A/HRC/31/26 59. The Secretary-General urges the Government to create space for human rights defenders, lawyers and journalists to perform their duties without fear of arrest, detention and prosecution and to release political prisoners, including human rights defenders and lawyers, detained solely for legitimately and peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly. 60. The Secretary-General welcomes the Government’s invitation to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to visit the Islamic Republic of Iran and encourages it to invite the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran and to fully cooperate with him. 61. The Secretary-General urges the Government to remove all discriminatory provisions affecting women in all relevant laws, in accordance with international standards, and to develop national strategies to address harmful and violent practices against women and girls, including child marriage. He urges the Government to take concrete and strong measures to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women in all spheres of life. 62. The Secretary-General urges the Government to improve the conditions in women’s detention facilities in accordance with international standards and in accordance with the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules). 63. The Secretary-General urges the Government to take immediate steps to protect the rights of all persons belonging to religious and ethnic minorities, especially Baha’is, and to address all forms of discrimination against them. The SecretaryGeneral renews his call on the authorities to release the seven Baha’i leaders from detention. 64. The Secretary-General welcomes the Government’s engagement with United Nations human rights treaty bodies and urges it to follow up on the concluding observations of all treaty bodies and to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights aiming at the abolition of the death penalty; the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance; and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. 17