Event information

7 March 2023, 18:00-20:00
Register start 14 February 2023
Register end 6 March 2023

Downloads

Flyer >

To Ban or not to Ban: Religious Symbols and Women’s Rights

Human Rights Conversations

Portrait of an arab woman from the back facing a crowd at a feminist demonstration Portrait of an arab woman from the back facing a crowd at a feminist demonstration

Following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini on 16 September 2022, protests in Iran have intensified and call for a change in Iran’s mandatory hijab law, which has been in force since 1979. The ongoing civil unrest has once again brought under the spotlight the role of religious symbols and the protection of human rights, and women’s rights in particular.

The wearing of hijabs is a particularly controversial topic which has given rise to conflicting jurisprudence in human rights law. If at the international level, the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee has underscored that ‘the observance and practice of religion or belief may include not only ceremonial acts but also such customs as […] the wearing of distinctive clothing or head coverings’ (General Comment 22), the European Court of Human Rights declared the French ban on wearing of ‘any article of clothing intended to conceal the face’ in a ‘public place’ is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

This Human Rights Conversation organized on the eve of International Women's day, will explore the implications that legislative measures on hijabs, either banning or mandating them, have on the protection of women’s rights.

Moderator

  • Stefania Di Stefano, Project Officer, Geneva Human Rights Platform 

Panelists

  • Nazila Ghanea, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Belief
  • Ibrahim Salama, Chief, Human Rights Treaties Branch, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
  • Marcia V.J. Kran OC, Member of the UN Human Rights Committee 
  • Shima Esmailian, Student, MAS es in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law, Geneva Academy

About Human Rights Conversations

Human Rights Conversations are a series of events, hosted by the Geneva Human Rights Platform, aimed at discussing contemporary issues and challenges related to the promotion and protection of human rights in Geneva and beyond.

Video

Human Rights Conversations : To Ban or not to Ban: Religious Symbols and Women’s Rights

This Human Rights Conversation explored the implications that legislative measures on hijabs, either banning or mandating them, have on the protection of women’s rights.

MORE ON THIS THEMATIC AREA

MENA Training GHRP News

Strengthening MENA Engagement with UN Human Rights Mechanisms: Second Edition of our Tailored Training

24 July 2025

Participants from six countries across the Middle East and North Africa region joined our customized training on the Geneva-based United Nations human rights mechanisms

Read more

GHRP Ai for Good Workshop News

Exploring the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Human Rights Monitoring: Key Takeaways from the AI for Good Workshop

22 July 2025

Our event brought together human rights practitioners, data scientists, and AI experts to explore how artificial intelligence can support efforts to monitor human rights and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Read more

A general view of participants during of the 33nd ordinary session of the Human Rights Council. Training

The Universal Periodic Review and the UN Human Rights System: Raising the Bar on Accountability

10-14 November 2025

This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.

Read more

surveillance image of people Project

Human Rights in a Digitalized World: Mapping Risk, Strengthening Regulation and Promoting the Development of International Human Rights Law

Started in August 2023

To unpack the challenges raised by artificial intelligence, this project will target two emerging and under-researched areas: digital military technologies and neurotechnology.

Read more

Neutrotechology Project

Neurotechnology and Human Rights

Started in August 2023

This project addresses the human rights implications stemming from the development of neurotechnology for commercial, non-therapeutic ends, and is based on a partnership between the Geneva Academy, the Geneva University Neurocentre and the UN Human Rights Council Advisory Committee. 

Read more

Cover of the 2023 Geneva Academy Annual Report Publication

Annual Report 2024

published on July 2025

Read more