A/HRC/28/26 24. According to article 1117 of the Civil Code, a husband may prevent his wife from occupations or technical work deemed incompatible with family interests or his own dignity or that of his wife.9 The law may even prevent women from pursuing artistic activities. For instance, on 30 September 2014, the Head of the Family of Martyrs and Veterans Association filed a suit against the Minister for Cultural Affairs for allowing women to sing solo in concerts.10 25. The Secretary-General welcomes the efforts made by the Islamic Republic of Iran to combat violence against women, which is critical to their ability to participate in civil, political, economic, development, educational, social and cultural life. The Government is reportedly supports research projects that analyse the causes and motives for gender-based violence and is working to develop preventative strategies (see A/C.3/69/9, annex). The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran found that 66 per cent of women had reportedly experienced domestic violence (A/69/356, para. 18). 26. Section 2 of the Charter of Women’s Rights and Responsibilities in the Islamic Republic of Iran stresses the right to be aware of the appropriate criteria for choosing a spouse, and also the right to become acquainted with that person before marriage. Despite this assertion, child marriage remains prevalent in the country. The legal age of marriage for girls is only 13, and some as young as 9 years of age may be married with the permission of the court. In 2011, about 48,580 girls between the age of 10 and 14 were married; and in 2012, there were at least 1,537 girls under the age of 10 who were reportedly married (A/69/356, para. 40). 27. Child marriage is a violation of human rights that put women and girls at risk of physical, psychological, economic and sexual violence and can lead to a range of poor health and social outcomes and other negative consequences, including early pregnancy and high rates of maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. The lack of legal protection and safe houses for women to seek refuge forces them to live in situations of abuse, which may lead them to commit acts of violence. In 2010, for example, Razieh Ebrahimi was reportedly convicted of killing her husband when she was 17 years old. She was reportedly married at the age of 14, gave birth to a child at 15, and was reportedly subjected to physical and psychological abuse from her husband. She reportedly admitted to have killed her husband while he was asleep. Her request to the Supreme Court for a retrial was reportedly declined; her execution could now be carried out at any time. Furthermore, laws continue to allow for marital or spousal rape and discriminate between men and women with regard to the spouse’s ability to initiate and complete divorce. A woman is required to prove that a significant threat has been made to her life in order to be able to file for divorce (A/60/356, para. 19). Such laws make it difficult for women to escape domestic violence and to protect themselves from any real and immediate risk to life or integrity. 28. Nationality laws in the Islamic Republic of Iran do not grant women equal rights when transferring their nationality to their children. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as at January 2015, there were more than 950,000 refugees from Afghanistan and 32,000 from Iraq living in the country.11 9 See submission by http://www.uprstinfo.org/sites/default/files/document/iran_islamic_republic_of/session_20_ -_october_2014/freemuse_upr20_irn_e_main.pdfFreemuse for the universal periodic review of 10 11 8 the Islamic Republic of Iran, 2014. International Organisation to Preserve Human Rights in Iran, “Group sues minister for letting women sing solo”, 1 October 2014. UNHCR, 2015 UNHCR country operations profile: Islamic Republic of Iran.