A/HRC/31/26 confinement for 20 days.19 In their comments on the present report, the authorities stated that prison authorities had carried out tests in response to allegations of sexual assault against Ms. Farghdani on the Internet. On 14 October, Fatemeh Ekhtesari, a prominent poet, was sentenced to nine years and six months of imprisonment on charges of “insulting the sacred”, “publishing unauthorized content in cyberspace” and “propaganda against the State” for the online publication of a collection of poetry entitled A Feminist Discussion before Boiling the Potatoes. Throughout her detention, Ms. Ekhtesari was subjected to prolonged solitary confinement and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. She was convicted primarily on the basis of a coerced confession. Additionally, she was sentenced to 99 lashes for shaking hands with a member of the opposite sex to whom she was not related. She was also forced to take virginity and pregnancy tests. 20 22. The Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences all consider virginity testing to be a form of sexual violence. The Special Rapporteurs noted that virginity testing is a violation of the right to dignity and the right not to be subjected to ill-treatment, and constitutes a particularly gross form of discrimination and of custodial violence. C. Restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression 23. The Secretary-General notes the apparent good intentions of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran in committing to easing restrictions on freedom of expression and his advocacy of freedom of speech as a basic human right. However, these commitments have yet to be translated into reality. In the last months of 2015, the already limited space for freedom of expression, particularly for social media activists and journalists, eroded further. 24. The Secretary-General is particularly concerned about the crackdown on journalists and social media activists ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for 26 February 2016. On 2 November 2015, five journalists were reportedly arrested by Revolutionary Guards in Tehran on suspicion of taking part in an “infiltration network”, seeking to influence public opinion and undermining the Islamic Republic of Iran on behalf of Western Governments. The Government has named four of the journalists but has not disclosed the identity of the fifth. On 11 November, special procedure mandate holders issued a joint press statement expressing concern about the crackdown on journalists and urging the Government to provide a safe space for freedom of expression ahead of the parliamentary elections. The experts stressed the importance of freedom of expression for free and fair political processes and that public participation in any electoral process was virtually impossible if the media and civil society were so frequently affected by arrests and prosecutions. The Secretary-General is encouraged by statements by President Rouhani 21 and other government officials condemning these arrests. He urges the Government to reverse this trend by immediately releasing journalists who have been arbitrarily detained for the peaceful and legitimate exercise of their profession and to open up space for the free exchange of ideas. Freedom of opinion and expression is essential to fair and credible elections. 19 20 21 See https://spdb.ohchr.org/hrdb/29th/public_-_UA_Iran_16.01.15_(1.2015).pdf. See www.iranhumanrights.org/2015/10/two-poets-sentenced/. On 8 November 2015, President Rouhani criticized the granting of “special privileges” to some media, which act as “undercover police”, while others “face harsh punishments”. See www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/05/irans-president-criticises-recent-arrests-of-journalists. 7