In his statement Secretary Ban highlighted the extreme volition of women rights under clerical rule by saying, "The limited employment outside of the agricultural sector for women and to “widespread” gender-based violence
"Further, stepped-up crackdowns against the women’s rights movement in Iran are also cause for concern."
The report said there has been a sudden surge of executions in recent months, and the UN Human Rights Committee has sounded the alarm over the “extremely high number of death sentences, many resulting from trials in which the guarantees of due process of law had not been properly applied.”
"Despite a circular issued by the head of the judiciary in January 2002 prohibiting stoning as punishment, the practice has been reported to continue," the report added.
In another non-binding circular, the judiciary has placed a moratorium on juvenile executions, but the sentences are still being applied, Mr. Ban said.
Iran is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, both of which obligate States parties to not impose the death penalty on those who commit crimes under the age of 18.
“The age for criminal responsibility under Iranian law is set at 14 years and 7 months for boys and 8 years and 9 months for girls, which is not only discriminatory but also low by international standards,” the report said.