Jun 4, 2019

Images of a controversial administrative order went viral across Iranian social media in recent days, enraging large sections of the country's religious minorities. The internal document, a letter, announced new regulations at kindergartens operated by Iran's Rehabilitation Organization.

"Recruitment of religious minority members for any position at kindergartens is illegal unless those centers are exclusively hosting children of religious minorities," the letter states, bearing the signature of the director of the organization's Office for Children and Adolescent Affairs.

Amid the fast-paced rise of social media networks in Iran, documents of this sort are occasionally leaked, drawing reactions from the public and forcing officials to clarify the situation. The Rehabilitation Organization's internal directive quickly triggered angry reactions. One Twitter user called it "the latest case of injustice against minorities," while another called it "a disastrous decision."

The first formal protest came from Esfandiar Ekhtiari, who represents Iran's Zoroastrian minority in parliament. In a public letter, Ekhtiari addressed Mohammad Shariatmadari, the minister for cooperatives, labor and social welfare, to whom the Rehabilitation Organization directly reports.

The Zoroastrian parliamentarian expressed "surprise" at the "discriminatory" order and reminded the minister of the ninth paragraph of Article 3 in the Iranian Constitution, which advises against any form of discrimination and calls for equal opportunities. He also complained that his correspondence with the head of the Rehabilitation Organization produced no results. The parliamentarian, therefore, demanded that the minister "annul" the directive "so that we will no longer witness such inhumane and unethical decisions against the followers of divine religions."