The increasing demands for virginity certificate before marriage.

In Iran, virginity before marriage is important for many girls and their families. Sometimes men demand a virginity certificate – a practice that the World Health Organization (WHO) deems to be against human rights. But in the past year, more and more people have been campaigning against it.

“You tricked me into marrying you because you’re not a virgin. Nobody would marry you if they knew the truth.”

This is what Maryam’s husband said to her after they had sex for the first time.

She tried to reassure him that, even though she didn’t bleed, she had never had intercourse before. But he didn’t believe her, and asked her to get a virginity certificate.

This is not uncommon in Iran. After getting engaged, many women go to a doctor and get a test that proves they’ve never had sex.

However, according to the WHO, virginity testing has no scientific merit.

But recently, things have started to change. Women and men around the country have been campaigning to put an end to virginity testing.

Last November, an online petition received almost 25,000 signatures within a single month. This was the first time virginity testing was being openly challenged by so many people in Iran.

Despite the WHO denouncing virginity testing as unethical and lacking scientific merit, the practice is still carried out in several countries, including Indonesia, Iraq and Turkey.

The Iranian Medical Organisation maintain that they only carry out virginity testing in specific circumstances – such as court cases and rape accusations.

However, most requests for a virginity certification still come from couples who are planning to get married. So they turn to private clinics – often accompanied by their mothers.

A gynaecologist or a midwife will carry out a test and issue a certificate. This will include the woman’s full name, her father’s name, her national ID and sometimes her photo. It will describe the status of her hymen, and include the statement: “This girl appears to be a virgin.”