I was born and raised in Iran. My land has recently (about 30 years ago) suffered from the so-called Islamic Revolution and 8 years of war against Iraq. It is not a surprise that people still feel the anxiety, anger, and pain of those years. Although I was born 5 years after the end of Iran-Iraq War, I have been living in the post-war negativity and chaos. I am not talking of a temporary and short-living chaotic phase yet about 23 years of the life I have lived. The huge gap and mistrust between people and the government makes every heart of every person who lives in Iran ache. The warmth of love and support that families and larger groups and communities of people hold together inside keeps them alive and prospering. One specific group of people who have suffered long from suppression, supported each other, and fought for their rights for centuries are women. I want to dedicate this post to about 40 million women and girls of Iran.

“They were, first, the major losers of the Revolution, as they saw their legal status and social positions dramatically decline in the name of religious revival. Compulsory veiling, the ban on women singers, exclusion from political power, economic marginalization, and—adding insult to injury—the return of unilateral divorce, polygamy, and temporary marriage were some of the egregious gender outcomes that characterized the first ten years of the Islamic Revolution.” (Moghadam, 2002) Therefore, I want to spend this section on reviewing women’s rights issues, movements, and activists after Iran Islamic Revolution.

Compulsory hijab

“Only a few months after the Revolution, in March 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini decreed mandatory hijab. Many Iranian women, who were also active in the Revolution, from diverse social classes, poured into the street protesting what soon became the law of the land. Their male comrades, however, didn’t offer them enough support; they believed the time was not appropriate…. Consequently, wearing hijab became obligatory, and the lack of it punishable under the law.” (Mouri, 2012)

Ban on traveling abroad and entering stadiums

“Women are banned from leaving the country without first receiving permission from their husbands; single Iranian women (up to age 40) may need their father’s permission to travel abroad. Husbands can ban their wives from leaving the country at any time.” (Taheri, 2016) Such issues troubles female athletes too as some of them have been banned by their spouses from attending international competitions. In May 2017, Iranian Paralympic gold medalist Zahra Nemati was banned by her husband from competing abroad but authorities blocked his efforts and she attended the competition. Women are banned by police and not by Constitutional Law from attending stadiums during matches between male teams. In 2013, after the election of Hassan Rouhani as president, there was hope and promises for some reforms. However, women are still banned from attending stadiums.

Gender inequality

“Former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani legally sanctioned Shi’i temporary marriage and polygamy in a sermon in 1990, although some religious authorities had earlier encouraged it unofficially. Another ruling lowered the age of marriage for girls from 18 to 9, and further upheld male superiority by reinstituting the pre-Pahlavi child custody laws that allowed men to retain their children after divorce. As this is written, the state has introduced changes in the child custody and divorce laws, both of which remain complex and inequitable. Although many divorces are initiated by women, children must use the surname of their father, not the mother’s, even at parental request.” Written on page 207 of (SEDGHI, 2007).

This documentary portrays Iranian women coming from very varied backgrounds: in the countryside such as weavers, matchmakers, or in the city such as painters, saleswomen….

Iranian feminist activists have risked their lives in order to wake men and women up and make reforms happen. They have lost their lives over the actions they took and although they have left this world, their legacy lives on. I want to finish this article with a memory of them.

References:

Moghadam, V. (2002). Women in the Islamic Republic of Iran: Legal Status, Social Positions, and Collective Action. ResearchGate. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237217533_Women_in_the_Islamic_Republic_of_Iran_Legal_Status_Social_Positions_and_Collective_Action

Mouri, L. (2012, July 24). Compulsory Hijab in Iran: There Is No Room for Appeasement. Retrieved April 9, 2018, from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/leila-mouri/compulsory-hijab-in-iran-_b_1698338.html

SEDGHI, H. (2007). Women and Politics in Iran: Veiling, Unveiling, and Reveiling, 359.

Taheri, K. (2016, April 4). Iranian Women Still Denied Fundamental Rights. Retrieved April 9, 2018, from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/kaveh-taheri/iranian-women-still-denie_b_9607430.html