September 23, 2022
The UN Human Rights Council has named an Anglo-Iranian as its new special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief—the first time a person of Iranian origin has been chosen for any of the human rights rapporteur positions.
Nazila Ghanea is a professor of International Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford and has been active in the field of freedom of religion and human rights for over 20 years.
Ghanea succeeds Ahmed Shaheed, a professor of International Human Rights Law and Global Practice at the University of Essex, who from 2011 to 2016 served as the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran.
Ghanea told IranWire, “People either nominate themselves for this mission or are nominated by others. I was nominated by the state of Oman, an international NGO and two NGOs from Brazil and Malaysia. The UN Human Rights Council’s Consultative Group … chooses about five of the candidates to interview. The committee then chooses three of them, ranks them from first to third, and sends their nominations to the president of the UN Human Rights Council.”
The Council president then consults regional groups, Ghanea said, and sends a list of candidates for approval to the full Human Rights Council, which is composed of 47 UN Member-States.
“I am honored that I was ranked first by the Consultative Group and the President of the UN Human Rights Council and that this choice was endorsed by the international community,” Ghanea said.
UN special rapporteurs have two types of mission: some are country-focused and others focus on a global thematic issue. Javaid Rehman, of Pakistani extraction, is the current Special Rapporteur on Iran’s human rights situation. Ghanea will be responsible for monitoring freedom of religion or belief in Iran but, as a thematic mandate holder, she will be responsible for addressing this freedom across all 193 UN member states.
Freedom of religion and belief is a right is guaranteed by Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that has been signed by 173 countries, including Iran.
Article 18 of this convention states: “Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching.”
