This is the News in Brief from the United Nations.

Iran: new hijab bill must be shelved: Türk 

UN High Commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, said on Friday that Iran’s “draconian” Chastity and Hijab Bill “flagrantly flies in the face of international law” and must be shelved.  

The bill vastly increases jail terms for offenders and provides for crushing fines on women and girls who do not obey the compulsory dress code.

According to the UN rights office (OHCHR), under the new, “even stricter” bill, now in its final stage of consideration before Iran’s constitutional court, those who do not comply with the country’s strict Islamic dress code on head coverings and modest clothing risk up to 10 years in jail. 

Those found in breach could also be flogged, as well as fined up to an equivalent of $8,500, subjected to travel restrictions and deprived of online access. 

OHCHR called the decree “repressive and demeaning”, insisting that “women and girls must not be treated as second class citizens”.

Russia rights expert describes mandate as ‘bridge to the Russian people’

The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Russia, Mariana Katzarova, underscored on Friday the importance of her mandate to give a voice to victims of alleged violations in the country.

Here she is briefing reporters in Geneva:

“Why is my mandate important? Because it’s also the bridge to the Russian people, to the victims, to the civil society, to those who dare speak against the war on Ukraine and get really punished for that, to the dissidents...It’s a voice for the people of the Russian Federation, this mandate.”

Ms. Katzarova presented her first report to the Human Rights Council on Thursday, sounding the alarm about what she says is a pattern of suppression of civil and political rights in Russia.

She voiced grave concerns over mass arbitrary arrests and the “persistent use of torture and ill-treatment.”

Citing almost 200 sources from inside and outside the country, the UN-appointed independent expert expressed concern about a lack of judicial independence and right to a fair trial.

India: UN rights chief welcomes new bill to boost women’s representation

The UN human rights chief Volker Türk welcomed on Friday the passage of a landmark bill in India which will reserve one third of seats in national and state parliaments for women. 

His office, OHCHR, said that the Women’s Reservation Bill will constitutionally entrench women’s representation in parliament and be a “transformative move” for gender equality in India.

 Citing India’s example, Mr. Türk called on parliamentarians around the world to adopt legislative measures – including, where necessary, gender quotas – to ensure women’s equal participation in the political discourse.

 The new Bill requires ratification by at least 50 per cent of India’s states to enter into force and the UN rights office called for their “swift support” and rapid implementation of the new system. 

Healthcare under threat in eastern DRC: WHO

In eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), increasing armed violence, forced displacement and devastating floods have fuelled deadly disease outbreaks and jeopardized healthcare, the UN health agency (WHO) said on Friday.

The World Health Organization’s representative to the DRC, Dr. Boureima Hama Sambo, warned that in six eastern provinces, health facilities have been set alight, health workers killed and others face constant physical and psychological threats, while supplies have been looted.

Heavy rain, flooding and landslides have also compromised aid access.

Dr. Sambo said that the DRC is facing its worst cholera outbreak since 2017, with the eastern provinces accounting for 80 per cent of the cases.

The country is also battling a major measles epidemic and the combination of measles and malnutrition was particularly deadly for children under five.

The UN health agency official said that WHO has deployed experts to the affected areas to support the authorities in investigating and responding to these outbreaks, delivered medical supplies for cholera treatment, supported transportation of samples to labs for testing, and built cholera treatment centres.

The World Health Organization recently completed a vaccination campaign in Ituri province reaching over one million under fives, with more campaigns to follow in Kasaï and Mai-Ndombe.  

Dominika Tomaszewska-Mortimer, UN News.