UNITED NATIONS: Iran was ousted from a United Nations women’s body on Wednesday for policies contrary to the rights of women and girls, a move proposed by the United States after Tehran’s crackdown on protests sparked by the Sept 16 death of a young woman in custody.

The 54-member UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) adopted a US-drafted resolution to “remove with immediate effect the Islamic Republic of Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women for the remainder of its 2022-26 term”.

On Wednesday, 29 voted in favour, eight against and there were 16 abstentions.

US Ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said removing Iran was the right thing to do. “It’s hugely important for the women of Iran,” Thomas-Greenfield said after the vote.

“They got a strong message from the United Nations that we will support them and we will condemn Iran and we will not let them sit on the Commission for the Status of Women and continue to attack women in their own country,” she said.

Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani called the US move as illegal, describing the United States as a bully.

The 45-member Commis­sion on the Status of Women meets annually every March and aims to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women.

Iran, 17 other states and the Palestinians had argued in a letter to Ecosoc that a vote “will undoubtedly create an unwelcome precedent that will ultimately prevent other member states with different cultures, customs and traditions ... from contributing to the activities of such Commissions”.

Only five of the signatories to the letter are currently Ecosoc members and were able to vote on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Iran arrested the alleged killers of a Sunni cleric in Sistan-Baluchestan, a prosecutor said.

Abdulwahed Rigi, who led prayers at Imam Hossein Mosque in the city of Khash and was seen as a moderate cleric, was kidnapped and killed on Thursday.

Mehdi Shamsabadi, chief prosecutor in Zahedan, was quoted as saying the attackers were seeking to stir trouble between Iran’s Sunnis and Shia population.

Published in Dawn, December 15th, 2022