TEHRAN (UNIC) — Dr. Mehmet Hulki Uz, the Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), stated that the world today acknowledges Iran’s substantial achievements in health and education, which could not have been possible without the deep commitment of the Government, the Parliament, universities and hard-working NGOs.

Dr. Uz was speaking at the opening session of the two-day ‘International Conference on Women’s Rights in the Judicial Justice Process’ organized by the Organization to Defend Victims of Violence, the Judiciary, UNFPA and other partners. Many participants from other countries are also taking part in the conference.
He applauded the holding of the conference and said that the goals of the conference are very much in line with all the women’s rights and human rights goals that UNFPA is striving to achieve.
Commending the conference as the first of its kind in Iran and probably the first of this kind in the region, he said all stakeholders working for the realization of women’s rights were taking part in it. “I believe that this conference will provide an excellent forum for dialogue and exchange of experience on many issues related to women’s rights, including on the role of the Judiciary and female judges in greater access to justice, and on judicial support for women.”
By discussing the experiences in other countries of the world, participants will have the opportunity to learn from each other in their efforts to improve access to justice, particularly for women.
He also announced that this year on Human Rights Day, 10 December, the UNFPA Executive Director, Ms. Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, received the Louis B. Sohn Human Rights Award. This award is given annually to individuals for substantial contributions to human rights.
Dr. M. Hulki Uz concluded his speech by quoting from Ms. Thoraya Obaid, UNFPA Executive Director, who said “This is a very powerful truth. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. This is the first article of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Declaration represents the first time that universal human rights were spelled out for all people in a civil and individual context. But many of our faiths and holy books have words of wisdom and assertions of human rights in various forms. They all assert the equality and freedom of people; we are all born into freedom and other people can only make us slaves if we accept and succumb. All faiths declare the unity of human beings and the freedom of all.”
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