On 23 January, CSW sponsored a joint side event at the Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva alongside Article 18, Middle East Concern and Open Doors International.

It took place ahead of Iran’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which is a mechanism of the Human Rights Council that calls for each UN Member State to undergo a peer review of its human rights records every four and a half years.

The event highlighted the gap between the National Report that Iran submitted to the HRC before its UPR – which painted a positive picture – and the harsh realities for the Christian community.

‘[The Christian community] receives pseudo-recognition, but laws don’t reflect reality. National security charges and bans on Communion, prayer, and celebrations effectively criminalise normal Christian practices and social life.’ 

– Dr Khataza Gondwe 

In its report, Iran claimed that ‘religious minorities are permitted to conduct their religious ceremonies freely.’

However, through powerful personal testimonies by Amin Afshar-Naderi (a Christian convert and former prisoner) and Dabrina Bet-Tamraz (whose family experienced violations consistently since her childhood), the event demonstrated how both unrecognised faith groups and those recognised within the constitution face repression. Both of these witnesses were forced to flee the country due to relentless persecution.

Other notable panellists included the UN Special Rapporteur for FoRB, Nazila Ghanea, and the Special Rapporteur on Iran, Professor Mai Sato. Our UN officer, Claire Denman, chaired the event, while co-Director of Advocacy, Dr Khataza Gondwe spoke on the panel, alongside Mansour Borji, Advocacy Director of Article18, and Patrick Conway of Middle East Concern.