that such a requirement could have on the employment of non-Islamic women in the public sector. The Committee has further expressed concern regarding the Disciplinary Rules for University and Higher Education Institutes Students, which classify non-observance of Islamic veil requirements as a political and moral offence, with sanctions including dismissal from university or permanent exclusion from all universities. The Committee notes that the Government replies in its report of 2005 that "Islamic covering is considered a women’s uniform protecting her against misbehaviour in the workplace" and that the "Hijab so far has not led to any dismissals nor has it had any adverse impact on the employment of non-Muslim applicants". The Committee must point out that the Government does not address the Committee’s concern regarding the negative impact that administrative regulations on the obligatory dress code may have on the employment of non-Islamic women. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide more detailed information on the manner in which the abovementioned administrative and disciplinary rules regarding the dress code are being applied in practice with respect to education and employment, including information on the number of violations of the dress code by women and the sanctions imposed. Understanding further that a draft Bill concerning the dress code had been forwarded to Parliament in 2004 for discussion, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on its status, contents and objectives in its next report.

6. The Committee recalls its previous observation in which it noted the information provided by the World Council of Labour (WCL) regarding certain administrative rules apparently restricting the employment of wives of government employees, which in the view of the Committee inferred that employees would only be men and that only women would be restricted. It notes that the Government’s report does not contain a reply regarding this matter. The Committee also recalls its concerns regarding social security regulations favouring the husband over the wife in pension and child benefit provisions when both are working. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that in order to ensure that no extra payment is made for any particular child, social security regulations provide for the payment of the allowance to the husband as the traditional head of the household and the breadwinner of the family. The Committee recalls its concerns over social security legislation under which the benefits of the wife are derived only from her husband’s entitlements, and stresses that social security should guarantee men and women equal protection and rights (see paragraph 129 of the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156)). A provision allowing workers to choose who should receive the family allowances when a man and a woman are potential recipients, would address the Government’s concern of duplication of payments of child benefits. The Committee asks the Government to repeal or amend the abovementioned laws and administrative regulations to ensure equal treatment of male and female employees and their spouses, and to ensure that no provisions directly or indirectly infringe on women’s right to equal access and conditions of employment in all government service positions.

7. Discrimination on the basis of religion. In its previous comments, the Committee had raised concerns regarding preferences based on religion in access to employment. With respect to the public sector, particular attention was given to the selection of teachers. The Committee recalls that the Act on the selection of teachers and employees of the Ministry of Education requires applicants to believe in Islam or one of the religions recognized in the Constitution. In its previous report, as well as the report submitted in June 2004, the Government refers to an Official Circular issued by the Presidential High Screening Board (No. 2/4747) in November 2003 to the Interior Ministry in order to call attention of the governorships countrywide to the necessity of the further observance of the recognized religious minorities’ rights, particularly with respect to employment and recruitment. The Government acknowledged, however, that the law prevailing in the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding religious minorities’ rights still needed to be revised. In its report submitted in November 2005, the Government also refers to various official communications emphasizing the need to observe the equal rights of religious minorities in relation to employment. Reference is also made to the establishment of a national committee on the protection of the rights of religious minorities. The Government states that these initiatives have resulted in an increase in the rate of employment of religious minorities in the public sector, including 200 persons recruited in the Ministry of Education, as well as an increase in the rate of employment of Christian minorities in the private sector. The Committee again requests the Government to provide a copy of Official Circular No. 2/4747, as well as any other recent official communications with respect to religious minorities. Noting the Government’s statement that the law regarding religious minorities’ rights still needs to be revised, the Committee urges the Government to initiate a consultative revision process, to ensure protection in law against discrimination in employment and occupation on the ground of religion, and to keep the Committee apprised of any progress in this regard. The Committee also requests information on the mandate and function of the national committee on the protection of the rights of religious minorities.

8. While noting the Government’s reference to the recruitment of 200 persons belonging to religious minorities in the Ministry of Education, the Committee requests the Government to provide further and updated details regarding those recruited, including their sex and religion, when they were recruited, into what level of post, and what percentage of each level of post is held by those in religious minorities. The Committee is also obliged to repeat its request that the Government provide details on the number of persons from religious minorities receiving financial incentives through the job-creating investment projects.

9. For a number of years, the Committee has raised particular concerns regarding the treatment in education and employment of members of unrecognized religious minorities, in particular those of the Baha’i faith. Concern has also been raised by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD/C/63/CO/6, 10 December 2003, paragraph 14) and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief of the Commission on Human Rights (E/CN.4/2005/61/Add.1, 15 March 2005, paragraph 143) regarding discrimination against the Baha’i, in both law and practice. The Committee notes that the Government’s report of November 2005 refers to amendments to the application forms for the national university entrance examination. According to the Government, this amendment enables all applicants of various religions to take part in the examinations, including those of the Baha’i faith. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the application form for the university entrance examination, as well as to indicate whether Baha’i now in practice are able to take part in examinations in all disciplines. The Committee requests the Government, further, to indicate whether religion will continue to be a barrier for unrecognized minorities at any other stage in applying for, undertaking, or receiving official recognition of formal studies. In addition, the Committee again requests the Government to provide statistics on the situation of the Baha’i in terms of access to universities and institutions of higher learning and on their situation in the labour market, as well as information on any initiatives taken or envisaged to address the existing discrimination against the Baha’i.

10. Ethnic minorities. In its previous observation, the Committee requested the Government to continue to provide information on the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, including the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks, and on all efforts undertaken to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups. The Committee notes the Government’s statement in its report of June 2004 to the effect that there are no cases of discrimination against Turks. It also notes that the Government in its November 2005 report submits that the Ministry of Interior statistics indicate that the number of positions filled by members of ethnic minorities is increasing. The Committee, noting the brief and rather general statements made by the Government concerning ethnic minorities, would welcome receiving more detailed information, including a copy of the statistics referred to by the Government regarding the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, and any efforts taken to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups.

11. Human rights mechanisms. The Committee notes that in its report of 2004 the Government expressed its commitment to further human rights and eliminate discrimination. In particular, article 101 of the draft 4th Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan provides for a Human Rights Charter. The Committee also notes the Government’s statement that the Islamic Commission on Human Rights ("the Commission") has recently opened offices in the most remote areas of the country. Previously, the Committee noted that the Government had referred to meetings of the Commission aimed at collecting information on experiences and developing approaches and solutions, which would be presented in a comprehensive report. In its most recent report, the Government again refers to meetings with key individuals of religious, racial and ethnic minorities, and states that complaints will be forwarded to the relevant governmental organizations, and that the Commission will follow up with investigations. The Committee would appreciate receiving more information on the nature and outcome of these meetings, including a copy of any report issued, and again asks the Government to provide details on the results of the investigations, any proposed action, and how recommendations are implemented. As the information on training provided by the Commission dates from 2003, the Committee requests the Government to provide updated information. Information on the number of complaints lodged before the Commission and the results achieved, as well as any allegations of victimization by those submitting cases should also be forwarded to the Committee.

12. The Committee notes that in its report of June 2004 the Government reaffirmed its wish to continue to dialogue and cooperate with the ILO in order to devise a common approach to dealing with the Committee’s concerns regarding employment discrimination, and that it emphasizes the importance of receiving further technical assistance from the ILO to this end. The Committee welcomes the Government’s intention to incorporate a Decent Work Agenda in the 4th Socio-Economic and Cultural Development Plan, section 107 of which requires the Government to provide and implement programmes that would bring the legislation into full conformity with international standards, and to eradicate discrimination in all areas, particularly in employment, and to promote equal opportunities. While the Committee has noted the positive direction the Government has taken over the past few years to promote equality in employment and occupation, which culminated in the holding of the National Conference on Women’s Employment, Empowerment and Equality in March 2004, the Committee cannot but observe that important issues, which the Committee has been raising for many years, remain unresolved. Furthermore, in the absence of additional information, in particular up-to-date statistical data disaggregated by sex, religion and ethnic origin, on the concrete results achieved, it is difficult for the Committee to assess the extent to which further progress has been made on the practical application of the Convention since 2003. The Committee therefore trusts that the Government will be able to demonstrate in its next report that statements of commitment have been translated into concrete initiatives and that the various actions the Committee has noted have led to positive results with respect to the participation of women and all ethnic and religious groups in employment and education.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.

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1. The Committee notes the information in the Government’s report and the attached documentation and statistics. It also notes the reply to the comments from the World Confederation of Labour (WCL) on the application of the Convention, which had been received in October 2002 and forwarded to the Government. In addition, it also notes the discussion in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in June 2003. The Committee notes that much of the information attached to the WCL comment as well as part of the reply of the Government consist of numerous pages of newspaper clippings on issues related to the application of the Convention such as the situation of women on the labour market, employment creation, social security, and women judges. The Committee has reviewed all this documentation as well as the Government’s allegations that the Democratic Union of Iranian Workers, which developed the information contained in the WCL communication, has affiliations to terrorist organisations.

2. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The very lengthy information supplied by the WCL emphasizes the existence of a climate of societal and structural discrimination, which women face in trying to obtain equal opportunity and treatment in both law and practice. According to the information, men are treated as head of the household and women are expected to be under their surveillance and guardianship. Some legal reforms are acknowledged but they are not felt to go far enough to establish substantive equality between men and women. The Government replies with assurances that it is giving priority to the promotion and protection of non-discrimination and that progress has been achieved in the last five years, which the Committee has recognized. The Government also emphasizes that the Islamic Republic of Iran is now a dynamic society, which is facing various challenges and from time to time setbacks, but which overall is moving forward in a very positive direction with the process of reform being irreversible. The Government indicates that review of laws concerning women from the perspective of human rights, international obligations and Islamic values continues and it stresses that in the meantime it is trying to find practical solutions to overcome any cases of violation of fundamental rights including the right to be free from discrimination.

3. Over the years the Committee has been following the positive trend in the level of women’s participation in education and training, though each year it has also been obliged to note the low level of women’s participation in the labour market. The Committee again notes the positive actions taken to improve education and training levels of women, such as designating 30 per cent of all technical and vocational training centres managed by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs for female training. The Committee notes that this trend continues with very high participation rates of women in universities, but few job opportunities for graduates and others seeking employment. According to the information from the WCL, statistics published by the Office of the Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Affairs for Employment for 2001, indicate that only one out of 12 jobseekers obtained a job. It further indicates that over the same period, women had more difficulty finding jobs with only one out of 22 female jobseekers obtaining a job. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that women’s unemployment level is approximately one-third higher than that of men and that while men’s unemployment dropped from 13 per cent in 2001 to 10.9 per cent in 2002, women’s increased from 19.5 to 19.6 per cent. The Government acknowledges the problems facing jobseekers particularly young persons and women, and details efforts it has been undertaking to speed up privatization and attract foreign capital investment, which it hopes will improve employment opportunities. It specifies the establishment of a comprehensive data-processing system for jobseekers and the development of private placement employment centres as being among the Government’s plans next year. Further, the Committee welcomes the initiative of the ILO and Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs to hold a Conference on Women’s Empowerment, Employment and Equality in Tehran in March 2004, with the aim of elaborating an action plan to increase employment opportunities, improve the quality and quantity of women’s employment and entrepreneurship, and promote better application of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the evolution of the position of women in education, training, and access to jobs, on the impact of the government initiatives to promote women’s employment and on the results of this Conference and the implementation of the action plan.

4. With respect to women’s position in the labour market, the Committee thanks the Government for the numerous statistical tables and analysis. It notes from the Government’s report that the trend of women’s participation rate continues to increase very slowly again in 2003, to 12.2 per cent from 11.8 per cent in 2002 and 10.3 per cent in 2001, but that as compared to men it remains very low. As concerns the need to address the vertical and horizontal occupational segregation to which the Committee has been drawing attention, the Committee notes that women’s participation from 1997 to 2001 in services has remained approximately the same, while it has decreased in industries and increased in agriculture. The Committee also notes the increase the number of women in the police, the defence ministry, in university academic boards, and in professions such as pilots. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that a number of measures have been taken to improve the status of women in their economic and social life including the introduction of plans for promoting women into management, establishment of more women’s cooperatives, creation of a "linking network" among women’s rural cooperatives to help empower rural women, formation of a committee and other measures to combat violence against women, issuance of over 300 licences to women to establish advertising centres and publications, increasing the number of women’s NGO’s, and promoting legal literacy concerning women’s rights. The Committee requests the Government to continue to undertake measures and even increase its efforts to improve the status of women on an equal basis with men in economic as well as social spheres in law, as well as in practice, and to continue to provide information on the results achieved.

5. For many years now the Committee has been asking the Government to review, and amend or repeal the following legal and administrative provisions, which are not in conformity with the Convention:

-  The obligatory dress code for women and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on administrative infringements for violations of the code. It reiterates its concern, inter alia, over the negative impact that such a requirement can have on the employment of non-Islamic women in the public sector.

-  Section 1117 of the Civil Code under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interest of the family or to his wife’s prestige. As indicated in the past, the extension of the right to women in the 1975 Protection of Family Act does not fully respond to the concerns of the Committee.

-  Decree No. 55080 of 1979 concerning change of judicial status of women to administrative status, which in effect prevented women from being judges with power to issue verdicts.

6. The Committee notes that, while study continues on the issues of officially removing the ban on women issuing verdicts and amending the civil code and civil rights laws regarding women, and proposals are being prepared for relevant authorities on these points, no decisions have been taken yet to repeal the relevant legislation. Nevertheless, the Committee notes that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s first woman judge has been appointed to the bench of the State Retribution Organization in Isfahan province by the Ministry of Justice with authorization to issue verdicts. It also notes that a proposal to amend section 1117 of the Civil Code has been submitted to Cabinet by the Women’s Participation Centre. The Committee welcomes these developments and asks the Government to take the necessary measures to repeal the legislation so that their discriminatory aspects are eliminated in both law and practice, and to indicate the progress made in this respect in its next report.

7. In addition to those regulations listed above, the Committee notes from the information submitted by the WCL a number of administrative regulations that require adherence to the dress code. Among these the Committee’s attention is drawn to the Disciplinary Rules for University and Higher Education Institutes Students, which classifies non-observance of Islamic veil requirements as a political and moral offence, with sanctions including dismissal from university or permanent exclusion from all universities. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether these rules are still in force and, if so, the manner in which they have been applied in practice. The Committee also notes that the information supplied by the WCL includes several administrative rules which restrict the employment of wives of government employees, which in the view of the Committee infers that the employees would only be men and that only women would be restricted. The Committee further notes from the Conference discussion the indication that social security regulations favour the husband over the wife in pension and child benefit provisions when both are working. The Committee asks the Government to revise these laws and administrative regulations to require equal treatment of male and female employees and their spouses, and to ensure that no provisions directly or indirectly infringe on women’s right to equal access and conditions of employment in all government service positions.

8. Discrimination on the basis of religion. With respect to the existence of religious discrimination in employment and occupation, WCL alleges that in the areas of education and employment minorities face major problems. Specific concerns are raised over preferences based on religion in the selection of teachers under the Act on the selection of teachers and employees of the Ministry of Education, which requires applicants to believe in Islam or one of the religions recognized in the Constitution. The Committee has been raising concern over preferences for Muslim over non-Muslim applicants for a number of years. In reply to its previous comment on the measures taken to promote equal access of religious minorities to jobs in public and private sectors, the Government provides a copy of a circular issued by the Vice-President in November 2001 stipulating that equal terms and conditions of employment should be given to all Iranian citizens, that full observation of the recognized religious minorities’ rights including in the fields of employment and recruitment were required, and that this was to be specified in job vacancy advertisements. Further the Government indicates that the Presidential High Screening Board issued an Official Circular, No. 2/47474 in November 2003 to the Interior Ministry in order to call the attention of the governorships country-wide to the necessity of further observance of the recognized religious minorities’ rights, particularly with regard to employment and recruitment. The Committee requests the Government to supply a copy of this Circular. The Government also states that despite the various attempts that have been made over the past few years to eradicate any existing legally based religious and ethnic discrimination, this will not be accomplished in the near future without difficulty. In the meantime, the Government indicates that promotional efforts are being undertaken to combat discrimination. Here again the Committee requests the Government to provide concrete examples of any efforts to combat religious and ethnic based discrimination in law and in practice.

9. In response to the Committee’s request for available statistics on employment of minorities in government service, the Committee notes that in 2001, 520 Christian women, 385 Zoroastrian women and 177 Jewish women were recruited and employed in government service. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that with respect to the employment of religious minorities in the education sector, a number of positions have been allocated to the open recruitment of the religious minorities in the Education Ministry for the academic year 2003-04. The Government also indicates that religious minorities are entitled to receive financial incentives for job-creating investment projects. The Committee requests the Government to indicate details on the number of positions filled in the education ministry and the number of persons receiving financial incentives, including their sex and religion.

10. Further to the Committee’s previous comments on the treatment in education and employment of members of unrecognized minorities, in particular members of the Baha’i faith, the Committee recalls the absence of any protection against discrimination in employment on the basis of religion in the Labour Code. Over the years the Committee has noted discriminatory practices against the members of the Baha’i in education and access to employment, while it has also noted some progress in redressing some of the discriminatory practices. This year the Government provides no new information on the situation of the Baha’i in terms of access to universities and institutes of higher learning or on their situation in the labour market. The Committee, therefore, requests the Government to provide such information in its next report so that it may continue to monitor the situation in terms of application of the Convention. At the same time it urges the Government to continue to address the existing discrimination against the Baha’i.

11. Ethnic minorities. In response to the Committee’s request for information on the situation of ethnic minorities, the Committee thanks the Government for the information provided on the employment situation of the Azeries and the Kurds, which are the largest ethnic minority groups in the Iranian population. The Committee asks the Government to continue to supply information on the employment situation of these minorities, as well as other significant minority groups such as the Turks, and on all efforts undertaken to ensure equal access and opportunity to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups.

12. Human rights mechanisms. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Islamic Commission on Human Rights will be trying to expand its activities over the next year and that the emphasis placed on combating discrimination by the Human Rights Advocates Network was considered to be effective. The Committee notes the activities undertaken by the Commission to remove discrimination against unrecognized religious minorities including the holding of meetings aimed at collecting information on experiences and developing approaches and solutions which are to be presented in a comprehensive report on the issue for submission to the President. The Committee requests the Government to provide details on the results of the investigations, and on the proposed actions and how they are implemented. The Committee also notes that the Commission continues to handle cases of employment discrimination, although the numbers appear to be very small - 25 in 2002. It also notes the activities undertaken by the Commission jointly with other human rights institutions such as the conferences jointly held between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Denmark that concerned women’s rights, among other issues. The Committee requests information on the follow up on these meetings and activities including any practical programmes that may have been developed and implemented.

13. Tripartite consultation. The Committee notes the detailed information provided on the various initiatives to improve social dialogue and determine labour dispute settlement procedures. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the manner in which the tripartite structure and the representatives of workers and employers specifically undertake to promote and improve the application of the Convention.

14. In conclusion, the Committee must note the very full and detailed information provided by the Government in its reports this year and during the 2003 Conference Committee discussion, in which the willingness of the Government to dialogue was appreciated. It welcomes the taking of administrative initiatives during the past year that improve application of the Convention - in particular in relation to the access to employment of the members of recognized religions and the appointment of the female judge with verdict issuing power. The Committee however must express some concern over the slow pace of the development and implementation of a policy on non-discrimination and equality. It notes that a number of the points it has been raising for many years remain the subject of extensive study though in one case they have been formulated into a concrete recommendation for action. It urges the Government to take all necessary steps to adopt measures that will bring the legislation and regulations into full conformity with the Convention. It also trusts that the noted progress on the position of women in education will show positive results on the labour market and that the Government will make special efforts to ensure that this occurs at an ever accelerating pace so that women of all ethnic groups and religions will be able to enjoy fully equal access and terms and conditions of employment. Finally, the Committee asks the Government to provide in its next report up-to-date information on the education and labour market position of the Baha’i including information that will demonstrate specific efforts towards bringing this situation into conformity with the Convention.

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1. The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government in its detailed report and attached documentation. It also notes the mission report on the second mission undertaken by the Office in March 2002 to monitor the application of the Convention and to provide assistance in its implementation, following the discussion in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in June 2001. The Committee also notes that comments from the World Confederation of Labour on the application of the Convention were received in October 2002 and transmitted to the Government. It will examine these comments, and any observations the Government may make, at its next session.

2. Mechanisms to promote human rights. Further to its previous comments the Committee notes the information provided on the Islamic Commission on Human Rights including details on the complaints and the outcomes of cases concerning discrimination and the activities of the Commission. It notes that during the period from April to December 2001 the Commission received 29 appeals concerning the right to employment and two appeals concerning women’s rights. According to the Commission, the number of persons appealing to the Commission in respect of economic and social issues is increasing. The Government reports that in relation to cases concerning employment the results obtained included job restitution, creation of job opportunities and prevention from breach of employment rights. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the nature of the cases related to employment discrimination and women’s rights as well as on the manner in which they were followed up or resolved. Noting that the Commission also maintains statistics on cases in which religion, including non-recognized minorities such as the Baha’is, or ethnicity is the basis alleged for human rights violations, the Government is also asked to provide information on such cases dealt with by the Commission. The Committee also notes the information on the educational activities carried out by the Commission for judges, law enforcement officers and for the human rights defenders programme.

3. The Committee also notes that in 2001 the Islamic Commission on Human Rights launched a National Action Plan for the Elimination of Discrimination against Ethnic and Religious Minorities. The plan includes measures such as data collection and evaluation, programmes to promote the participation of minorities in problem solving, research and workshops, an assessment of achievement, as well as an annual report to the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the President. The Committee also notes that a first meeting with religious, ethnic and linguistic minorities was held under the action plan in March 2002, in the course of which the role of international instruments, including Convention No. 111, in respect to the human rights of minorities was discussed. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the work of the Islamic Commission on Human Rights related to minority rights and the implementation of the national action plan on minorities. The Committee would also be grateful to receive copies of the Commission’s reports.

4. Discrimination on the basis of sex. During the last few years the Committee has been noting with interest the positive trend in the level of women’s participation in education and training, though it continues also to note low rates of economic participation of women. Once again the Government is able to report an increase in the rate of participation of girls in primary schools, in technical schools, and in universities. The access of girls to elementary education over the past five years has risen from 80 per cent to 96 per cent. The Committee notes that in 1997 young women constituted 51 per cent of the university students and by 2001 the rate had reached 61 per cent. It also notes that the number of women’s technical and vocational training centres has increased from 41 in 1997 to 120 in 2001. While noting this progress the Committee has and must continue to highlight the importance of translating educational opportunities into employment possibilities. In this regard the Committee notes that in 2001 employment rates of the higher educated women were 79.32 per cent and for men it was 90.93 per cent. Given this gap as well as the increase in the number of women in higher education the Committee requests the Government to provide information on all the measures taken to integrate women graduates into the labour market, such as professional guidance and placement services, and on the employment rates of the recent graduates, including the sectors and occupational activities in which they are employed. Noting the increase in participation rates the Committee requests statistical information on the number of women graduates.

5. The Committee notes that in 2001 the participation of economically active women of the total economically active population was 15.69 per cent - a slight increase over previous years though still very low. The economic participation rate of women was 11.79 per cent in 2001 while the unemployment rate for women was 19.88 per cent compared to 13.17 per cent for men. This was a substantial increase for women while men’s unemployment rate was reduced slightly from 1999 and 2000. When employment is broken down by major industry group, women constituted 30.67 per cent of employees in services, 7.85 per cent in manufacturing and 3.51 per cent in agriculture. In government service, women hold 5.5 per cent of the managerial posts. The Committee also notes that a recent development to assist women entering employment has been the expansion of for-profit and non-profit non-governmental organizations and cooperatives, in which women participate heavily. In addition the Committee notes the availability of statistical information disaggregated by sex and recognized religious minorities, which shows that Zoroastrian women had the highest rate of employment, followed by Christians. Both had higher participation rates than Muslim women. Similarly with respect to unemployment rates, Zoroastrian women had the lowest rates followed by Christian, Muslim, Jewish and other women.

6. The Committee notes that the information on the increase in female candidates in the sixth parliamentary election to 504, which represents a 44 per cent increase compared to the previous election. It also notes that a significant part of the increase occurred in the rural areas. The Committee notes the information on the measures taken to introduce women to male-dominated occupations such as the establishment of the first police faculty for women and the new Bill introduced to allow recruitment of women in the disciplinary forces. The Committee hopes to receive further information in the next report on the results obtained in these areas.

7. Further to the Committee’s comments, the Government requested technical assistance to facilitate empowerment of women in the labour market and promote job creation for women, including the targeting of university graduates and female heads of households. The Committee notes with interest that an ILO assessment mission on women’s employment was undertaken in May 2002, and has recommended a number of activities and projects to be implemented. It notes that the Government has replied positively to these recommendations and has placed priority on a number of them, and that funding has already been found for the holding of a national Conference on Promoting Women’s Employment to be organized jointly with the ILO in the next year. The Committee looks forward to receiving information on the Conference and its results in terms of promoting women’s employment and the application of the Convention. It also requests the Government to indicate the follow-up to the other recommendations of the ILO assessment mission as well as any other initiatives taken and their impact on addressing the low level of women’s employment as well as the increasing level of unemployment of women.

8. Further to its previous comments concerning the legal restriction on women leaving the country for study without the approval of the husband, the Committee notes with interest the adoption of the Act on Despatching University Students Abroad, approved by Parliament and the Guardian Council in March 2001 which abrogates the restriction on women contained in the 1985 Act of the same name and provides that both women and men should equally enjoy study opportunities abroad. The Committee also notes the approval of the new divorce Act, following its adoption in the Parliament, which, among other measures, allows women to file for divorce. In the view of the Committee measures that enhance the equal status of women in society will have positive effects on progress towards equal opportunity and treatment between men and women in employment and occupation.

9. For many years now the Committee has been pointing to several other issues on which it has raised concern over the existence of legal and administrative provisions which are not in conformity with the Convention. It once again draws the Government’s attention to the need to review and repeal the following provisions:

-  the obligatory dress code and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on Administrative Infringements for violations of the code. In this respect, it once again recalls its concern over the negative impact that such a requirement may have on the employment of non-Islamic women in the public sector and reiterates its request for a complete copy of the Act on Administrative Infringements and for information on the application of the Act in relation to the dress code;

-  section 1117 of the Civil Code under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his or his wife’s prestige. As indicated in the past, the extension of this right to women in the 1975 Protection of Family Act does not fully respond to the concerns of the Committee. Noting the Government’s commitment, as expressed in its 2000 report on the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, to review and modify laws relevant to the human rights of women, the Committee once again expresses the hope that this review will encompass section 1117 of the Civil Code and the Committee’s comments thereon. In the meantime, the Government is requested to provide information on the application in practice of these provisions;

-  restriction on women judges from issuing verdicts. In this area the Committee can only stress the importance it places on the full participation of women on an equal footing with men in the judicial profession, including in the issuance of judicial verdicts.

10. With reference to the abovementioned provisions, the Committee notes that one of the main projects of the Centre for Women’s Participation, which is the office that reports to the President on women’s affairs, is the review of legislation to identify the gaps in protection and changes to be made, and to make proposals in this regard. The changes being targeted will affect the Civil Code, the Labour Code and the Penal Code. The Office was informed during the mission that the labour proposals would concern retirement, part-time work, wages, nursing breaks and social security coverage for those who perform household work. The Centre is also revisiting administrative structures in this regard and will address the right of female judges to issue verdicts. The Committee welcomes the review of these areas and asks the Government to bring its comments to the attention of those conducting the study. It hopes the Government will be able to indicate continued progress in its next report on the results of the review, its recommendations and the measures taken to ensure application of the Convention to this occupation.

11. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The Committee notes that as in the past the employment situation of the recognized religious minorities (Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians) is better than the national average. Further to its comments under the Islamic Commission on Human Rights above, the Committee notes from the Government’s report that a national effort is under way to counter discrimination against religious minorities. In this respect the Government cites the recent change in compensation awards for personal injuries in order to equalize damages between Muslims and non-Muslims that may be awarded in civil cases. The Committee also notes the functioning of the National Committee for the Promotion of the Rights of Religious Minorities, and the concerns raised by members of this Committee, as reported in the mission report following a meeting with representatives of that Committee, over their participation in public service and in the teaching profession in the various minority schools. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to promote equal access of religious minorities to jobs in the public sector as well as the private sector. Noting the number of activities including the plan of action on minorities to combat discrimination and promote integration, tolerance and understanding among the various communities, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information including statistical data on the employment situation of the recognized religious minorities. It also requests the Government to provide information on further sessions of the National Committee for the Promotion of the Rights of Religious Minorities since the session held during the Office’s last mission.

12. Over the years, the Committee has been concerned about the treatment in education and employment of members of unrecognized religions, in particular the members of the Baha’i faith. The Committee recalls that in the absence of a reference to non-discrimination on the basis of religion in section 6 of the Labour Code, it has been monitoring the situation of religious minorities. In his final report, the Special Representative of the UN Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran (E/CN.4/2002/42), indicated that it had been possible in the past year or so to discern some hopeful signs concerning the treatment of the unrecognized minorities, especially the Baha’is. These signs included the commutation of death sentences, release of prisoners and the decision of the Expediency Council declaring that "all Iranians enjoy the rights of citizenship irrespective of their belief", followed by the removal of the requirement to declare one’s religious affiliation when registering a marriage or the birth of a child, or applying for a passport for overseas. Nevertheless the Special Representative understood that the Baha’i community continues to be subject to harassment and discrimination in the areas of employment and education, among others. In this connection the Committee welcomes the opening of the Open Scientific University for Baha’i students, while noting with regret that Baha’i students still may not attend other universities in the country. The Committee also notes the statistical information on several Baha’i operated and owned businesses throughout the country and the Government’s indication that no restrictions for granting loans to these companies exist. The Committee hopes the Government will be in a position to give a fuller picture of the labour market situation of the Baha’i in its next report. The Committee further notes that the Islamic Commission on Human Rights has received appeals from members of the Baha’i community and that in the view of the Commission accommodations of some laws and theological edicts would have to be made in order to solve the problems of this unrecognized minority. The Committee urges the Government to continue to address the existing discrimination of the Baha’i. It hopes the Government will be able to report more progress towards this end in its next report.

13. Ethnic minorities. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to ensure application of the Convention to members of the ethnic minorities in the country, including the Azeris and the Kurds.

14. Tripartite consultation. Referring to its previous comments on the Act to exempt from the application of the Labour Code workplaces and businesses of five or fewer employees and its concerns over the manner in which employees in exempted enterprises, in particular women and minorities, would be protected against discrimination in employment, the Committee notes the collective contract concluded by employers’ and workers’ organizations concerning these workers employed in the enterprises with five or fewer employees which are exempted from the Labour Code. The collective contract provides for protection of the workers in their contract of employment, terms and conditions of employment, including a requirement of equal pay between men and women, social security and settlement of disputes. Given that the contract does not contain a general non-discrimination clause, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner by which the application of the Convention is ensured to workers in establishments of five or fewer employees.

15. In addition to the technical cooperation mentioned above, the Committee welcomes the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the ILO for 2002-03 which covers a range of areas in which the ILO will provide assistance, including in formulating policies for creating greater access for women and men to secure productive employment and income opportunities through implementation of the UNDP-funded programme on employment generation, to improve labour market information systems and data collection, and to review labour laws and their compatibility with international labour standards and provide legal drafting assistance. The Committee further notes the statement of the Government that it is committed to continuing to enact reforms, strengthen institutions, fight corruption and discrimination, respect human rights and the rule of law, and spend more money on development of sound policies that provide opportunities to all, and most notably women, without exclusion. The Committee again acknowledges the steps taken by the Government and the intention it expresses to make further progress, while noting equally the problems yet to be overcome. It urges the Government to continue to take action that will result in the elimination of all the existing divergences between the Convention and the national situation, and hopes that the increasing technical assistance from the ILO will facilitate this process and that the Government will be in a position to report continued progress in its next report.

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1. The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government in its report. It also notes the information provided during the discussion held in June 2001 in the Committee on the Application of Standards of the International Labour Conference. The Committee notes the discussion in the Conference Committee concerning the undertaking of a further mission by the Office to monitor the application of the Convention and to provide assistance in its implementation, and the acceptance of this proposal by the Government. The Committee of Experts notes that the mission is scheduled to take place the first half of 2002 and it looks forward to receiving a copy of the mission report for its examination and comment.

2. The Committee must point out that the information submitted by the Government this year is less than complete on the points that it has been raising for a number of years in respect of issues related to discrimination in employment and occupation on the grounds of sex and religion. It trusts that the upcoming mission will also serve to assist the Government to produce full and detailed information in its report next year in reply to the comments of the Committee, and on the basis of the report form on the Convention. Without such information, the Committee is unable to carry out its work and to continue dialogue with the Government on the application of the Convention.

3. The Committee notes resolution No. 2001/17 of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, in which that Commission, inter alia, welcomed improvements in the field of women’s education, health and democratic participation and the efforts made by the Sixth Majilis to improve the status of women and girls; however, the Commission was deeply concerned that many of these efforts have not yet been promulgated as law, which would be a step towards ending the systematic discrimination against women and girls in law and practice and the obstacles to the full and equal enjoyment by women and girls of their human rights. The Committee also notes that the Commission on Human Rights expressed its concern at the continuing discrimination against persons belonging to minorities and called upon the Government to eliminate all forms of discrimination based on religious grounds. The Committee further notes the interim report of August 2001 by the Commission’s Special Representative on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic in Iran to the 56th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (A/56/278), which stated that the status of women, particularly their legal status, remains highly discriminatory and that patriarchal attitudes are very much in evidence in the limited prospects for women in the labour force. The report also found that religious and ethnic minorities continue to face official and societal discrimination. The Committee notes the resolution of 20 November 2001 adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in which that body reiterated the points mentioned above which were made by the Commission on Human Rights and the Special Representative. The General Assembly also welcomed the process of legal reform under way in the country and encouraged the Government to continue this process.

4. Mechanisms to promote human rights. The Committee notes the re-establishment of the Majilis Human Rights Commission. It hopes that it will complement the work carried out by the Islamic Human Rights Commission to enhance the human rights situation and requests the Government to provide information on the mandate, functions and activities of this new institution. The Committee notes from the report that the Islamic Human Rights Commission has embarked on a programme of establishing a network of human rights defenders in the country. The Committee reiterates its request for information on the complaints mechanism of the Commission concerning discrimination on grounds of sex, religion or ethnicity, including details on the complaints and the outcomes of cases. Recalling that the Supervisory Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution has, as one of its stated operational objectives, the review of the interpretation of laws in accordance with international human rights instruments, including this Convention, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide further information on any activities of the Supervisory Commission which would promote the application of the Convention.

5. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee recalls that in its previous observation it noted with interest information provided by the Government indicating a positive trend concerning women’s education and training at the various levels. It notes with interest further statistical information provided by the Government, according to which the rate of participation of girls in primary schools is 47.6 per cent, in secondary schools 50.9 per cent and in technical schools 31.8 per cent in 2000-01. The Committee notes in particular that the ratio of girls at the primary and secondary levels has also considerably improved in rural and tribal areas. The Committee also notes the Government’s intention to increase further the number of technical schools for girls and to introduce additional subjects of training for girls, and that 60 per cent of the students entering university for the academic years 1999-2000 were women. While being grateful for this information the Committee notes the importance of translating the educational opportunities into employment possibilities. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (a) the employment rate of female university graduates; (b) the sectors and areas of economic activity in which women graduates are employed; and (c) measures taken to integrate women graduates into the labour market, such as professional guidance and placement services. In order to facilitate job creation for women, the Committee notes that the Government has requested ILO technical cooperation to facilitate empowerment of women in the labour market and promote job creation for women, including the targeting of university graduates and female heads of households. The Committee recalls the importance of such an initiative to the application of the Convention and asks to be kept informed of its development and implementation.

6. The Committee previously noted statistical information on the participation of women in the labour market. It noted that in 1997 the percentage of employed women was 12.1 per cent, and that in 1998 women accounted for 24.8 per cent of the workforce in the public sector. The Committee acknowledged the indication of a positive trend in these participation rates, but at the same time it pointed to the slow pace of improvement and the still low level of women’s participation in employment. The Committee notes that in 1999, 30.3 per cent of all government employees were women, out of which 53 per cent held university degrees. The Committee also notes that the Government considers the absence of women in high-level economic decision-making as an obstacle encountered in the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action. The Committee reiterates its requests to the Government to continue to provide as up-date as possible information on the labour market including the employment and unemployment rates of women and statistics on the private sector employment participation rates disaggregated by sex. It also reiterates that the next report should indicate the practical measures taken to tackle the attitudinal and other barriers to the full integration of women in economic life on an equal footing with men.

7. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes that no information has been provided with regard to women in the judiciary, but it notes reports that proposals have recently been submitted to the Majilis for reforms to the judiciary. The Committee must once again point out that women are not allowed to fully participate on an equal footing with men in the judicial profession since they are not allowed to issue judicial verdicts. Please provide information on all measures taken, and results achieved, to review and remove this practice in order to establish equality between men and women in this profession, in accordance with the Convention.

8. The Committee must also refer to its previous comments on the obligatory dress code and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on Administrative Infringements for violations of the code. The Committee noted that any infringements of the code are dealt with through the use of notification procedures and that persistent infringements would result in escalated disciplinary procedures, but would not reach the level of dismissal. In the absence again of any reply of the Government to the Committee’s requests in this respect, it once again recalls its concern over the negative impact that such a requirement may have on the employment of non-Islamic women in the public sector and reiterates its request for a complete copy of the Act on Administrative Infringements and for information on the application of the Act in relation to the dress code.

9. The Committee notes that no information has been provided on the status of the review of all laws concerning restrictions on women, such as restrictions on leaving the country for study without permission of the husband, and the resulting changes in or retention of such laws. It also notes that no action has been taken on the removal of section 1117 of the Civil Code under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his or his wife’s prestige. In this regard the Committee recalls that under the 1975 Protection of Family Act the right to make this objection is extended to wives as well as husbands. The Committee has been calling for the repeal of section 1117 of the Civil Code. Noting the Government’s commitment, as expressed its 2000 report on the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, to review and modify laws relevant to the human rights of women, the Committee once again expresses the hope that this review will encompass section 1117 of the Civil Code and the Committee’s comments thereon. In the meantime, the Government is requested to provide information on the application in practice of these provisions.

10. The Committee also notes from the interim report of the United Nations Special Representative that the Bill to raise the marriage age of girls to 14 and boys to 17, which in the view of the Committee would have a positive impact on the access of women to educational and employment opportunities, has been rejected by the Guardian Council. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any attempts again to put forward this law and on the results achieved.

11. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The Committee recalls that in the absence of a reference to non-discrimination on the basis of religion in section 6 of the Labour Code, the Committee has been monitoring the situation of religious minorities. The Government reports that the employment situation of the recognized religious minorities (Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians) is better than the national average. The Committee also notes the recent establishment by Presidential Decree of a National Committee for the Promotion of the Rights of Religious Minorities, which is to review the problems that religious minorities face and recommend corrective policies. The Government states that the representation of the minorities in the work of the Committee has been ensured. The Committee hopes that this Committee will review the problems of the non-recognized religious minorities and will include members of the non-recognized minorities in its work. The Government is requested to provide in its next report detailed information on the Committee’s mandate, membership and activities relevant to the application of the Convention, including whether it covers non-recognized minorities. As the Committee had previously noted the statement that preference is given to Muslims in hiring practices, the Committee is bound to reiterate its previous requests to the Government to provide information on: (a) the education and employment situation of the members of recognized minorities, including statistical information disaggregated by sex; and (b) the measures taken to prohibit discrimination on the ground of religion.

12. The Committee refers to its comments over the years on the treatment in education and employment of members of unrecognized religions, in particular the members of the Baha’i faith. The Committee noted that the situation of the Baha’is goes beyond formal restrictions and exclusions, which may exist, and extends to the societal attitude towards the members of this group. The Committee noted further that there appears to be an effort to remove barriers in regulations and directives with respect to unrecognized religious groups and to promote greater tolerance for them, but that this process was expected to take some time. The Committee notes that once again the Government gives no indication as to measures taken in respect to discrimination in employment and occupation against members of the Baha’i faith or other unrecognized religions. It notes, however, from the interim report of the Special Representative that, according to his understanding, the Baha’i community continues to experience discrimination in education and employment and other areas. While recalling that the Committee previously noted that no formal restrictions on the hiring of members of unrecognized religions, including the Baha’i, appear to exist, but that in practice these persons may experience difficulty in access to education, jobs and occupations, the Committee notes with some concern that according to information received by the Special Representative, the issuance of business licences to Baha’is has been delayed and that some stores and business owned by the Baha’is have been closed. The Committee also notes from the interim report that the Baha’is continue to be denied access to higher education in legally recognized public institutions. The Committee hopes that the Government will provide in its next report information on further measures taken to eliminate existing restrictions and exclusions in employment and education of the members of the Bahai’s and other unrecognized religions in law and practice.

13. The Committee refers to its previous comments on the Act to exempt from the Application of the Labour Code workplaces and businesses of five or fewer employees. Recalling its concerns over the manner in which employees in exempted enterprises, in particular women and minorities, would be protected against discrimination in employment, the Committee notes from the information provided by the Government that the Act has not entered into force. The Committee also notes that efforts by the Government, including consultations with workers’ and employers’ organizations in 2001, resulted in the submission to Parliament of a Bill amending the Act in question and to consultations with newly elected deputies to protect women and minorities against discrimination. The Committee further notes that the social partners have concluded an agreement on employment and social protection in workplaces with five or fewer employees. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on whether the abovementioned Act has come into force. The Committee further requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the progress made in amending the Act and to provide a copy of the Bill as soon as adopted, as well as a copy of the text of the agreement concluded by the social partners concerning this question. The Committee would also appreciate receiving information on the outcome of the consultations held with the newly elected deputies.

14. Tripartite consultation. The Committee notes the holding of a National Tripartite Labour Forum and the establishment of a Supreme Council of Employment, with a tripartite structure and headed by the President, to address the issues of integrating a gender perspective into development as provided for under the third Five-Year Plan for Development. The Committee would be grateful to the Government to provide information on the work and initiatives of the Supreme Council, including their impact on non-discrimination and equality of men and women in employment and occupation.

15. With respect to the dissemination of information on the Convention, the Committee notes the holding of a Tripartite National Seminar on the Fundamental Labour Conventions of the ILO from 23 to 25 April 2001, with the participation of representatives of the Office, government officials, social partners, NGOs and representatives of the Islamic Human Rights Commission.

16. While once again acknowledging the stated objectives and intentions of the Government in respect of the application of the Convention, the Committee trusts that the Government will make every effort to continue to take concrete and practical measures towards the full application of the Convention, in law and in practice. The Committee urges the Government to provide detailed information on the points it has raised, in order to ensure the continuation of a meaningful dialogue. The Committee considers this dialogue to be of even greater importance in this case in which very serious divergences between the Convention and the national situation had been noted for a number of years but, more recently, some progress has been marked in improving the situation.

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1.  The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government in its report and the attached documentation, as well as the information presented in June 2000 during the discussion in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards. The Committee of Experts recalls that following many years in which it had been raising serious concerns over the application of the Convention with respect to religious minorities and women, in 1999 the Government accepted a technical advisory mission of the ILO to discuss all the points raised in its comments. The Committee viewed this action positively as reflecting a willingness on the part of the Government to continue to engage in substantive dialogue on the application of the Convention.

2.  At its last session, the Committee examined with interest the lengthy and detailed report of the mission, which took place from 29 October to 5 November 1999. In its comment the Committee made various references to information obtained during the mission but, as is its practice, it did not attach the mission report to its observation. The Committee notes from the discussion during the Conference Committee that a number of questions were raised concerning the details of the mission, such as the list of contacts, and whether the mission had been able to meet with representatives of non-governmental organizations and with all persons with whom it had requested meetings. The Committee recalls that the mission team held extensive discussions with representatives of all the groups it had asked to meet (with the exception of the statistics office) including official representatives and other members of the recognized minorities, non-governmental organizations, the ministries of justice, education, foreign affairs, labour and social affairs, and the Centre for Women’s Participation of the Office of the President, local government officials, university administration, hospital administration and staff, the Islamic Human Rights Commission, as well as numerous members and representatives of the workers’ and employers’ organizations, including the women’s wing of the Workers’ House, on all the points raised in the Committee’s previous comments. The mission team also held extensive discussions with officials from the Tehran Office of the United Nations Development Programme. The mission report indicates that the team was able to raise freely any question it wanted concerning discrimination on all the grounds set out in the Convention, including the situation of women, and of recognized and non-recognized religious minority groups, including the Baha’is.

3.  The Committee notes that in the resolution on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, adopted in April 2000, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights welcomed the report of its Special Representative on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran (E/CN.4/2000/35) in which it noted the following points in particular: (a) that there is prospect for substantial and far-reaching change which will have, and in some areas has already had, a positive impact on the human rights situation; (b) that progress has been made in the Islamic Republic of Iran in the area of freedom of expression, in particular towards a more open debate on issues of governance and human rights, although there was still concern at restrictions on the freedom of the press and cases of harassment and intimidation of journalists; and (c) that progress has been made with regard to the status of women in some areas such as education and training, health, and integration of a gender dimension into government planning. At the same time, concern was expressed in the resolution over the continued discrimination and persecution against the Baha’is and the continued lack of full and equal enjoyment by women of their human rights. In August 2000, in his interim report (UN doc. A/55/363), the Special Representative stated that the tangible progress made to date in 2000 has been overshadowed by backsliding in some cases and stagnation in others. The Committee shares the general appreciation and the concern expressed in both this resolution and the Interim Report, in regard to the evaluation of the situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran since its previous observation.

4.  Mechanisms to promote human rights.  Over the years the lack of institutional mechanisms to promote and implement a national policy on non-discrimination and equality has been noted. Last year, for the first time and due to the information gathered during the mission, the Committee noted the establishment of the Supervisory Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution which has as one of its stated operational objectives the review of the interpretation of laws in accordance with international human rights instruments, including this Convention. The Government reports that the Supervisory Commission, in its two years of existence, has tried to implement the Constitution. In the last year, it has held one public meeting on the role of the Commission and the rights guaranteed under the Constitution, including the rights of the various religious denominations. The Committee would be grateful to receive information on any activities undertaken by the Supervisory Commission to specifically promote the application of the Convention as well as other United Nations human rights instruments.

5.  The Committee also noted the establishment and functioning of the Islamic Human Rights Commission which has authority to receive complaints from within and outside the country on violations of human rights under Islamic and international treaty law. The Committee noted that, while it has only advisory capacity and cannot order remedies for violations, the jurisdiction of the Commission covers discrimination in employment in both the public and private sectors. It further noted that a few cases had been filed on gender- and religious-based discrimination in employment and occupation, including a case filed by a member of a religion not recognized in the Islamic Republic of Iran, but that the volume of such complaints remained small. The Commission is made up of members from the Islamic Consultative Assembly, the judiciary, and individual lawyers, and, according to the Government, the Commission acts independently from the Government and the judiciary. It sits in closed session, but it also holds yearly public sessions nationwide. The Government indicates that the Commission vigorously investigates, follows and deals with any complaint arising from the public or private sector. The Committee recalls the very detailed report prepared by the secretariat of the Commission on the examination and pursuit of appeals and allegations of human rights violations provided to the mission team. The Committee requested the Government to continue to supply information on the cases and activities of the Islamic Human Rights Commission and other similar institutions concerning discrimination, promotion of societal tolerance or international human rights; it notes, however, that in its report the Government does not supply any information detailing the nature and status of the allegations or appeals filed with and handled by the Commission over the last year. It therefore requests the Government to continue to supply general information on the activities of this institution and to forward with its next report detailed information on the specific allegations and appeals concerning discrimination in the fields of education and employment handled by the Islamic Human Rights Commission, the actions taken by the Commission and the results achieved.

6.  Discrimination on the basis of sex.  The Committee recalls that it has raised concerns over the years in regard to the situation of women in the labour market and equal access of women to education, training, jobs and terms and conditions of employment. It has addressed de jure as well as de facto discrimination, noting that it was the de facto situation and the status of women in society that presented the greatest obstacles to women’s participation in the labour market on an equal basis with that of men. The Committee noted some progress in the increase of women’s participation in various sectors of wage and non-wage employment from 1991 to 1996. It also noted that progress has been made in education, that there is a policy to increase the participation of girls in secondary and higher education levels and that there are no longer any restrictions on areas of study for women. The Committee also noted that, in spite of the progress made, women’s participation rate in the labour market remained low.

7.  The Government reports that the newly adopted five-year national development plan (March 2000-March 2005) promotes opportunities for women in employment and education. According to the Government, one goal of these endeavours is to allow women to be active in all sectors of society. The Government refers to the progress already made in the increase in the number of women in senior elected positions and in respect of the number of women in all levels of education. The Government indicates that at the beginning of the Islamic revolution in the Islamic Republic of Iran women accounted for 24 per cent of the students in higher education and this figure is now up to 41.89 per cent (267,650 out of a total of 638,913). The Government reports that in universities and higher education institutions, for the academic year 1999-2000, 45.62 per cent of those accepted for the first time were women and 54.38 per cent were men. The Government also reports that the number of female apprentices in technical and professional training programmes over the past two years increased by 48.5 per cent over the two previous years to reach 97,604. The Committee also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the steadily increasing number of female students in teacher training courses and the projections to the year 2005 of the increase in the participation of women at all levels of education from both towns and rural areas. Very detailed statistics have been supplied on the number of graduate students and teaching staff, disaggregated by sex, which show that women account for 17.66 per cent of teaching staff in the 1999-2000 academic year. The Government indicates that the increase in education and training should better equip women to enter the labour market. The Committee notes this information with interest and requests the Government to continue to provide such detailed statistics, including a specification of the subjects of study, training and teaching in which women are participating. It also requests the Government to indicate any measures taken to facilitate women’s access to jobs, the employment rates of women graduates and the sectors in which they find employment.

8.  The Committee notes from the detailed employment figures provided by the Government that the percentage of women employed as of 1997 was 12.1 per cent, thus reflecting a slight increase over the figure of approximately 10 per cent for 1996. The report indicates that in 1992 women accounted for 24.8 per cent and, in 1998, for 29.2 per cent of the workforce in the public sector. The Government also reports that, countrywide, in 1992, women represented 2.8 per cent of the executive or management-level posts and by 1997 that figure had increased to 12.6 per cent. The Committee again acknowledges the indication of a positive trend in these participation rates. At the same time it must point to the slow pace of the improvement and still low level of women’s employment. Noting the current economic situation in the country, and the increase in unemployment, the Committee is concerned that even these slight gains may be eroded in future. It requests the Government to continue to provide as up-to-date as possible information on the labour market including the employment and unemployment rates of women. It also requests the Government to supply statistics available in the Ministry of Industry on the private sector employment participation rates disaggregated by sex.

9.  With respect to the most disadvantaged women in the country, the Government provides information on the continuation of the project for employment for single-parent rural women, the increase of women in cooperatives, a detailed description of the projects to promote employment for women under the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, and information concerning employment for rural and tribal women.

10.  In its previous comment, the Committee noted that one cause of the low employment participation rate of women was the male preference not to hire women, and it requested information on what measures were being taken by the Government to create an environment for equal participation of women in the labour market. The Committee notes that the Government does not directly address this issue. The Committee considers that sensitization campaigns, along with positive action and enforcement of the protections found in the Constitution and Labour Code, are essential to the application of the Convention. Since the Committee notes the Government’s indication that it intends to pursue the promotion of equal opportunity and employment for women and that this intention is reflected in the current development plan, it hopes that the next report will indicate the practical measures taken to tackle the attitudinal and other barriers to the full integration of women in economic life on an equal footing with men.

11.  The Committee again notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the number of women in the judiciary and the various positions held by them including appellate court counsellors, provincial deputy attorney-generals, deputies in judicial assemblies, judicial counsellors and judges for investigation and enforcement. The Government indicates that there is no discrimination in the employment of women in the judiciary. The Committee must return to the point that it has been raising and which was confirmed by the mission team that, while women’s judicial capacity remains influential, it is only advisory, and they are still not allowed to issue judicial verdicts. It requests the Government to indicate whether any review of this practice has been undertaken in the past year, and hopes that the Government will soon be in a position to report on the removal of the restriction so as to allow women to participate on an equal footing with men in the judicial profession in accordance with the provisions of the Convention.

12.  Further to its previous comments on the obligatory dress code and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on Administrative Infringements for violation of the Code, the Committee noted from the information gathered during the mission and from the Government’s reports that any infringements are dealt with through the use of notification procedures and that there has never been a case of dismissal and that persistent violations of the dress code would result in escalated disciplinary procedures, but would not reach the level of dismissal. Moreover, the Government indicates that public servants have the right of appeal and can subsequently seek relief from the Supreme Court for imposition of disciplinary action. The Committee notes this information and recalls its concern over the negative impact that such a requirement may have on access to or security of employment of non-Islamic women in employment in the public sector. It once again requests the Government to supply a complete copy of the Act on Administrative Infringements with its next report, and to continue to supply information on the application in practice of this Act. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the number of women belonging to religious minorities who are employed in the public service.

13.  The Committee recalls its previous comments on section 1117 of the Civil Code under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his or his wife’s prestige, and the provision under the 1975 Protection of Family Act which extends to wives as well as husbands the same right to object to the spouse’s employment and its request that section 1117 of the Civil Code be repealed. The Committee hopes that its comment will be considered in the review of laws that has been reported to be taking place with a view to altering provisions that are considered to disadvantage women. In the meantime, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the application in practice of this provision.

14.  The Committee notes that one of the objectives of the National Plan of Action for Women prepared for the "Beijing +5" Conference, 2000, is to seek means to ease restrictions on women’s employment in certain jobs and to increase women’s productivity. The Committee recalls that in its 1996 observation, it reviewed the restrictions authorized by sections 75 et seq. in the Labour Code and found them to be in accordance with protection authorized under other international labour standards or directed at the protection of maternity. In this respect, the Committee notes, as it has for other countries, that any measures of protection for women should be reviewed periodically with the social partners and women themselves in light of the principle of equality of opportunity and scientific and technological developments to determine if they should be retained, repealed or extended to men. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the review of all laws concerning restrictions on women, such as restrictions on leaving the country for study without permission of the husband, and the resulting changes in or retention of such laws. In this respect, it notes receipt of a large volume entitled Special laws and regulations for women in the Islamic Republic of Iran published by the Centre for Women’s Participation, of the Office of the President and, after translation of relevant sections, may have additional points to raise at its next session. From the August 2000 interim report of the United Nations Special Representative, the Committee notes the Bill approved by the Majillis (Parliament) to raise the marriage age of girls to 14 and boys to 17 which in the view of the Committee would have a positive impact on access of women to educational and employment opportunities. It requests the Government to provide information on the adoption of this law.

15.  Discrimination on the basis of religion.  The Committee recalls that since section 6 of the Labour Code does not include reference to non-discrimination on grounds of religion, it has been monitoring the employment situation of the recognized religious minorities (Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians). While it has found that the employment situation of members of these religious minorities is better than the national average, it has also noted the preference given to Muslims in hiring practices. The Committee continues, as in the past, to point to the importance of continuing to take measures prohibiting discrimination on grounds of religion, to promote non-discrimination on grounds of religion, and to be vigilant in prohibiting the use of job advertisements to restrict applicants to a specified religious group. The Committee notes that the Government’s report provides no new information on the situation of the recognized religious minorities apart from the holding of one seminar on the protection of minorities under the Constitution. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the education and employment situation of members of the recognized minorities and on the measures taken to prohibit discrimination on the grounds of religion. The Committee repeats its request for statistical information on the participation rates of recognized minority men and women in the labour market, and their employment levels in the public and private sectors. It encourages the Government to continue to initiate measures to foster tolerance and respect in the society for all religious groups and to eliminate discrimination in employment and occupation, and to report on such measures taken.

16.  The Committee has been expressing its concern for many years now over the treatment in education and employment of members of the unrecognized religions, in particular the members of the Baha’i faith. The Committee noted last year from the mission report that sensitivity regarding the subject of the Baha’i in the country goes beyond any formal restrictions and exclusions which may exist, and extends to the societal attitude towards members of this group. In the public sector, the Committee notes that formal restrictions on the hiring of the members of the Baha’i do exist, though the mission was not shown any legal text to this effect. No statistics could be produced indicating the number of members of the Baha’i (or any other unrecognized religion) in the public service, nor was there any record of complaints filed on the grounds of religious discrimination. The mission report indicates that there remains an apparently widespread conviction among the people of the country that all members of the Baha’i work against the interest of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and thus may not be trusted at any level of government, even in the absence of concrete evidence to this effect. At the same time, the Committee notes that there appears to be an effort to remove barriers in regulations and directives with respect to unrecognized religious groups and to promote greater tolerance for them, but that this process was expected to take some time and that opinions remained divided on it. In the private sector, the Committee notes that no formal restrictions on the hiring of members of unrecognized religions, including the Baha’i, appear to exist, but in practice these persons may experience difficulty in access to education, jobs and occupations. The Committee notes with interest the reported elimination of discrimination against Baha’i youth in enrolment in the pre-university year at the high-school level, while remaining concerned that their entry to universities continues to be refused and that the Open Baha’i University, a correspondence school, was closed down.

17.  The Committee notes that the Government’s latest report does not indicate that any measures have been taken to address the issue of the Baha’is. It nevertheless notes from the Interim Report of the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights that, following a decision of the Expediency Council to endorse a concept of citizen’s rights, the Registration Department abolished the requirement for the declaration on religion on application to register a marriage. The Committee shares the Special Representative’s view that this measure is a welcome development that will positively benefit the rights of Baha’i women and children. The Special Rapporteur also indicates that there is now the prospect that university entrance will be the next sector in which religious discrimination of this nature will be removed. The Committee requests the Government to make every effort to continue to work towards the elimination of both formal and de facto discrimination against the members of the non‑recognized religious groups in education and employment in accordance with the requirements of the Convention.

18.  The Committee refers to the discussion in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards concerning the adoption of the Act to exempt from the application of the Labour Code workplaces and businesses of five or fewer employees until 2005. The Committee notes that the representative of the Government indicated that the Labour Ministry had opposed this amendment and that it was hoped that the Act would not enter into effect. The report of the Government does not provide any additional information on this point. The Committee notes from the discussion that the criterion for limiting the application of the Labour Code, the number of employees, does not per se violate the Convention as it is not based on one of the criteria set out in Article 1(a) of the Convention. The Committee is nevertheless concerned over the manner in which those in the exempted enterprises, in particular women and minorities, will be protected against discrimination in employment. It therefore requests the Government to provide information on the status of the Act, and in the event it is in force, on the measures taken to ensure the application of the Convention to those exempted from the Labour Code.

19.  Tripartite consultation.  The Committee recalls that the provisions of the Convention require the policy of non-discrimination and promotion of equality to be implemented in cooperation with the social partners. It would be grateful if the Government would provide information on their involvement in the promotion of the application of the Convention.

20.  The Committee notes the continued dialogue with the Government, the increasing technical cooperation activities with the Office, and the participation of the Office in a human rights technical cooperation and education programme in collaboration with the Islamic Commission on Human Rights and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It notes in particular that a training session on the ILO’s fundamental Conventions is to be held in the Islamic Republic of Iran in April 2001. The Committee encourages the continuing collaboration between the Office and the Government. The Committee nevertheless remains concerned over the gap there remains between the Government’s avowed intentions, and the measures that have actually been taken to eliminate discrimination in employment and occupation. It also encourages the Government to take the initiative to transform its stated objectives and intentions into concrete measures designed to promote the full application of the Convention.

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1. Further to its observation, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide the following additional information that had been requested by the ILO mission team before it departed from the country in November 1999: labour inspection reports including statistics on violations of laws, complaints and remedial actions taken and labour force participation rates of men and women by sector.

2. The Committee notes that the technical advisory mission which visited the country in October-November 1999 was informed of restrictions on recruitment of recognized minorities to be officers in the disciplinary and armed forces, or to be in career posts in these services. It would be grateful if the Government would provide information in this regard and to supply regulations on personnel recruitment in the disciplinary and armed forces.

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1. The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government in June 1999 during the discussion in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards. The Committee welcomes the invitation from the Government for a technical advisory mission carried out by senior specialists in the Office for the purpose of discussing all the questions that have arisen in the application of the Convention. The Committee views this action positively as reflecting a willingness on the part of the Government to continue to engage in dialogue, and has examined with interest the detailed report of the mission, which took place from 29 October to 5 November 1999. It notes that the mission team held extensive discussions with representatives of many parts of Iranian society, including the representatives of workers' and employers' organizations, on the points raised in the Committee's previous comments. It further notes from the conclusions of the mission report the existence of national dialogue on many of these issues, and that there is an emerging commitment in the governmental structure towards removing all possible obstacles to the application of internationally recognized human rights. It further notes the emergence of national institutions set up to examine and promote human rights, including non-discrimination in employment.

2. Mechanisms to promote human rights. The Committee is pleased to note the expanded activities in the area of human rights, including the publication of articles in the country on ILO Conventions and its supervisory system, the holding of national seminars and the establishment of a human rights programme of study at the University of Tehran. The Committee notes with interest the establishment of the Supervisory Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution which has as one of its operational objectives the review of the interpretation of laws in accordance with international human rights instruments, including this Convention. The mission team was able to conduct a thorough dialogue with the chief of the Supervisory Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution, and to explore how it is carrying out its work. In addition, the Committee notes with interest the establishment and functioning of the Islamic Human Rights Commission which has authority to receive complaints from within and outside the country on violations of human rights under Islamic and international treaty law. The mission team also met with its President and some of its members. The Committee notes that the jurisdiction of the Commission covers discrimination or other matters related to employment in both the public and private sectors and that it has only advisory capacity to remedy violations. Noting that the Commission has had a few cases of gender and religious-based discrimination in employment and occupation, including a case filed by a member of a religion not recognized in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Committee requests the Government to continue to supply information on the cases and activities of the Islamic Human Rights Commission. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the activities concerning discrimination, promotion of societal tolerance or international human rights undertaken by the other institutions mentioned above.

3. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee notes the conclusions of the mission report that, while some limited legal restrictions remain on the employment of women, the Government is examining measures to remove the formal obstacles and is working to overcome the social obstacles which restrict women's participation in the economy. In its previous observation, the Committee had noted the increase in the participation of women in various sectors of wage and non-wage employment from 1991 to 1996. It had also noted that some progress had been made in education, but that female participation rates had remained very low in higher education at 4.3 per cent. The Committee notes from the mission report that women's education level continues to increase and that the mission was able to confirm that there are no longer any restrictions on areas of study for women. It also notes that approximately 10 per cent of the total population is in higher education, thus placing the 4.3 per cent into perspective. The Committee further notes that, according to the information provided to the mission team, there is a policy to increase the participation of girls in secondary and higher education levels. In this regard, it notes that, in 1998, 52 per cent of those who passed the national university entrance examination were female, marking a 13 per cent increase over the previous year; and, in 1999, this increased further to 57 per cent for women. In secondary schools, girls are 40.9 per cent of students. At the elementary level, over 90 per cent of girls are estimated to receive elementary education. Finally, the Committee notes that women constitute approximately 4,000 of the 21,000 members of the academic boards (teachers and professors). It requests the Government to continue to provide information in its reports on the rates of participation of girls and women in education in comparison with boys and men.

4. The Committee notes that, in spite of the progress marked, women's participation rate in the labour market remains low at an estimated 10 per cent. Several factors were provided to the mission team to explain this, including women's choice not to enter the labour market, the underestimation of women's participation, particularly in the rural areas, and male preference not to hire women. However, no formal restriction or barrier exists to women in employment and their pattern of labour market participation is expected to change as women are increasingly becoming more involved in social public life. Recent regulatory changes would appear to promote this tendency, with the increase in maternity leave for female employees from three to four months and the introduction of flexible working hours for women to facilitate work and family responsibilities. The Committee notes these developments with interest. It also notes that the National Plan of Action of 1997 remains relevant with its emphasis on increasing education levels, creating a better environment for the equal participation of women in the job market and facilitating women's access to credit, financial resources, banking and production facilities. A few projects appear to have been undertaken in accordance with these objectives in the Plan. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken to eliminate preferences for men in the workplace and to promote and support women's ability to participate in the labour market with men, including their attainment of high-level and decision-making posts. Noting that no new statistical data at the national level is available since the 1996 census, but that the Centre for Women's Participation is undertaking a more in-depth analysis of the 1996 labour market data, it requests the Government to supply a copy of that analysis to the Office once it is completed. It also requests the Government to supply statistics that are available in the Ministry of Industry on the private sector employment participation rates disaggregated by sex; and the statistics available in the various Ministries for public sector participation rates.

5. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the number of women in the judiciary and the various positions held by them including appellate court counsellors, provincial deputy Attorneys General, deputies in judicial assemblies, judicial counsellors and judges for investigation and enforcement. The Committee recalls that it has previously raised concerns not only over the participation rate of women, but also over the formal restriction precluding women from having the authority to render verdicts. The Committee notes that, while their judicial capacity remains influential, it is only advisory, and they are still not allowed to issue judicial decisions. It also notes with interest from the mission report that the formal restriction on women from rendering verdicts is now under review by the council of mullahs. The Committee hopes that the review will result in the removal of the restriction so as to allow women to participate on an equal footing with men in the judicial profession in accordance with the provisions of the Convention.

6. Further to its previous comments on the obligatory dress code and the imposition of sanctions in accordance with the Act on Administrative Infringements for violation of the Code, the Committee notes from the information gathered during the mission that any infringements are dealt with through the use of notification procedures. The Committee further notes the indication that there has never been a case of dismissal and that persistent violations of the dress code would result in escalated disciplinary procedures, but would not reach the level of dismissal. Moreover, public servants have the right of appeal and can subsequently seek relief from the Supreme Court for imposition of disciplinary action. The Committee notes this information and once again requests the Government to supply a complete copy of the Act on Administrative Infringements with its next report.

7. The Committee has previously requested information on the application of section 1117 of the Civil Code under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his or his wife's prestige, and the provision under the 1975 Protection of Family Act which extends to wives as well as husbands the same right to object to the spouse's employment. The Committee notes from the information gathered by the mission that, while it is not a common practice, limited use has been made of this Civil Code provision. Noting that a review of laws is taking place with a view to altering provisions which are considered to disadvantage women, the Committee hopes that the Government will review section 1117 of the Civil Code, and either remove the husband's right to object to his wife's job or grant the wife the equivalent right of objection.

8. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The Committee recalls its previous conclusion that the recognized religious minorities (Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians) have been able to make progress in the labour market, and that the employment situation of members of these religious minorities was better than the national average. The Committee had continued to request information on the education and employment situation of members of the recognized minorities and on the measures taken to prohibit discrimination on the grounds of religion. The Committee notes that the mission team was able to meet with representatives of the recognized minorities and to confirm that members of each of these groups continue to have high levels of education and participation in employment. Nevertheless, it also notes from the mission report that, in practice, due to societal attitudes, Muslims may be given preference by employers over members of recognized minorities in some areas of employment. In this regard, the Committee notes with interest the importance of the representation of the recognized religions in Parliament, the expanding informal methods of discussion with Government officials on issues of importance to the religious minorities, including perceived job discrimination, and the holding of seminars on religious minorities in the country. The Committee hopes that measures will continue to be taken to promote non-discrimination on grounds of religion, and it requests the Government to continue to be vigilant in prohibiting the use of job advertisements to restrict applicants to a specified religious group. It would be grateful if the Government would continue to provide statistical information on the participation rates of recognized minority men and women in the labour market, as well as information on the measures taken to foster tolerance in the society of all religious groups and to eliminate discrimination in employment and occupation.

9. The Committee for many years now has been expressing its concern over the treatment in education and employment of members of the unrecognized religions, in particular the members of the Baha'i faith. The Committee notes from the mission report that the sensitivity of the subject of the Baha'i in the country goes beyond any formal restrictions and exclusions which may exist, and extends to the societal attitude towards members of this group. In the public sector, the Committee notes that formal restrictions on the hiring of the members of the Baha'i do exist (and such restrictions do not appear to exist for the recognized religious minorities). No statistics could be produced indicating the number of members of the Baha'i (or any other unrecognized religion) in the public service, nor was there any record of complaints filed on the grounds of religious discrimination. The mission report indicates that there remains an apparently widespread conviction among the people of the country that all members of the Baha'i work against the interest of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and thus may not be trusted at any level of government. At the same time, the Committee notes that there appears to be an effort to remove barriers in regulations and directives with respect to unrecognized groups and to promote greater tolerance for them, but that this process was expected to take some time, and that opinions remained divided on it. In the private sector, the Committee notes that no formal restrictions on the hiring of members of unrecognized religions, including the Baha'i, appear to exist, but in practice these persons may experience difficulty in access to education, jobs and occupations. The Committee notes with interest the reported elimination of discrimination against Baha'i youth in enrolment in the pre-university year at the high school level, while remaining concerned that their entry to universities continues to be refused and that the Open Baha'i University, a correspondence school, was closed down. The Committee requests the Government to make every effort to work towards the elimination of both formal and de facto discrimination against the members of the non-recognized religious groups in education and employment in accordance with the requirements of the Convention.

10. Tripartite consultation. The Committee notes from the mission report that the first tripartite consultation on social and labour matters has recently been held. The Committee recalls that the provisions of the Convention require the policy of non-discrimination and promotion of equality to be implemented in cooperation with the social partners. Taking note of the interest and involvement of the social partners during the mission, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on their involvement in the promotion of the application of the Convention.

11. The Committee welcomes the undertaking of activities to follow up the mission on the application of the Convention, including plans to hold a national tripartite seminar on fundamental labour rights and principles, including discrimination, and the participation of the Office in a human rights technical cooperation and education programme in collaboration with the Islamic Commission on Human Rights and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The Committee encourages the continued collaboration between the Office and the Government with a view towards promoting the full application of the Convention.

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The Committee takes note of the Government's report and the attached statistics and information received during its session. The Committee also recalls the discussion of the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in 1997.

1. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee notes that women's employment continues to increase in all sectors of the economy (1991: 733,000 women employed in salaried posts and 415,000 in non-wage employment; 1996: 948,000 in salaried posts and 730,000 in non-wage employment), with notable increases in the private sector wage and salary employment category (from 119,000 in 1991 to 250,000 in 1996), the non-wage employers' category (from 10,000 in 1991 to 16,000 in 1996) and the non-wage family worker category (from 148,000 in 1991 to 367,000 in 1996). The Government indicates in its report that this increase is due largely to the implementation of a dual policy of enhancing equal opportunity for women, with a focus on efforts made to increase female participation rates in education, and promoting the role of women in society. In this respect, the Committee notes from the Government's report that the percentage of women enrolled at cycle (pre-high school) level education in 1996 was 25.9 per cent as compared to 18.9 per cent in 1986, in high school 19.3 per cent in 1996 as compared to 9.9 per cent in 1986, and in higher education 4.3 per cent in 1996 as compared to 1.2 per cent in 1986. It also notes the Government's indication that, in some subject areas in higher education, the number of female graduates will outnumber male graduates in the future (for example, in 1986 about 49 per cent of graduates in medical sciences were female, while the ratio increased to 53 per cent in 1996 and is expected to increase to 60 per cent in the future). It also notes the additional information provided by the Government concerning the results of the 1998 National University Entrance Examination which indicate that the number of female entrants to higher education is larger in 1998 than the number of males (66,756 males compared to 72,681 females, with females outnumbering males in the experimental and human sciences and arts, and males outnumbering females in technical sciences and mathematics). The Committee notes that some progress has been made in increasing female participation both in employment and education. However, it notes that female participation remains generally very low in higher education. It would be grateful if the Government would continue to provide information on the policies, programmes and other measures taken to further progress in women's access to education, employment and occupational opportunities. The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the number of women appointed to the judiciary.

2. The Committee has previously referred to the obligatory dress code for female public servants, and sanctions, including the possibility of physical punishment, for violation of the 1987 Act on Administrative Infringements under sections 10 and 13. It notes the Government's reply that the dress code for civil servants is not discriminatory since there is a dress code for men as well as for women. The Government also indicates that no law or regulation, including the Act on Administrative Infringements, contains provisions that prescribe physical punishment for non-observance of proper dress. Rather, according to the Government, violations of the dress code are addressed through section 9 on administrative sanctions of the Act on Administrative Infringements and that the usual form is through registered or non-registered notification to the employee or other administrative sanction. Noting that other administrative action taken pursuant to section 9 could include termination of employment, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the practical application of sanctions imposed for violation of the dress code under section 9. The Committee would also be grateful if the Government would provide a complete copy of the Act on Administrative Infringements and the practical application of sections 9, 10 and 13.

3. The Committee notes that the Government's report does not contain any information on the application of section 1117 of the Civil Code (under which a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interest of the family or to his wife's or own prestige), and the 1975 Act on the Protection of the Family which extends to wives as well as husbands the right to object to the employment of the spouse. The Committee therefore again requests the Government to inform it of developments regarding the revision of section 1117, and to supply information on any cases in which either spouse uses this particular provision to limit the job opportunities of the other spouse.

4. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The Committee recalls that it has earlier concluded that, on the basis of the information supplied by the Government, it appeared that, for the recognized religious minorities (Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians), efforts had been made to improve the employment situation. The Committee notes that, in its present report, the Government states that the employment situation of members of the religious minorities is better than the national average, indicating that while the national unemployment rate in 1996 was 9.09 per cent, the unemployment rate for Christians was 7.54 per cent, 9.08 per cent for Jews and 8.60 per cent for Zoroastrians. These figures appear to confirm that efforts are being made to allow for the improvement of the employment situation of members of the recognized religious minorities. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information in this regard, especially information on the representation of members of the religious minorities in the different sectors of activity and on the measures taken to prohibit discrimination on the basis of religion in employment and occupation.

5. The Committee recalls however, that in his Report on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran (United Nations Document E/CN.4/1998/59 of 28 January 1998), the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights states that reports of cases in which the human rights of Baha'is have been breached and of situations of discrimination and even of persecution, including, inter alia, refusal of entry to universities and dismissal from employment, continued to be received. It also notes that the Commission on Human Rights expressed its concern in its resolution 1998/80 of 22 April 1998 at continuing grave violations of the human rights of the Baha'is, as well as discrimination against members of other religious minorities, including Christians, despite constitutional guarantees.

6. With reference to its previous comments and the discussions in the 1997 Conference Committee, the Committee notes with interest the 50-page annex to the Government's report containing examples of job advertisements, none of which appear to contain religious requirements. It notes the Government's statement that, over time, job offers, vacancy announcements and student placement announcements have tended to become simpler in format and more uniform, indicating necessary qualifications by incorporating criteria on relevant education, level of education or past experience that cannot be interpreted as discriminatory. With reference to the criteria contained in the notices, the Committee refers the Government to paragraph 26 of its Special Survey of 1996 on equality in employment and occupation which deals with indirect discrimination. In this respect, it notes that the application of the same criteria to everyone, as a certain job requirement, could result in a disproportionate impact on some persons, when certain categories of persons do not have equal access to education necessary to obtain the job requirement in question, on grounds of, such as, religion, which in itself would constitute a form of direct discrimination. The Committee thus requests the Government to continue to supply information concerning job offers, including information on any judicial findings regarding discrimination on religious grounds in relation to access to employment.

7. The Committee recalls that workers have three options when seeking representation: they can establish trade unions, elect workers' representatives or establish Islamic Labour Councils. It also recalls that, according to the 1996 statistics in a previous Government report, this free choice had led to the establishment of 112 workers' organizations, 1,277 Islamic Labour Councils, and the appointment of 537 workers' representatives. Noting the Government's previous comment that members of the recognized religious minorities could belong to Islamic Labour Councils and its indication that groups not recognized as religious minorities in the Constitution enjoy all the constitutional rights guaranteed to other citizens, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the number of different workers' representation mechanisms established as well as the number of Baha'i participating in these different mechanisms.

8. The Committee also notes the Government's renewed statement that, although Baha'is enjoy equal legal protection against discrimination, the declared intentions of the group, and their specific past and present activities, have made it difficult to provide unlimited access to employment in public institutions. It notes the Government's statement that Bahaism is not a religion and is not functioning as a religion, and that this question should not be dealt with under the rubric of religion. The Government reasserts that the officially recognized religions in the country are Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism. It states further that the rights of citizens, including the right to employment, are universal and are for all citizens, and that not being a member of a recognized religion does not deprive any individual from enjoying his or her rights as a citizen.

9. With reference to Article 4 of the Convention, the Committee recalls its 1989 observation wherein it considered that in the Islamic Republic of Iran the exclusion of the Baha'i from employment in the public sector was based on adoption by the Baha'i of, and holding to, a faith which is not recognized under articles 12 and 13 of the Constitution. The Committee recalls its General Survey of 1988 on equality in employment and occupation where it noted that in some countries, the constitutional provisions authorize the practice of a number of religions, which are referred to by name, which could be interpreted as a prohibition on believing or practising a religion, the exercise of which is not guaranteed by the Constitution, or as a prohibition of atheism. It notes the Government's position that the Baha'i is not a religion and is not functioning as a religion. However, it notes also that Baha'i is generally considered to be a religion by those persons professing it. Further, outside the country it has been qualified as such in examinations by the United Nations and other international organizations, and that the Committee has no basis for concluding otherwise. Noting that the Government's report does not contain information concerning the general employment situation of the Baha'i nor details concerning their employment in public service posts where particular religious beliefs are not inherent requirements of the job to be done, the Committee, with reference to paragraph 41 of its Special Survey of 1996 on employment and occupation, again requests the Government to provide such information.

10. The Committee notes the Government's indication that it has taken note of the proposal to invite a direct contacts mission. The Government states that it should be noted that it has been cooperating with the supervisory bodies of the ILO and expresses its determination to continue to do so. The Committee also notes the Government's indication that it would welcome further ILO technical assistance, as well as ILO participation in joint activities that would lead to further improved application of the Convention. The Committee welcomes the fact that its dialogue with the Government has served to clarify a number of outstanding issues, and repeats its hope that the Government will consider favourably accepting a direct contacts mission so as to make available complete information on the situation of religious minorities and other identifiable groups in the country. It hopes that the Government will be in a position to respond positively to this suggestion, thus further reflecting the willingness it has shown in recent years to engage in a dialogue with the Committee.

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1. The Committee takes note of the Government's detailed report and of the documents attached to it. It also notes the discussion in the 1997 Conference Committee on the Application of Standards, which took note of the technical assistance mission to the country undertaken by the Office in April 1997.

2. The Conference Committee's discussion centred on the ongoing issues of sex and religious discrimination in employment and occupation, as well as that Committee's suggestion, made during its 1996 discussion, that the Government accept a direct contacts mission to examine all aspects of the outstanding questions. It also referred to recent comments concerning sex, religious and political discrimination in employment, presented by the World Confederation of Labour (WCL), to which the Government had replied, and by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), which had arrived during the Committee of Experts' previous session and thus had as yet received a reply. The Conference Committee took note of the explanations provided by the Government, inter alia, for not accepting the offer of a direct contacts mission and noted with concern that in spite of concrete initiatives and the time which had elapsed, violations of the provisions of this Convention subsisted. It stated that additional information was needed, in particular in the area of job offers and the criteria applied by the competent authorities to declare certain groups illegal. It strongly urged the Government to accept the direct contacts mission, in order to be able to register rapid and noticeable progress. It decided to place the case in a special paragraph of its report.

3. The Government states, in its report, that it was unfortunate that the Conference Committee was manipulated and misused as a forum for politically motivated and unfounded accusations. It explains the technical assistance received from the Office. First, given the importance of the involvement of the legislators in promoting the application of the Convention, members of the Parliamentary Labour and Social Affairs Commission had a three-day briefing session at ILO headquarters in January 1997. Second, the April 1997 national tripartite training seminar carried out by the Office in Tehran discussed a number of fundamental ILO Conventions, in particular Convention No. 111, followed by technical meetings to discuss the national mechanisms of implementation of the Labour Code, including the non-discrimination provisions, visits to other ministries and departments involved in promoting women and field visits to two of the largest factories in the greater Tehran area. Third, the International Institute for Labour Studies of the ILO offered an academic internship for research on the legal aspects of new developments in the field of fundamental workers' rights. Fourth, assistance was received for the translation of major ILO Conventions and documentation concerning them. The Government expresses its concern that this technical cooperation -- a new and appreciated element in its relationship with the supervisory system -- was ignored by the Conference Committee, especially as the Committee of Experts itself had noted the Government's approach of using technical assistance to overcome difficulties in applying the Convention.

4. Regarding the proposed direct contacts mission, the Government recalls that, last year, it explained that the situation did not call for such a mission in that the extensive information supplied in recent government reports had solved the problem of lack of information on which the suggestion of direct contacts had been based. It hopes that the Committee of Experts understands that technical assistance can better serve the objectives of the Convention in the present situation in which the Government is cooperating in the supply of information and in welcoming Office participation in promoting the application of the Convention.

5. The Government considers that the document attached to the ICFTU communication is a propaganda paper, full of distortion of facts, falsifications and fabricated quotations, and calls into question the tenets of one of the divine religions, namely Islam. The Government expresses surprise that the ICFTU, which is a highly credible international body, transmitted the document to the Office given the intentions of the sources behind that document. It nevertheless addresses the general allegations of discrimination in employment on the bases of sex, religion and political opinion by referring to the replies it gave in its previous report in relation to the WCL communication. As the issues raised by the ICFTU parallel the comments that have been made by the Committee for a number of years, the Committee examines them below, by subject-matter.

6. The Government describes the general context following the presidential election of May 1997, pointing out that the election campaign had involved discussion of subjects relevant to the Convention. President Khatami's platform included strengthening of institutions of civil society, the rule of law, popular participation and promotion of women's participation in political, economic and social activities. According to the Government, his large victory was a clear manifestation of the democratic choices the people are making. The Government states that there is a clear government policy on promoting equal opportunity and enhancement of the role of women; various committees and special advisory posts have been set up in all major government institutions with the aim of incorporating women in all government activities; over 60 women's non-governmental organizations are active in the country; and there is dynamic public debate on the rights, role and participation of women.

7. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee notes from the Government's report that women's employment has continued to increase in all sectors of the economy, particularly in scientific and specialized occupations (1986: 508,000 women employed in salaried posts and 409,000 in non-wage employment; 1991: 723,000 in salaried posts and 414,000 in non-wage employment, according to the Iran Centre of Statistics). One reason for this, according to the Government, is its expansion of higher education facilities (1991: 469,098 women held university degrees; 1996: 888,180). The National Report to the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995; copy supplied in English) shows that, of the economically active female population in 1976, 13 per cent were employed in professional, technical and scientific or research jobs, which grew to 32.8 per cent in 1986 and 39.7 per cent in 1991. Women's employment by economic sector has increased in services and declined in agriculture and industry. Women's employment in the public sector doubled between 1981 and 1991, with the Ministries of Health and Education being the largest employers of women. The number of women in management and decision-making positions is also on the rise: for example, two women have been appointed to the posts of Vice-President and Advisor to the President respectively; several women hold senior public administration posts as Deputy Ministers and Directors-General; and many women are members of academia and heads of university departments. Of particular interest is the number of women in the judiciary: 3,154 in 1996, with several women sitting as judges (Judges of Investigations, Head of the Judiciary Branch, Deputy Heads of District or Provincial Judiciaries) following the implementation of the 1995 Act on Appointments to the Judiciary already noted by the Committee. There are 185 women attorneys. The Government supplies numerous press clippings attesting to the publicity given within the country to these women's appointments.

8. The Government also describes the activities and results obtained by the Bureau for Women's Affairs of the Office of the President. These include, among others: the creation of a Commission on the Employment of Women (composed of representatives of the Ministries of Labour, Industry, Agriculture, Cooperatives, Construction and the State Administrations of Plan and Budget, Administrative and Recruitment Policy, Social Security, Welfare and Handicraft Industries); formulation of the National Plan of Action for Women (copy supplied in Farsi); preparation of the National Report on Women presented to the Fourth World Conference on Women; support for the establishment of rural women's cooperatives; guidance and assistance to women facing unemployment problems and inadequate capital resources for self-employment; publishing and disseminating a booklet publicizing income-generating activities of women and statistical data on the social and economic situation of women. The Government repeats the comment made in its previous report that the Office might contribute to this work with advisory missions. The Government also supplies a copy (in English) of the progress report on the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (March 1997).

9. With reference to the ICFTU's comments on section 1117 of the Civil Code, the Committee notes that the Government repeats that section 1117 (a husband may bring a court action to object to his wife taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his wife's or his own prestige), which dates back to 1928, should be read in the light of the more recent 1975 Act on the Protection of the Family, which extends this right to object to the employment to wives as well as husbands (sections 8 and 18(7), copies supplied in Farsi). Since this right to object is available to both spouses irrespective of sex, the Government states that it is non-discriminatory. The Committee asks the Government to inform it in future reports of developments regarding the revision of section 1117, and to supply information on any cases where a husband uses this particular provision to limit the job opportunities of his wife and vice versa.

10. The ICFTU communication also refers to the obligatory dress code for female public servants -- and not males -- violation of which is punishable, under sections 10 and 13 of the 1987 Act relating to administrative infringements, by administrative sanctions ranging from warnings to termination of the public employment, with the possibility of criminal sanctions including physical punishment at the discretion of the competent tribunals. The Government's report does not comment directly on this question. The Committee recalls paragraphs 42 and 186 of its 1996 Special Survey on equality in employment and occupation where it discussed the balance that needs to be struck between freedom to observe religious edicts and the requirements of trades and occupations, taking care to avoid arbitrary repercussions on employment and occupation particularly in the public service. The Committee asks the Government to inform it how this requirement is implemented in practice, in particular with an indication as to whether female civil servants have received physical or other punishment for being improperly veiled when in the workplace or journeying to and from work.

11. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The ICFTU document mentions a number of laws, as well as advertisements for student places and job vacancies published in the daily press throughout 1995, which refer generally to the requirement of belief in Islam or one of the constitutionally recognized religions and, at times, "faith in the Islamic Revolution". The Committee notes that the ICFTU is alleging that discrimination pervades all aspects of Iranian society and, therefore, education and training and employment and occupation. The Committee notes that the Government, in its reply, supplies statistics on the active population, employment and school profiles of religious minorities (Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians and other religions). On the basis of this, and other details provided in past reports, the Government stresses that religious minorities benefit from the national policy of non-discrimination in employment and occupation and are employed in both the public and private sectors. Regarding the alleged discrimination in job offers, the Government states that there is no preference for Muslims. In view of all the information supplied, it appears that, for the recognized religious minorities, efforts have been made to improve the employment situation. The Committee recalls, however, the principle set out in Article 1, paragraph 2, of the Convention and in paragraphs 118 to 122 of its above-mentioned Special Survey regarding the inherent requirements of a particular job and their interplay with religious requirements, even in a country with a state religion. Many of the examples given by the ICFTU, for instance, relate to situations such as student places for meteorological studies, for which religious requirements would not appear to be justified.

12. The Committee must express its deep regret that, once again, the information supplied by the Government does not throw light on the situation of the Baha'is who, as noted in observations addressed to the Government for a number of years, have suffered discrimination on the basis of religion in access to employment, especially public service posts, and in terms and conditions of employment. This is of particular concern since the Committee had already, in its previous observation, recalled the findings of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the question of religious intolerance, who visited the country in December 1995 and reported "instinctive rejection" towards the Baha'i community on the part of Iranian officials with whom he met (UN document E/CN.4/1996/95/Add.2 dated 9 February 1996). As noted in its last observation, the Committee refers the Government to paragraph 41 of its 1996 Special Survey on employment and occupation and requests it to provide details in its next report on the employment of members of the Baha'i religion in public service posts where particular religious beliefs are not inherent requirements of the job to be done. It also requests the Government to communicate information on the employment of members of the Baha'i community generally.

13. Discrimination on the basis of political opinion. The ICFTU document lists laws and press advertisements which allegedly favour adherents of the State's religious and political regime and discriminate against persons who may hold different ideological beliefs. It also makes some general allegations concerning the role of propaganda which go beyond the scope of the Convention. The Committee notes from the Government's report that the Constitution provides for the freedom to form political parties and that the Labour Code does not impose political or religious criteria in appointments to the various mechanisms created under the Code, such as Islamic Labour Councils. The Committee refers to its comments on the inherent requirements of particular jobs outlined above.

14. In addition to the specific recommendations made above, the Committee considers that the time has come in its dialogue with the Government to request it, as has the Conference Committee albeit in a broader context, to consider accepting a direct contacts mission so as to have at its disposal complete information on the situation of religious discrimination in the country, in particular as regards the educational and employment opportunities of the Baha'is and other minorities. It hopes that the Government will be in a position to respond positively to this suggestion, especially now that the new Administration has taken office, this having been mentioned by the Government representative during the Conference Committee discussion. The Committee also hopes that the report will contain full details on the ongoing measures to improve the situation of women workers and the training opportunities available to girls and women.

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1. The Committee takes note of the Government's detailed report and the attached documentation, as well as of the information (including statistics) supplied by the Government representative to the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in 1996, and the discussion which followed.

2. At the end of that discussion, the Conference Committee's conclusions noted that the Government was ready to accept technical assistance from the Office and proposed that the Government invite a direct contacts mission to visit the country. The Government's report indicates that it wishes to pursue various technical cooperation measures with the Office: any type of cooperation with respect to the strengthening of the national policy on women; a seminar on the requirements of the Convention for national and provincial officials with duties related to its application; measures to strengthen further the national implementation machinery; activities to ensure that the provisions of the Convention are explicitly incorporated in the national labour regulations; and an exchange of views on the requirements of the instrument with members of the Labour Commission of Parliament. Regarding direct contacts, the Government states that it does not believe that the situation calls for such a mission, which is usually undertaken in very special circumstances. It is of this opinion in particular because the Conference Committee, in arriving at this conclusion, had not had time to study the extensive written report submitted by the Government during its meeting and since the present Committee had also not yet had occasion to do so. The Government considers that its substantial reports and, in particular, the information on more recent developments will remove the problem of insufficient information on which the suggestion of direct contacts was based. The Committee notes the Government's approach to using technical assistance to overcome difficulties in applying the Convention. It looks forward to receiving, in the Government's next report, information concerning contacts made with the Office in this regard. It trusts that the activities undertaken by the Government will take into account the comments it has been making on discrimination on the grounds of religion and sex, which are developed in the following paragraphs. The Committee hopes that these technical cooperation activities will lead the Government to reconsider in the future the possibility of a direct contacts mission.

3. In its previous observation, the Committee had noted receipt of a communication from the World Confederation of Labour (WCL) alleging discrimination in the labour market on the bases of sex, religion and political opinion, and stated that it would examine this matter at its next session. The WCL, referring to discrimination on the basis of sex, cites statistics for the period 1976-91 showing that, while the general population had grown, the average number of women active in the labour market had dropped from 15.94 to 10.73 per 100 men. According to a report published by the Iranian Centre of Statistics, in 1994 in industrial enterprises there was an average of only 5.92 women working for every 100 men. The WCL mentions in particular section 1117 of the Civil Code according to which the husband may prevent his wife from taking up a profession or job contrary to the interests of the family or to his wife's or his own prestige. Referring to discrimination on the basis of religion, the WCL states that in an "Islamic Republic" all the laws and regulations concerning individual and collective rights and duties are subject to a religious bias, in particular as regards certain occupations and jobs which are closed to women. Referring to the constitutional recognition of one official religion and certain "recognized" religions, the WCL infers that priority in employment is given only to persons faithful to the official religion. It cites section 8 of the Recruitment Regulations for Employees of the Ministry of Agriculture, of 24 September 1995, awarding higher salaries to the faithful and devoted, a phraseology which it states refers to persons who voluntarily took part in recent wars and thus proved their faithfulness to the regime. It also cites job advertisements in newspapers which call for qualifications such as "belief in Islam", and alleges that recruitment techniques involve ideological tests. With regard to discrimination on the basis of political opinion, the WCL states that the legislation of 5 October 1995 concerning recruitment competitions for teachers and employees in the Education Ministry defines the "moral, religious and political criteria" for recruitment and lists "sympathy towards" illegal political parties and formations as proof of incompetence for recruitment by the Ministry.

4. The Committee notes that the Government replies in detail to most of these points. Regarding alleged discrimination on the basis of religion and political opinion, it responds that, regarding the legislation concerning recruitment of teaching staff of the Ministry of Education, it is important to note that teachers have a special responsibility concerning the education and development of children. The Act in question requires: belief in Islam or any other officially recognized religion (Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism); commitment to Islamic principles for Muslims only (i.e. not for the aforementioned religious minorities); commitment to the Constitution including the provisions concerning the system of government being an Islamic Republic based on the principle of Velayat Faghig (Islamic jurisprudence); not being publicly known for moral corruption; no penal record; no narcotic addiction; and no affiliation with groups which have been declared "illegal" by the competent authorities. The Government points out that employment in the private sector is not bound by any rules specifying religious criteria. However, it does not comment on the reported discrimination appearing in job advertisements. It states that proof of its successful non-discrimination policy lies in the fact that the unemployment rate for religious minorities is lower than the national and provincial average (for example, Zoroastrians in the Province of Yazd and Christians in the Provinces of Isfahan, Tehran and Western Azerbaijan). Other statistical evidence includes the number of new university entrants (in the 1995-96 intake, there were 39,801 male and 21,525 female Muslim and non-declared entrants, compared to 72 males and 47 females listed as "other religions"). Regarding their access to jobs, according to Public Employment Office's statistics, non-Muslims have a higher rate of job placement: in 1995, 97.84 per cent of workers actually finding jobs were Muslim and 2.16 per cent were non-Muslim, whereas of the total population only 0.5 per cent is non-Muslim. Concerning alleged discrimination on the basis of sex, the Government supplies a large amount of recent statistical data pointing to improved access to education and to employment which are referred to below. Regarding the WCL's reference to section 1117 of the Civil Code, the Government states that it should be interpreted in the light of the Constitution, article 28 of which ensures the right of all persons to choose freely an occupation, under equal conditions of access to jobs. It stresses the gender-neutral language used there. According to the Government, section 1117 appears under the part of the Code dealing with rights and obligations based on marriage, and is only mandatory for Muslim couples since sections 6 and 7 of the Civil Code exempt non-Muslims from this part of the Code as they are covered by their own religious codes in the field of marriage. Moreover, under section 18 of the Act on the Protection of the Family, either member of a couple - husband or wife - having a complaint linked to choice of occupation contrary to the interests of the family can take a complaint to the competent court. It stresses that this approach is in line with the phrase "appropriate to national conditions and practice" used in Article 3 of the Convention.

5. Discrimination on the basis of religion. Regarding the Committee's previous comments on the difficulties facing persons of faiths other than Islam gaining access to university education and sitting on Islamic Labour Councils, the Committee notes with interest the Government's explanations, noted in the previous paragraph, concerning non-Muslim university entrants. The Committee also notes the Government's clarification that, under section 178 of the Labour Code, workers have three options when seeking representation: they can establish trade unions, elect workers' representatives or establish Islamic Labour Councils. According to the 1996 statistics in the Government's report, this free choice has led to the establishment of 112 workers' organizations and 1,277 Islamic Labour Councils and the appointment of 537 workers' representatives. It notes, moreover, that the Government representative at the Conference Committee indicated that members of the recognized religious minorities could belong to the Islamic Labour Councils. The Government points out that groups not recognized as religious minorities in the Constitution enjoy all the constitutional rights guaranteed to other citizens, such as article 23 ("It is forbidden to question people about their beliefs and no person may be molested or reprimanded for the mere possession of a certain belief"). The Committee notes, however, that the information supplied by the Government does not throw light on improvements in the situation of the Baha'is who, as noted in observations addressed to the Government for a number of years, have suffered discrimination on the basis of religion in access to education, access to employment and terms and conditions of employment.

6. While the Committee welcomes the fact that the Conference discussion clarified that the 1989 Directive No. M/11/4462 was in fact the document which repealed the previous, discriminatory Directive (concerning access of the Baha'is to the courts), and while the report explains that complaints of employment discrimination under the Labour Code can be made and are settled without any reference to the religion of the complainant, the Committee remains concerned at the situation of this religious minority. Its concern is reinforced by the fact the report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the question of religious intolerance (UN document E/CN.4/1996/95/Add.2 dated 9 February 1996), stated, following a December 1995 visit to the country, that the Baha'is whom he met claimed to be strongly discriminated against in the field of employment, especially in access to public service posts. The Committee would point out that while particular religious beliefs may be inherent requirements of certain jobs, this would not appear to be the case in most public service posts. It refers the Government to the comments it made concerning state religions in paragraph 41 of its 1996 Special Survey on equality in employment and occupation. It trusts that the Government will reconsider the situation in practice of the Baha'is, and will keep it informed of improvements in their educational and employment opportunities.

7. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee notes with interest that the amendment to the Act on Appointments to the Judiciary was adopted on 1 May 1995: section 5 now states that "Women holding judicial rank who enjoy the qualifications as appointment as a judge ... can be admitted by the Head of the Judiciary, to the post of Councillor of the Administrative Justice Tribunal, to Special Civil Courts, as Investigating Judge, to the Bureaux of Legal Studies and Legislative Drafting, to the Department of Custody of Minors, and as Councillors of Legal Departments and other departments that have judicial posts". It also notes that, for the first time ever, a woman has been appointed as Deputy Director-General of Tehran Province Judiciary and Head of its Custody Department. According to the Government representative at the Conference Committee, there are currently 97 women serving throughout the country in various judicial positions.

8. The Committee notes the detailed 1995-96 data supplied by the Government indicating that female students are increasingly entering courses that were largely taken by men (19 per cent women in technical and mathematical sciences as against an overall figure of 35 per cent women enrolled in higher education day courses and 31.5 per cent as against 48.6 per cent for women enrolled in evening courses), and showing that the number of women entering the active labour force has steadily grown. It also notes the copy of the list of occupations which are forbidden to women under section 75 of the Labour Code (which had been raised during the Conference Committee discussion), including arduous and harmful jobs involving exposure to factors resulting in, or liable to give rise to effects of, occupational diseases. The Committee also notes the details provided on the national programmes established to promote the conclusions of the Fourth International Conference on Women, many of which will affect the application of the principle of the Convention. Noting that a national committee headed by a woman has been set up in the Bureau for Women's Affairs to implement these strategies, the Committee requests the Government to inform it, in its next report, of the results obtained by the various programmes.

9. During its session, the Committee received a communication from the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), dated 29 November 1996, alleging discrimination in employment. The Government has been sent a copy of this communication for any comments that it may wish to make. The Committee looks forward to receiving the Government's comments and will examine this matter at its next session.

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1. The Committee refers to its observation, and, in the absence of any recent information in Government reports on the application of the Convention to grounds other than religion, political opinion, social origin and sex, asks the Government to provide details, in its next report, on the manner in which it applies the principle of the Convention without discrimination on the basis of national extraction, race and colour.

2. In this connection, the Committee notes that certain of the UN documents mentioned in the observation raise queries about discriminatory treatment against the Kurdish and the Arab minorities. Having already noted the equality provisions of the 1991 Labour Code in the observation, the Committee would appreciate receiving from the Government information on the employment situation in practice of persons of these extractions, in particular their:

(a) access to vocational training;

(b) access to employment and particular occupations;

(c) terms and conditions of employment, and, more specifically, the measures taken to promote equality of opportunity and treatment:

(i) in employment, vocational training and occupational guidance under the direction of the Government;

(ii) by means of legislation and education programmes;

(iii) with the cooperation of workers' and employers' organizations and other appropriate bodies.

3. The Committee refers to its 1993 observation where it noted the role of the Supreme Council of Labour in dealing with cases of discrimination in employment. It repeats its request for details of any such cases brought before this Council, including copies of decisions or extracts in a working language of the ILO.

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1. The Committee takes note of the Government's reports and the statistics supplied on men's and women's labour market participation in urban and rural zones, as well as of the information supplied by the Government representative in the Conference Committee in 1993 and the discussion which followed.

2. The Committee has also taken note of various United Nations documents concerning the Islamic Republic of Iran of relevance to this Convention (including the General Assembly Note "Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran" (A/48/526 of 8 November 1993) and its resolution 49/202 adopted on 23 December 1994; the Commission on Human Rights Special Representative's Reports (the most recent being E/CN.4/1995/55 of 16 January 1995) and that Commission's resolution 1994/73 adopted on 9 March 1994; resolution 1995/18 of 24 August 1995, adopted by the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities; the Summary Record of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (E/C.12/1993/SR.8 published on 20 December 1993) and its concluding observations (E/C.12/1993/7 of 9 June 1993); as well as the Summary Record of the 43rd Session of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD/C/SR.1990 of 22 October 1993)) all of which attest to continuing discrimination generally and in employment on the basis of religion and sex.

3. Discrimination on the basis of religion. The Committee notes from the above-mentioned UN documents that the situation of the Baha'i has not improved in the domains of access to higher education and to employment and terms and conditions of employment. The Government, on the other hand, has stressed in its reports, at the Conference Committee and in various UN fora, that:

- under the statutory provisions for the public sector there can be no discrimination in employment based on conviction and that in practice there have been no dismissals;

- the Social Security Act provides for pensions without any discrimination (the extracts of the Act on Transfer and Conveyance of Insurance or Pension Contributions, supplied by the Government, do not contain references to non-discrimination, but the Government does supply a copy of one Social Security Organization decision requiring the relevant Minister to give a clear ruling with reasons in the matter of authorizing a pension benefit despite the fact that the claimant belongs to the Baha'i sect);

- the Trades Regulation Act and the Regulations issued thereunder likewise deal with issuance of business permits and closure of businesses treating all nationals equally (the Government supplies a copy of a decision of the Ministry of Agriculture instructing the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs to permit Baha'i agricultural workers to join village cooperative societies "in accordance with current decisions of the State and with the basic law" and a copy of the Act on the Cooperatives Sector of the Economy which lists simple membership rules);

- no law bars their access to educational and training institutions and in practice there had been no closure of Baha'i classes in January 1991 (the Government supplies a copy of the Ministry of Education and Training guidelines issued to directors of schools according to which Baha'i students who register as such shall have no action taken against them, whereas activist Baha'i students are to be summoned, asked to make written statements and the complete details including place of study and residence are to be sent to the security office of the general administration);

- the 1991 circular of the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council allegedly aimed at blocking the progress and development of Baha'is has never been issued and does not exist (the Government supplies a copy of correspondence between the "Committee on section 90 of the Basic Law" and the President's Office requesting the official position on the 1989 Directive No. M/11/4462 which proscribes the denial of rights to citizens unless, inter alia, they have been recognized as spies, without it being clear what the official position is for Baha'is, whom - as noted in previous observations - are often accused of being spies).

4. The Committee notes the copy supplied by the Government of Prime Minister's Circular No. 4114462 which, it states, repeals the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs directive of 8 December 1981 (ordering courts to withhold judgements in favour of dismissed Baha'is) and replaces it. Please provide information on the practical application of this circular, in particular information that would allow the Committee to assess whether dismissed Baha'i employees enjoy equality of treatment in employment irrespective of religion. The Committee also expresses its concern at the lack of progress concerning repeal of the discriminatory provisions in the above-mentioned 1989 Directive No. M/11/4462, since the copies provided by the Government do not clarify the official position.

5. The Committee observes that the Iranian representative stated during the May 1993 Session of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights that "As to the Baha'is, they were not victims of any discriminatory measures, even if an occasional unfortunate case might have been reported here or there. (...) Whatever they might claim to the outside world, the Baha'is despised the Muslims who, for their part, were not very well disposed to them either." That UN Committee concluded that it still had concerns about violation of the rights of the Baha'i community in particular the ban on their admission to universities. In view of all the foregoing, the Committee again requests the Government to take the necessary measures with regard to the Baha'is, in accordance with Article 2 of the Convention, to declare and pursue a national policy to promote equality of opportunity and treatment without discrimination on the ground of religion.

6. With regard to the closing of business and denial of employment to followers of the Zoroastrian faith and Freemasons, the Committee notes that the Government representative at the Conference Committee repeated that Freemason organizations had terminated their activity in the country, and denied that Zoroastrians suffered discrimination, his Government being willing to examine any alleged case. The Committee would appreciate the Government supplying information in future reports on the equality in employment of persons belonging to these two groups irrespective of their religion.

7. Recalling its previous request for details on the number of members of religious minorities who hold positions in the judiciary, the Committee notes that, according to the Government, the national Constitution requires the judicial body to arrange courts according to the rites and religious regulations when the issue concerned civil statutes, and that in localities where the majority of the population is non-Shiite Muslim, some special civil courts have been established. The Committee had already noted that an Act of 14 May 1982 giving effect to article 163 of the Constitution prescribed, for the selection of judges, that they profess the Islamic faith and enjoy qualifications in Islamic law or theology. The Committee also recalls that section 6 of the 1991 Labour Code provides that "every person has the right to freely choose an occupation, provided that such occupation is not inconsistent with Islam, public interests and the rights of others". As no data has been received which would allow the Committee to examine whether equality of access to the judiciary irrespective of religion exists, the Committee refers the Government to paragraph 125 of its 1988 General Survey on Equality in Employment and Occupation where the concept of non-discriminatory inherent requirements of a job is explained. The Committee stated there that "the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment envisaged by the Convention requires that access to ... employment and occupation be based on objective criteria defined in the light of academic and occupational qualifications required for the activity in question. ... (T)he exception allowed for in Article 1, paragraph 2, of the Convention, must be interpreted strictly, so as not to result in undue limitation of the protection which the Convention is intended to provide." In paragraph 127 of the same survey, it stated that "criteria such as ... religion may be taken into account with the inherent requirements of certain posts involving special responsibilities, but that if this were carried beyond certain limits, this practice comes into conflict with the provisions of the Convention". The Committee would therefore again ask the Government to clarify the situation of religious minorities' access to the judiciary, providing, in particular, statistics on the number of serving judges.

8. Recalling its request for clarification of the legislative provisions requiring that candidates for election to Islamic Labour Councils must be practising Muslims, followers of the "Velayat Faghig", or members of the Jewish, Christian or Zoroastrian minorities, the Committee notes that, according to the Government representative at the Conference Committee, membership of these councils is not a profession but of an advisory nature and that the councils prepare programmes and coordinate the progress of workshops with the participation of workers and employers. The Government's report adds that the councils are to provide coordination between employers' and workers' representatives to improve enterprise affairs. Noting the role of these councils, the Committee consequently is of the opinion that the practice of one particular religion does not appear to be an inherent requirement for membership of them. The Committee therefore considers that the reasons for excluding persons who do not meet these criteria are not covered by Article 1, paragraph 2, of the Convention and therefore constitute discrimination on the ground of religion. The Committee asks the Government to reconsider the 1985 Act on Islamic Labour Councils so as to bring it into conformity with the Convention.

9. Discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee observes that, according to the UN Special Representative, the situation of women has not changed from that noted in his interim report, where he stressed inequalities between men and women affecting the general status of women in society. The Committee recalls in this connection that equality in employment cannot be fully achieved within a general context of inequality. Inequality in social status inevitably results in inequality of treatment and above all in inequality of opportunity in employment (paragraph 239 of the 1988 General Survey).

10. Following this general comment, the Committee also observes that the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights expressed "particular concern" at its above-mentioned May 1993 meeting over the lack of equality between men and women in the enjoyment of all economic, social and cultural rights, in particular since women are not permitted to study engineering, agriculture, mining or metallurgy or to become magistrates, are excluded from studying a very large number of specific subjects at university level, and need their husbands' permission to work or travel abroad. It came to this conclusion despite the Government's statement that "women could exercise every profession. According to recent statistics, 443,840 women exercised a profession and 45 per cent of them held a specialized post. Twenty per cent of lawyers were women. No restriction was imposed on women concerning the choice of profession" (Summary Record).

11. In this connection, the Committee welcomes the decree of the Minister of Higher Education declaring university admission for women to be free and cancelling the limitation on the number of female university candidatures. However, the Committee notes that the human resources statistics supplied by the Government do not throw light on any progress in the pursuit of a national policy to promote equality of opportunity in employment and occupation irrespective of sex. The Committee notes, as regards the ban on women becoming judges, the Government representative's statement to the Conference Committee that women could obtain "various judicial positions" according to their judicial rank without restrictions based on sex, and that the Government and the judiciary were determined to promote the participation of women in judicial activities, there being more than 250 women attorneys. The Committee welcomes the Bill, signed by the Minister of Justice on 19 April 1993, to amend the Act on Appointments to the Judiciary so as to allow qualified women to be appointed as judges. The Committee requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the passage of this Bill and on the number of women judges and magistrates and women in "various judicial positions".

12. General measures concerning equality. Recalling its comments on the need to expand section 6 of the 1991 Labour Code to cover all the circumstances set out in Article 1, paragraph 1(a), of the Convention, the Committee notes that, according to the Government representative at the Conference, this section, having originated in the constitutional equality provisions, does cover all the ground listed in the Convention, including religion, political opinion and social origin. However, according to the Government's report, this is not an exhaustive list, and has been expanded in practice to cover religion, opinion and ethnic origin. The Committee, recalling the principle explained in the 1988 General Survey (paragraph 58) that where provisions are adopted to give effect to the Convention, they should include all the grounds of discrimination laid down in this Article, requests that the Government supply in its next report copies of cases where section 6 has been expanded so as to ensure protection against discrimination in employment and occupation on grounds not appearing in the text of the Labour Code.

13. Towards the end of its session, the Committee received a communication from the World Confederation of Labour, dated 4 December 1995, alleging discrimination in the labour market on the bases of sex, religion and political opinion. The Government has been sent a copy of this communication for its comments. The Committee intends to examine this matter at its next session.

14. The Committee is addressing a direct request to the Government on certain other points.

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1. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report for the period ending 30 June 1992. It has also taken note of the information contained in the reports on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran prepared by the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UN documents A/47/617 of 13 November 1992, E/CN.4/1993/41 of 23 December 1992 and E/CN.4/1993/41/Add.1 of 5 February 1993) and in the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the implementation of the Declaration of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief (UN document E/CN.4/1992/52 of 18 December 1991).

Discrimination based on religion

2. The Committee notes from the above-mentioned UN reports that:

(i) Baha'is are forbidden to be recruited for government positions in accordance with the law;

(ii) Baha'is continue to be dismissed from government employment and have not been able to obtain reinstatement, and in some cases have had to return salaries or pensions received as public employees;

(iii) the retirement pensions of Baha'is dismissed on religious grounds have been terminated;

(iv) Baha'is have been ordered to close their businesses and Baha'i farmers continue to be denied admittance into farmers' cooperatives;

(v) Baha'is continue to be denied access to institutions of higher education, and although Baha'i children and youths who had been expelled have been allowed to return to elementary and secondary schools, in January 1991, Baha'i children's classes were ordered to be closed;

(vi) according to a circular issued by the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council on 25 February 1991 which establishes the policy to be followed concerning practitioners of the Baha'i faith, they are not to be expelled from the country without reason, nor shall they be detained, imprisoned or punished without reason but their progress and development shall be blocked; they shall be expelled from university; they shall be permitted to lead a modest life similar to that of the population in general; they shall be allowed the normal means to life such as ration books, passports and work permits but employment shall be refused to persons identifying themselves as Baha'is and they shall be denied positions of influence, for example in the education sector;

(vii) followers of the Zoroastrian faith, which is one of the four religions officially recognized by the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, have on occasion been subject to closing of businesses and denial of employment.

3. The Committee recalls that most of these points, with the exception of the circular, were raised in its 1991 observation, to which the general information contained in the Government's last report did not respond. The Committee is therefore bound to request information on the following points.

4. The Committee notes with concern the reference to the circular of the Supreme Revolutionary Cultural Council of 25 February 1991, for while it provides that persons professing the Baha'i faith are to be allowed to earn a living and are entitled to work permits, it also states that they are to be denied employment, expelled from university and in general their progress and development is to be blocked. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would supply a copy of this circular and would indicate the manner in which it is enforced. In the meantime, based on the reported contents of the circular, the Committee urges the Government to re-examine its contents in the light of the requirements of Articles 1, paragraph 1(a), and 3(c) and (d), of the Convention, which call for repealing of all statutory provisions and modifying all administrative instructions and practices inconsistent with the policy of equal opportunity and treatment.

5. The Committee also requests detailed information on the impact on Baha'is of the measures set out in the above mentioned circular with respect to:

- access to employment, both in the private sector and in the public service (including opportunities for the reinstatement of those previously dismissed from government service);

- access to higher education and training;

- terms and conditions of employment;

- pensions and other social security rights;

- the operation of shops, the pursuit of peasant farming and the exercise of other independent occupations.

6. The Committee had previously noted a directive of the Ministry of Labour, published on 8 December 1981, requiring courts to withhold any judgement in favour of dismissed employees proved to have been members of the Baha'i group or of any organization whose constitution negated divine religions. Recalling the Government's statement in the Conference Committee in 1988 that this directive was no longer in force, the Committee reiterates its request of the Government to communicate the text which repealed the directive and to indicate whether it has been replaced by another text.

7. The Committee recalls that pursuant to the terms of the Prime Minister's Directive No. M/11/4462 of 1989, it is forbidden to deny citizens, whatever their belief, their social and legal rights if they have not been recognized as spies by the competent authorities or if they have not been condemned to a sentence depriving them of their rights. The Committee again requests the Government to furnish information on the precise effect of the directive in relation to equality of opportunity and treatment irrespective of religion, in particular for the Baha'is, as well as for persons following the Zoroastrian faith and persons not professing any religion.

8. The Committee recalls that, according to an Act of 14 May 1982 giving effect to article 163 of the Constitution, requirements for selection of judges include professing Islamic faith and enjoying qualifications in Islamic law or theology. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on the provision for the hearing of claims by members of recognized religious minorities by judges of their own faith and the number of religious minorities who hold positions of judicial authority.

9. With respect to questions concerning the employment of persons belonging to Freemasonry which the Government previously reported had arisen but no longer exists, the Committee once again requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to enable persons who were removed from office or dismissed on this ground to be reinstated.

10. Recalling the Act on Islamic Labour Councils of 1985 which provides for the establishment of such councils in industrial, agricultural and service undertakings and that candidates for election to these councils must be practising Muslims, followers of the "Velayat Faghig", or members of the Jewish, Christian or Zoroastrian minorities, and noting the continued reference to the existence and functions of the Councils in the new Labour Code, adopted on 17 February 1991, the Committee would appreciate information on: (a) the reasons for excluding persons who do not meet the above-mentioned criteria from eligibility to the Councils; (b) the practical effect of requiring Muslim candidates to be followers of the "Velayat Faghig" and the reasons for this requirement; and (c) whether restrictions similar to those stated above apply to other aspects of industrial relations and employment and occupation and if so, please supply the relevant texts.

The situation of women workers

11. The Committee notes from the above-mentioned UN reports that women continue to be banned from pursuing studies in agriculture, engineering, mining and metallurgy and from becoming judges; and that the employment rate of women has been drastically reduced, from 13 to 6.5 per cent. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the bases for denying access to such fields of study in higher education and to indicate the measures taken to promote equal access to higher education, vocational training, employment and particular occupations between women and men and to include statistical data on women's labour force participation rates.

12. The Committee recalls the Government's previous statement that women work as judges, in particular in family courts. It also recalls, however, that according to an Act of 14 May 1982 to give effect to article 163 of the Constitution, only men can be judges. The Committee thus again requests the Government to indicate other legislative provisions that exist to authorize the appointment of women as judges and to communicate copies of these provisions. It further requests the Government to provide information on the number and positions of women exercising judicial functions.

13. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on restrictions on the employment of women, including the types of work forbidden to women pursuant to section 75 of the Labour Code and to communicate copies of the legislative texts regulating this matter.

General measures concerning equality

14. Since its previous comments, the Committee has had the opportunity to examine the new Labour Code, adopted on 17 February 1991, which provides in section 6 that people of Iran enjoy equal rights irrespective of their tribe or ethnic group; that privileges or distinctions should not be based on complexion, race, language and the like; that all individuals whether men or women are equally protected by the law; and that every citizen is entitled to choose any job and profession he wishes, provided such job or profession is not against Islam, the public interests and does not violate other people's rights. Section 38 of the Code further provides that for equal work performed in a workshop under equal conditions, an equal wage should be paid to men and women and that any discrimination in wage determination on the basis of age, gender, race, ethnicity and political and religious convictions is forbidden.

15. The Committee notes from the above provisions that while discrimination in wage determination is prohibited by section 38 on all grounds set out in Article 1, paragraph 1(a), of the Convention except social origin, the more general protections against discrimination in employment and occupation contained in section 6 do not cover the grounds of religion, political opinion or social origin, and, on the ground of sex, the protection is limited to equal protection of the law. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on any measures contemplated or taken to extend the protection of the Labour Code against discrimination in employment and occupation so as to prohibit any distinction, exclusion or preference on all the grounds set out in Article 1, paragraph 1(a), including religion, political opinion and social origin, in conformity with the requirements of the Convention. In this regard the Committee notes from the Government's report that some changes have already been made to the Labour Code, particularly in respect of Chapter 5 on vocational training and employment, and it would be grateful if the Government would provide copies with its next report of all amendments made to the Labour Code.

16. The Government states in its report that the main orientation of the country's post-war macroeconomic development plan, contained in the five-year economic, social and development plan, in regard to employment is to further expand employment opportunities for men and women irrespective of their race, colour, opinion, national extraction and social origin. According to the Government, the implementation of this plan is achieved with the cooperation of the workers' and employers' organizations in the country. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the specific measures taken to implement this development plan with a view to promoting equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation, including relevant statistical data on labour force participation rates of various groups of the population.

17. The Government also reports that any case nullifying or impairing equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation is placed on the agenda of the Supreme Council of Labour and is duly dealt with. Reports and conclusions of these meetings are reflected in the national broadcast network and the Government news bulletins. With respect to laws, administrative instructions and circulars, the Government states that any such documents found to have discriminatory provisions will be reconsidered and, if necessary, amended or cancelled. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on any cases in which discrimination in employment or occupation has been brought before the Supreme Council, the criteria upon which the case is examined, the disposition of the case and to indicate any laws, regulations or circulars which have been alleged to contain discriminatory provisions and whether such provisions have been amended or cancelled.

[The Government is asked to provide full particulars to the Conference at its 80th Session.]

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1. The Committee has taken note of the discussion in the Conference Committee in 1990 and of the information provided by the Government in its report for the period ending 30 June 1990. It has also noted the information contained in the reports on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran prepared by the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UN documents A/45/697 of 6 November 1990 and E/CN.4/1991/35 of 13 February 1991) and in the report on implementation of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief presented by the Special Rapporteur appointed by the Commission on Human Rights (UN document E/CN.4/1991/56 of 18 January 1991).

2. The Committee notes that the Government representative to the Conference Committee in 1990 stressed examples of recent positive developments, in particular that as a result of the 1989 directive issued by the Prime Minister concerning official government policy on minority groups, 500 of those concerned took part in university entrance examinations. In addition, the directive was brought to the attention of all relevant conciliation and arbitration bodies dealing with labour relations disputes. The Government finally pointed out that the first five-year development plan, which was already operational and which has been endorsed by legislative measures, aims at ensuring, as an overall policy, social justice and legal security, namely ensuring the equality of all persons before the law and the protection of legitimate individual and social rights. The plan also mentions further participation of women in social, cultural, educational and economic affairs. In addition, the Committee notes that the Government's report refers in particular to various provisions of the new Labour Law (section 6 on equality of rights; sections 75 to 84 on the employment of women and children; sections 107 and 108 on vocational training), the text of which has just been received and which will be examined, once translated, by the Committee at its next session. The Government's report also refers to the directive of the Prime Minister No. M/11/4462 of 1989 and to the Minister of Labour's Circular No. FM/9/2161 of 1989 which disseminates the directive. Lastly, the Government states that the right to social security is guaranteed to the whole population and Baha'is are beneficiaries of the 1976 Social Security Law on an equal basis without any restriction based on their belief.

3. The Committee refers to the above-mentioned reports presented to the United Nations bodies and to the questions raised therein of relevance to the field covered by Convention No. 111, particularly as regards the situation of Baha'is. According to these reports:

(a) Baha'is expelled from government posts have not been able to obtain reinstatement, and new revocations took place in 1989 and 1990;

(b) ranchers and farmers who profess the Baha'i faith continue to be denied admission to agricultural co-operatives;

(c) those Baha'is who retired before the Revolution and are over 60 years are able to draw pensions if they have paid social security contributions for at least ten years, but those who retired or lost their jobs during the past ten years are not able to receive pensions. In some cases Baha'is have been required to repay government pensions as well as salary received while they were in government service;

(d) since 1988, Baha'is have been admitted to primary and secondary schools although some recent refusals of admission have been reported, but they are generally still refused admission to universities;

(e) several shops belonging to Baha'i shopkeepers have been closed and work permits have been refused or withdrawn.

4. The Committee refers to the Prime Minister's Directive No. M/11/4462, the terms of which it had noted with interest in 1990. It recalls that the directive forbids denying citizens, whatever their belief, their social and legal rights if they have not been recognised as spies by the competent authorities or if they have not been condemned to a sentence depriving them of their rights. The Committee again asks the Government to supply further information on the precise effect of the directive in relation to equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation, irrespective of religion, in the light of the reference in the directive to article 13 of the Constitution according to which Iranians belonging to the Zoroastrian, Christian and Jewish religions are the only recognised religious minorities.

5. The Committee would also appreciate information already requested in 1990 on the measures taken to give effect to the above-mentioned directive, particularly as regards equality of opportunity and treatment of Baha'is with respect to:

- access to employment, both in the private sector and in the public service (including the opportunities afforded for reinstatement of those previously dismissed from government service);

- access to education and training at all levels, including higher education;

- conditions of employment;

- pensions and other social security rights;

- the operation of shops, the pursuit of peasant farming, and the exercise of other independent occupations.

6. The Committee would also appreciate information on the effect of Directive No. M/11/4462 of 1989 on the position of persons not professing any faith.

7. The Committee had previously noted a directive of the Ministry of Labour, published on 8 December 1981, requiring courts to withhold any judgement in favour of dismissed employees proved to have been members of the Baha'i group or of any organisation whose constitution and rules negated divine religions. The Government stated in the Conference Committee in 1988 that this directive was no longer in force. The Committee once more requests the Government to communicate the text which abrogated the directive.

8. The Committee recalls the Government's statement in its report for the period ending 30 June 1988 that, while questions concerning employment of persons belonging to Freemasonry had arisen in the early days of the Revolution, they no longer existed. The Committee once more requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to enable persons who were removed from office or dismissed on this ground to be reinstated.

9. The Committee recalls the Government's previous statement that women work as judges, in particular in family courts, and that recognised religious minorities, according to the Constitution, may present cases to courts in which the judges are of their own faith. It recalls, however, that according to an Act of 14 May 1982 to give effect to article 163 of the Constitution, judges must be chosen from among men who (inter alia) must profess the faith and enjoy religious authority (ijtihad) recognised by the Supreme Judicial Council. The Committee accordingly requests the Government to indicate what other legislative provisions exist to authorise the appointment of women as judges and to provide for the hearing of claims by members of recognised religious minorities by judges of their own faith, and to communicate copies of the provisions in question. The Committee also once more requests information on the number and positions of women and members of religious minorities who exercise judicial functions.

10. The Committee recalls that the Act on Islamic Labour Councils of 1985 provided for the establishment of such councils in industrial, agricultural and service undertakings employing more than 35 workers. The functions of these councils include advice on matters of vocational training, promotions, dismissals, wage rates, criteria for allocation of housing, etc. Under section 2 of the Act, candidates for election to the councils must be practising Muslims, followers of the "Velayat Faghig", or members of the Jewish, Christian or Zoroastrian minorities. The Committee would appreciate information on:

(a) the reasons for excluding persons who do not meet the above-mentioned criteria from eligibility to the councils;

(b) the practical effect of requiring Muslim candidates to be followers of the "Velayat Faghig" and the reasons for this requirement;

(c) whether restrictions similar to those stated in section 2 apply to other aspects of industrial relations and employment and occupation (if so, please supply the relevant texts).

11. In its 1988 General Survey on Equality in Employment and Occupation (paragraphs 15, 157 and 170), the Committee stressed the positive nature of the steps to be taken in pursuance of the national policy provided for in Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention and the need to supply full particulars of the action taken. The Committee refers to the Government's indications concerning vocational training and the further participation of women in various activities (see paragraph 2 above). It requests the Government to furnish detailed information on the action taken with a view to promoting equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment and occupation and eliminating discrimination, particularly on the basis of sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin, and on the results achieved.

The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on restrictions on the employment of women, including copies of the legislative texts regulating this matter.

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1. The Committee has taken note of the discussion in the Conference Committee in 1989 and of the information provided by the Government in its report for the period ending 30 June 1989. It has also noted the information contained in the reports on the human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran prepared by the Special Representative of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UN documents A/44/620 of 2 November 1989 and E/CN.4/1990/24 of 12 February 1990) and in the report on implementation of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief submitted by the Special Rapporteur appointed by the Commission on Human Rights (UN document E/CN.4/1990/46 of 12 January 1990).

2. The Committee notes that the statements made by the Government to the Conference Committee and also the Government's report do not indicate any change of policy, legislation or practice as regards the matters dealt with in earlier observations, but have sought to show that the measures referred to were compatible with the requirements of Convention No. 111. The Government has also raised certain questions regarding the meaning of expressions used in the Convention.

3. The above-mentioned reports presented to the UN General Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights do, however, mention a number of developments in the field covered by Convention No. 111, particularly as regards the situation of Baha'is. According to these reports:

(a) Baha'is expelled from government posts have not been able to obtain reinstatement;

(b) ranchers and farmers who profess the Baha'i faith continue to be denied admission to agricultural co-operatives;

(c) those Baha'is who retired before the Revolution and are over 60 years are able to draw pensions if they have paid social security contributions for at least ten years, but those who retired or lost their jobs during the past ten years are not able to receive pensions. In some cases Baha'is have been required to repay government pensions as well as salary received while they were in government service;

(d) since 1988, Baha'is have been admitted to primary and secondary schools, but they are generally still refused admission to universities;

(e) a number of Baha'i shopkeepers whose shops had been closed have been permitted to re-open them;

(f) in January 1989 the Prime Minister, in agreement with the President, issued a directive to all ministries, organisations, governmental institutions, revolutionary institutions and provincial offices for the purpose of co-ordination of measures concerning persons belonging to the Baha'i sect (the text of which is set out in the latest report to the Commission on Human Rights). According to this directive, while spies are to be treated firmly, as required by law, all other citizens are to be treated as normal citizens, no matter what their beliefs may be, in accordance with article 23 of the Constitution. No official or representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran may deprive them of their legal and social rights, if they have not been recognised as spies by the competent authorities and if such a condemnation has not been issued thus depriving them of their rights. The directive ends by recalling that, in conformity with article 13 of the Constitution, Iranians belonging to the Zoroastrian, Christian and Jewish religions are the only recognised religious minorities within the Constitution and allowed to practise their religion, within the framework set by law, and to be registered as such and to teach their religion according to their customs.

4. The Committee has noted with interest the terms of the above-mentioned directive. It would appreciate further information on the precise effect of the directive in relation to equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation, irrespective of religion, in the light of the reference to article 13 of the Constitution.

5. The Committee would also appreciate information on the measures taken to give effect to the above-mentioned directive, particularly as regards equality of opportunity and treatment of Baha'is with respect to:

- access to employment, both in the private sector and in the public service (including the opportunities afforded for reinstatement of those previously dismissed from government service);

- access to education and training at all levels, including higher education;

- conditions of employment;

- pensions and other social security rights;

- the operation of shops, the pursuit of peasant farming, and the exercise of other independent occupations.

6. The Committee would also appreciate information on the effect of the directive of January 1989 on the position of persons not professing any faith.

7. Having regard to the previously mentioned developments, the questions of interpretation raised by the Government do not appear to call for detailed consideration. However, in so far as the meaning of "discrimination" for the purpose of Convention No. 111 may still be regarded as pertinent, the Committee draws attention to Article 1, paragraph 1(a) of the Convention, and to the comments concerning this provision in its 1988 General Survey on Equality in Employment and Occupation, particularly paragraphs 22, 28, 29 and 47. In the light of the information available to the Committee, there can be no doubt that this definition covers the situations referred to above. The Committee also recalls that, while Article 4 of the Convention permits measures to be taken against individuals who engage in activities prejudicial to the security of the State or who are justifiably suspected of such activities, it does not authorise measures adversely affecting persons merely by reason of their belonging to a particular group (see paragraph 135 of the 1988 General Survey). The Committee observes that this approach also appears to underlie the Prime Minister's directive of January 1989.

8. The Committee had previously noted a directive of the Ministry of Labour, published on 8 December 1981, requiring courts to withhold any judgement in favour of dismissed employees proved to have been members of the Baha'i group or of any organisation whose constitution and rules negated divine religions. The Government stated in the Conference Committee in 1988 that this directive was no longer in force. The Committee once more requests the Government to communicate the text which abrogated the directive.

9. The Committee recalls the Government's statement in its report for the period ending 30 June 1988 that, while questions concerning employment of persons belonging to Freemasonry had arisen in the early days of the Revolution, they no longer existed. The Committee once more requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to enable persons who were removed from office or dismissed on this ground to be reinstated.

10. The Committee notes the Government's statement that women work as judges, in particular in family courts, and that recognised religious minorities, according to the Constitution, may present cases to courts in which the judges are of their own faith. It recalls, however, that according to an Act of 14 May 1982 to give effect to article 163 of the Constitution, judges must be chosen from among men who (inter alia) must profess the faith and enjoy religious authority (ijtihad) recognised by the Supreme Judicial Council. The Committee accordingly requests the Government to indicate what other legislative provisions exist to authorise the appointment of women as judges and to provide for the hearing of claims by members of recognised religious minorities by judges of their own faith, and to communicate copies of the provisions in question. The Committee also once more requests information on the number and positions of women and members of religious minorities who exercise judicial functions.

11. The Committee notes that the Act on Islamic Labour Councils of 1985 provided for the establishment of such councils in industrial, agricultural and service undertakings employing more than 35 workers. The functions of these councils include advice on matters of vocational training, promotions, dismissals, wage rates, criteria for allocation of housing, etc. Under section 2 of the Act, candidates for election to the councils must be practising Moslems, followers of the "Velayat Faghig", or members of the Jewish, Christian or Zoroastrian minorities. The Committee would appreciate information on:

(a) the reasons for excluding persons who do not meet the above-mentioned criteria from eligibility to the councils;

(b) the practical effect of requiring Moslem candidates to be followers of the "Velayat Faghig" and the reasons for this requirement;

(c) whether restrictions similar to those stated in section 2 apply to other aspects of industrial relations and employment and occupation (if so, please supply the relevant texts).

12. In its 1988 General Survey on Equality in Employment and Occupation (paragraphs 15, 157 and 170), the Committee stressed the positive nature of the steps to be taken in pursuance of the national policy provided for in Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention and the need to supply full particulars of the action taken. The Committee accordingly once more requests the Government to furnish detailed information on the action taken with a view to promoting equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment and occupation and eliminating discrimination, particularly on the basis of sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin, and on the results achieved.

The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on restrictions on the employment of women, including copies of the legislative texts regulating this matter.