New Zealand suspends bilateral human rights dialogue with Iran

FILE PHOTO: New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (not pictured) speak to the media following a bilateral meeting, in Wellington, New Zealand, June 16, 2022. REUTERS/Lucy Craymer/File Photo

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - The New Zealand government said on Monday it has suspended its official bilateral human rights dialogue with Iran, saying bilateral approaches were "no longer tenable" with basic human rights being denied in the country.

Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta said in a statement the decision to suspend the dialogue sends a strong signal that bilateral approaches on human rights were not tenable with Iran denying basic human rights and violently suppressing protests sparked by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after she was arrested by the morality police for attire deemed inappropriate.