Women’s Rights in Iran

Women’s Rights in Iran

 

Mohammad Amin Amin Roaya[1]

 

Women’s rights and freedoms are one of the most important topics in the field of human rights, and based on the legal and cultural systems of countries, women in different societies enjoy different rights compared to each other. Political, economic, and cultural rights are among the important topics and branches of women’s rights, which are different in various societies.

Rights means a set of rules that society members must follow in their relationships, and based on those rules, everyone’s rights and freedoms and their duties towards others are determined (Ameli, Baqir, 1971, 95).

Sometimes, rights mean law. In laws science, law is a codified set of binding regulations that guarantee government implementation and is considered one of the sources of laws along with other sources such as judicial procedure, custom, treaties, doctrine, etc. In countries where codified laws form the basis of their legal system, due to the importance and pivotal role of law, laws, and law are considered to have the same meaning (Kadkhodaei, Mohammad Reza, 2012, 57). It should be noted here that the law is a product of human life and will be constantly changing. Every fundamental change of the law takes place after a social revolution (Aghabakhshi, Ali; Afsharirad, Mino, 1996).

In the study of the history of the evolution of international documents, there are three distinct periods regarding women’s rights, each of which reflects different ideas about women and different views about their rights and status in society (Lockwood, 1998).

The first period is referred to as the supportive period in which women are viewed as a group that should not or cannot engage in certain activities, and women are considered as subordinate beings. In this period, women as wives and mothers have more of a domestic and traditional role. Therefore, since women, like children, are not able to support themselves comprehensively, the law should play a protective role for them. For example, the Convention on Night Work of Women Working in Industry, which was designed by the General Conference of the International Labor Organization in 1934 and 1948, has accepted this view (81 units 40, 63 units 321).

In the second period, women are seen as a separate group that needs special treatment and special care. In this period, it is believed that women were not treated fairly in certain cases. Therefore, this period is referred to as the Reformation period. This means that the laws should be changed or reformed to take special care of women. In this period, laws consider women as a class, without considering men because men are not considered victims of rights violations (193 units 135, 14 units 321; units 309).

The third period is the non-discrimination period. It means that from the point of view of gender, men and women are looked upon neutrally. The norms of this period reject the view that assumes women as a separate group from men and believe in equal treatment of men and women. Of course, international documents that show this point of view consider some issues specific to women. However, they explicitly reject behavior or sex discrimination based on different standards based on gender.

 

Women’s rights from the perspective of human rights

Among the many human rights documents, there are some that are directly related to the topic of women’s rights. The United Nations Charter is the first binding international document that talks about the equality of men and women. Before this document, no other document has spoken about the equality of human beings. In the preamble of the Charter, the equality of rights between men and women and collaboration have been emphasized. Also, in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights[2] explicitly addressed the issue of family rights and equality between men and women, and among the 30 Articles of this Declaration, which can be said to have been drafted with a liberal perspective, ten Articles explicitly stated the concept of equality for all people in terms of the law.

After the approval of the Universal Declaration, the Human Rights Commission started drafting two human rights treaties, namely the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights. These two covenants, together with the Universal Declaration, constitute the International Charter of Human Rights. Both covenants prohibit discrimination, including on the basis of gender (Article 2), and also guarantee the equal rights of women and men to enjoy all the rights contained in the documents.[3] (Article 3) (United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 2014, 6).

In 1967, the member states of the United Nations approved the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, which states: Discrimination against women is a crime against human dignity.

In 1979, the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women was approved by the General Assembly, and the Convention established the specific obligations of governments to eliminate discrimination against women in the political, social, economic, and cultural areas in 16 basic Articles. In Article 1 of the Convention, discrimination is defined as any distinction, exclusion, or limitation based on gender, the effect or purpose of which is to impair or nullify (cancel) the recognition, enforcement (benefit), or exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil areas (fields) or any other scope, regardless of the marital position of women and based on the equality of men and women.

It should also be mentioned that the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 2) and the Convention on the Support of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (Article 7) also prohibit discrimination based on gender and, in General Recommendation No. 25 (dated 2000) about the gender aspects of racial discrimination, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which oversees compliance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, also identified the gender aspects of racial discrimination and declared: it will strive for gender factors or issues that may be intertwined with racial discrimination.

 

 

Women’s rights in Iran

1. Women’s rights from the perspective of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran

In the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, as the highest level of legislation, special attention has been paid to women and the family, and the general laws on the one hand and some laws have specifically addressed this issue.In the introduction of the Constitution, it is stated: In the creation of Islamic social foundations, the human forces, which until now were in the service of all-round foreign exploitation, regain their original identity and human rights, and in this way, it is natural that women, due to the greater oppression they have suffered from the rogue system,their rights will be more fulfilled.The family is the fundamental unit of society and the main focus of human growth and excellence faith-based and ideal agreement in the formation of a family, which is the main basis for the evolutionary and developmental movement of man, is the basic principle and providing facilities to achieve this purpose is one of the duties of the Islamic government. In such a perception of the family unit, the woman is removed from the state of being an object or a tool in the service of spreading consumerism and exploitation, and while recovering the important and honorable duty of a mother in raising educated people, she is a precursor and a comrade-in-arms of men in the active fields of life, and as a result, accepts a more important responsibility and in the Islamic point of view, it will have a higher value and dignity.

According to Article 20 of the Constitution, All the people of the nation, men and women alike, are under the protection of the law and enjoy all human, political, economic, social, and cultural rights in accordance with the standards of Islam.

In this way, the Articles of the Constitution consider men and women jointly and equally, and Article 20 emphasizes the same issue.

In addition, Article 21 of the Constitution has paid special attention to women’s issues. Based on this Article, The government is obliged to guarantee women’s rights in all respects in accordance with Islamic standards and do the following:

1. Creating favorable conditions for the development of a woman’s personality and the restoration of her material and spiritual rights.
2. Supporting mothers, especially during pregnancy and child custody, and supporting orphaned children.
3. Establishing a competent court to preserve the existence and survival of the family.
4. Creation of special insurance for widows, elderly, and orphaned women.
5. Granting guardianship of children to worthy mothers in order to compliance with their expediency if they do not have a legal guardian.

This Article indicates the biased view of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran towards women and special sensitivity to women’s rights.

Looking at the above Article, it can be seen that the three Clauses of this Article (2, 3, and 5) by referring to the maternal and spouse roles of women, have tried to prevent the possibility of violating their rights in the family by providing special support to women in the family center but in the other two Clauses of the above Article (1 and 4), the woman is considered regardless of her position in the family and obliges the government to provide special support to women regardless of the maternal and spouse roles of women.

 

1. The charter of women’s rights and responsibilities in the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran

At the suggestion of the Women’s Cultural and Social Council, Supreme Council of Cultural Revolution approved the Charter of Rights and Responsibilities of Women in the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2004, which was inspired by the moderate and comprehensive Sharia of Islam and based on the Constitution and the noble thoughts of the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Imam Khomeini were compiled, and it was approved by the Parliament and approved by the Guardian Council in 2006 under the law of protection of the rights and responsibilities of women in the domestic and international areas.

This law has been prepared and formulated with a comprehensive vision based on the realization of justice and fairness in women’s society and includes the rights and duties of signature, establishment, and protection rights, as well as common rights among all human beings. The women’s rights charter was approved as a reference document in policy-making, planning, and legislation in women’s cultural and social affairs in 3 sections, five chapters, and 148 Clauses in 2006, and all relevant institutions are required to comply with the rules and principles contained in this charter.

This charter can be the basis for introducing and explaining the position of women in the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran in international forums.

The fundamental basis of the charter is based on the belief that in Islam, men and women are equal in nature, the purpose of creation, the possession of talents and facilities, the possibility of acquiring values, and the reward and punishment of deeds, regardless of gender.

The difference in rights and responsibilities is something that does not indicate the superiority of one sex over the other and is basically defined as the natural differences between the two sexes.

In the aforementioned law, women’s individual rights have been given special attention as the right to enjoy a decent life and physical and mental health, prevention against any disease and accident or violation, and freedom of thought and immunity from aggression and insecurity in having a belief, as a right, is reserved and the immunity of women’s life, property and dignity as well as their private life from illegal assault and the right to enjoy social justice in the implementation of the law, regardless of gender, is emphasized.

Even women who follow each of Islamic sects or religious minorities are considered according to their sects or religions in performing religious ceremonies and teachings and their personal conditions.

Iranian women are free to use native clothing and dialects, and one of the individual rights of women is the right to benefit from a healthy environment.

But the rights and responsibilities of girls are interesting. The right of girls to be properly cared for by their parents and the right to housing, clothing, healthy and sufficient nutrition, and health facilities to ensure their physical and mental health have been given special attention, and measures have been taken in terms of education. Also, the emotional and psychological needs having the gentle behavior of parents and their immunity from family violence, non-discrimination between boys and girls, and the government’s support and supervision of orphaned girls and girls with a bad guardian are among the rights stipulated in this law.

Women have rights and responsibilities when they get married and start a family, which the right to determine the proviso and guarantee the implementation of the terms during cohabitation, the right to officially register the marriage, the woman’s financial rights during marriage, such as suitable housing, current expenses, including food, clothing, the cost of treating illness, the costs of pregnancy and breastfeeding, and financial support under the title of wife’s dowry are among the essential and basic rights of marriage.

Women’s rights at the time of family separation and divorce are among the significant points in this law. If compromise is not possible, the woman has the right to divorce her husband after being referred to the competent court. At the same time, she benefits from her material rights. For example, during the period of Iddah, she has the right to live in the joint house and the cost of living is the responsibility of the man, and after the expiration of Iddah, she has the right to marry.

Regarding the maintenance and custody of the child up to the age of 7, the right and responsibility rests with the mother, and the financial support comes from the father. If the custody period expires or is terminated, the right to visit the child is reserved for the mother. In paragraph 45 of this law, the right to file a lawsuit in the courts in order to prevent the wife from remarrying is a discretionary matter, and in line with the guarantee of enforcement of the proviso, in case of separation, half of the husband’s property is given to the wife, and the wife’s right to enjoy her material rights is considered.

The third part is devoted to women’s rights and social responsibilities: the right of women to participate in policymaking, legislation, management, implementation, and supervision in cultural affairs, especially regarding women’s issues, as well as the right to exchange information and constructive cultural communication in national and international dimensions are among the characteristics of social rights.

The right to benefit from the health of the work environment, the right to universal and fair access to sports and educational facilities, and healthy recreation are some of the rights listed in the law.

Women have the right to benefit from health and medical programs and facilities, counseling services, and medical tests in order to be fully assured in marriage.

The right of physically, mentally, and psychologically damaged women and girls exposed to injury to benefit from proper rehabilitation facilities and the right to benefit from healthy nutrition, especially during pregnancy and breastfeeding, has been one of the social rights priorities of women in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The position of women in the fields of education and research has been the concern of the legislator, and training in higher education up to the highest scientific levels and the acquisition of specialized skills and training, the right to research, write, translate, and publish books and active participation in domestic and international cultural and scientific forums for women is predicted and intended. The right and responsibility to develop curricula and educational texts, the right to benefit from the support of women’s scientific research work, and the expansion of research centers managed by women are among the valuable points of the aforementioned law. The significant presence and high percentage of women in universities and scientific and educational centers indicates the abilities of women with brilliant talents and their responsibility to meet the needs of the country.

 

1. The charter of citizenship rights of the Islamic Republic of Iran

The initial version of the citizenship charter was compiled and presented on November 26, 2013, with the aim of developing the fundamentals of human rights in the Constitution and strengthening the foundations of democracy in various fields, and it was signed by the president on December 20, 2016.

This charter includes an introduction, 22 Clauses, and 120 Articles.

By looking carefully at the Articles of the Charter, it can be found that the civil rights of women are not specifically mentioned in it, and in contrast to the non-use of the word women, only the words citizens and every citizen are used which can be deduced that gender segregation is not considered by the charter and women equal to men have citizenship civil rights. Among these Articles about the right to individual freedoms as one of the citizenship civil rights is Article 12, which states that the citizens’ individual and public freedoms are immune from assault. No citizen can be deprived of these freedoms… and Article 25 states that citizens have the right to freedom of thought, the inquisition is prohibited… and also Article 26 states that every citizen has the right to freedom of expression… which all three cases can be seen as examples of women’s right to individual freedoms under their civil rights of citizenship.

The right to participate in the exercise of political power as the political rights of women’s citizenship can be seen in Articles of the charter. Article 11 of the Charter states: Women have the right to participate actively and effectively in policy-making, legislation, management, implementation, and supervision, and to enjoy equal social opportunities based on Islamic standards; women have explicitly given the right to active and influential participation in the exercise of political, legal and managerial powers, and so on.

Among the other examples regarding women’s political rights, Article 15 under Clause IV states about the right to participate in self-determination: Citizens have an equal right to participate in the determination of their political, economic, social, and cultural destiny and can exercise this right through referendum or free and fair elections. Articles 43 under Clause X of Article 44 and Article 46 are among the other examples of women’s political rights, which are not explicitly referred to in the gender of women and their rights in this regard, rather, this right has been granted equally to all citizens of the society, both men and women. By examining the performance of the Islamic Republic of Iran from the beginning of its formation, it must be said that Iran has been a leader in some fields in the Middle East region in the field of granting political rights to women and has been more successful than other countries.

Regarding the social rights of women, it is clearly mentioned in the third Article, Article 54 under Clause XII, Article 83 under Clause XVII, Article 89 and Article 90 under Clause VIII, Article 103 under Clause XIX.

 

1. Women’s rights according to statistics

After the Islamic revolution, the chaste and honorable presence of Iranian women witnessed the flourishing and conquest of various scientific, sports, artistic, economic, and social peaks. The great reality that Imam Khomeini, even in his will, is proud of: We are proud that young and old women and men are present in the cultural, economic, and military scenes and are active alongside men or better than them in the path of the advancement of Islam and the purposes of the Holy Quran (Imam Khomeini, Vol. 21, p. 397). The Supreme Leader repeatedly considers it a source of pride, admiration, and endless gratitude: Iranian women have appeared in all fields with success and pride and with Islamic hijab. These are not brags; these are tangible realities of our society. The entrances to our universities are either 50% or more than 50% of our girls, our women. In sensitive and important scientific centers, some of which I personally visited, our women scientists play a role. In the fields of literature, poetry, novels, and biographies, women are among the most prominent. In the field of sports competitions, sometimes people don’t have the strength to admire these characters as much as they deserve (Statements of the Supreme Leader in a meeting with Imam of Friday Prayer across the country, 2022-7-27). A short look at the results of the will and practical unity of the women of the nation and the government of the Islamic Republic to compensate for the backwardness in all fields shows that in this short period, the holy system of the Islamic Republic has been at work, the position of women has grown significantly in terms of progress.

 

​​​​​​​Education

According to the statistics of the World Bank, only 24% of women over the age of 15 in Iran were literate in 1976, while in 2016, 81% of women over 15 years old in Iran became literate. This value was more than 2.3 times the global average in this period. This is while at the end of Pahlavi’s rule in a country like Haiti, 33% of women were literate (9% more than in Iran). Even in the countries of the Arab world in 1978, more than 30% of women over 15 years old were literate. This is despite the fact that in 2019, the percentage of women over 15 years old in Arab countries was 16% less than in Iran (Ahmad Fazelzadeh, 2022, No. 8102).

According to UNESCO statistics, for example, in the last years of the Pahlavi era, Turkey had a much better situation than Iran in the index of deprivation of girls from primary education; in a way that compared to Turkey, Iran had 27% more deprivation. However, the comparison of these two countries in 2012 shows that the number of girls deprived of primary education in Turkey is more than three times that of Iran. In fact, in the years after the Islamic Revolution, the deprivation of girls from primary education has decreased by five times the global average (Ibid).

 

Higher education

The number of female students in various fields increased from 54000 in 1978 to 1872000 in 2016, which shows a growth of 34 times. Of course, the number of female students reached its highest level in 2013, i.e., 2214000, which shows a 41-fold increase compared to 1978. The number of female faculty members in various fields has increased from 9000 in 2005 to 23000 in 2017. The number of female faculty members during the revolution was 100, which increased 230 times during the four decades after the revolution (Ibid).

 

Health and hygiene

According to the latest statistics of the World Bank in the field of health in 2020, an average of 27 out of every 1000 infants in the world will die. In Iran, however, due to numerous improvements in the field of health and the expansion of medical services throughout the country to care for mothers and infants, this rate has decreased to 11 people per 1000 people in 2020. According to the latest World Bank health statistics in 2017, an average of 211 out of every 100000 mothers in the world die after giving birth. Medical advances and the expansion of medical services in maternal health care have caused this rate in Iran to rise from 48 deaths per 1000 people in 2000 to 16 deaths per 1000 people in 2018, and the situation is much better than the global average. The life expectancy of women in Iran has reached 78 years in 2020 from 58 years in 1979. This is while this increase is higher than the global average increase rate, and Iran is among the top countries in increasing the life expectancy of women in the last few decades (Ibid).

 

Culture and sports

Before the Islamic revolution, there was no female publisher in the country, but today, 712 women publishers are working in the country. Also, the number of female writers has increased from less than 50 in 1987 to 8000, and the number of female story writers has increased to 4000. Before the revolution, there were nine female coaches and seven referees in the country, seven sports were active in the field of women, and only one sports complex belonged to women. But after the victory of the revolution and at the present time, there are more than 40 active sports fields for women, and more than 35000 female coaches and referees are active in the country, and more than 12000 women belonging to Islamic Iran participate in international competitions (Ibid).

 

Sacrifice and martyrdom

According to the latest statistics announced by the Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs, the number of mothers of martyrs was 123553, and the number of wives of martyrs was 61052.

Also, the number of parents of veterans was 71372, the number of spouses of veterans was 317193, the number of parents of captureds of Iran-Iraq war was 13082, and the number of wives of captureds of Iran-Iraq war was 41076. Therefore, it can be claimed that, apart from the daughters of martyrs, veterans and Iran-Iraq war captureds, about 550000 Iranian women, by patiently and enduring the loss of their husbands in case of his martyrdom, captivity or injury, played a role in the epic creation of the era of Iran-Iraq war. This number should be placed next to the statistics of 13000 female heroes who were directly present in the war. According to the statistics that are available orally and through interviews with the authorities of the Jihad of Construction of the provinces at the time, in all the provinces of the country (according to the area and demand of the force), between 80 and 120 volunteer women have been working continuously (Ibid).

 

 

References[4]

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26. United Nations Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)

 

[1] Master of jurisprudence and law

[2] Adopted by UN General Assembly Resolution 217A (III) of 10 December 1948.

[3] For more information on human rights treaties, see:

OHCHR, Fact Sheet No. 30: The United Nations Human Rights Treaty System, and OHCHR, Fact Sheet No. 7: Individual Complaint Procedures under the United Nations Human Rights Treaties.

[4] It should be noted that the author has used some references directly in the article, and some are merely inspired and have used the foundation of content in the text.