Women’s Rights
Women do not enjoy equal status to men in Iran. While the Iranian Constitution says all citizens enjoy equal protection of the law, it states unequivocally that its laws cannot contradict Sharia law. Women risk persecution in daily life at home, in public and the workplace and are generally treated as second class citizens.
In 2003, the Iranian Council of Guardians rejected a bill that would require the country to adopt a UN convention ending discrimination against women.
Family Law
While a male can marry at age 15 without parental consent, civil law states that a virgin female needs the consent of her father or grandfather to wed, or the court’s permission, even if she is older than 18. Women have the right to divorce if her husband signed a contract granting that right or if he cannot provide for his family, is a drug addict, insane or impotent. However, a husband is not required to cite a reason for divorcing his wife.
Physical Abuse
In Iran, domestic abuse is considered a private matter and seldom discussed publicly. Rape is illegal and subject to strict penalties, but it remains a huge problem for women. There is evidence of “rampant” honor killings in the western and southwestern provinces of Iran, in particular Khuzestan and Elam with the punishment for perpetrators being a short prison sentence.
Women in Public
The Iranian government enforces gender segregation in most public spaces and prohibits women from mixing openly with unmarried men or men not related to them. Women must ride in a reserved section on public buses and enter public buildings, universities and airports through separate entrances.
Dress
The Iranian penal code provides that if a woman appears in public without the appropriate Islamic covering (hijab), she can be sentenced to lashings and/or fined.
Travel
Women must obtain the permission of their husband, father or other male relative to obtain a passport. Married women must receive written permission from their husbands before leaving the country.
Professional Opportunities
Social and legal constraints severely limit women’s professional opportunities. Women occupy 1.2% of higher management positions and 5.2% of managerial positions.
Government Positions
Women cannot serve as judges or run for president. Despite the fact that women are nearly half of the 46 million voters in Iran, women account for only 2.8% of representation in parliament. In the 1997 presidential election, more than 60% of the votes that would be considered “moderate” or “reformist” were votes cast by women.
Reactions to the Suppression of Women’s Rights
Women’s rights activists are monitored and often persecuted.
Struggling Iranian women’s rights activists hope to end the range of discriminatory laws against women by joining together to challenge the regime. The campaign One Million Signatures Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws was launched in 2006 to promote women’s rights. The Iranian government reacted by arresting and detaining campaign members.
Iranian women’s rights activists call for international support in rejecting harmful actions that attempt to silence Iranian women. June 12th, has been deemed the National Day of Solidarity for Iranian Women.
Sources: U.S. Department of State Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – Iran (2007)
