Iran’s Labor Ministry has sent a letter to Tehran Mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf expressing its misgivings about the proposed segregating of the sexes at municipal offices.

Deputy Labor Minister Mohammad Taghi Hosseini wrote to the mayor and Tehran's city council July 4, “As you know, the Islamic Republic of Iran is a member of the International Labour Organization, and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, as the national reference for membership in this organization, is required to observe obligations and commitments … to international labor conventions, such as non-discrimination in the work place.”

The letter stated that such a practice could provoke an “international reaction,” even going so far as to say that “it could be considered a human rights violation” by some international organizations.

After the letter became public and was covered by both the domestic and foreign media, the Labor Ministry produced another letter, published by the Iranian Labour News Agency, denying that the original letter had anything to do with the separation of sexes.