This is the text of Leila Alikarami’s speech on the Reports from the Global Women’s Movement panel at Feminism in London 2010.
WOMEN’S MOVEMENT IN IRAN
The active presence of Iranian women in the public arena and their efforts to obtain equal rights with men date back to the early twentieth century, when the Constitutional Revolution took place in Iran. The Constitutional Revolution of 1906 was a liberal movement aimed at creating a parliament, limiting the Shah’s powers and enforcing constitutional laws. I will explain the historical background of the women’s movement in Iran, in order to trace the process of demanding equality and the obstacles that Iranian women have encountered in their efforts for it. In the first part I will discuss the situation of Iranian women during the Qajar Dynasty, 1794-1925, when they were deprived of many of their basic economic, social and political rights. In the second part I will look at the situation of women during the Pahlavi era, 1925-79, a period of some positive changes. In the last part I briefly explain the situation of women after the 1979 Revolution, and their struggles for equality since the rise of the Islamic Republic.
1. Iranian women during the Qajar Dynasty, 1794-1925
The situation of Iranian women during the Qajar dynasty can be divided into two different eras. The first is before the Constitutional Revolution of 1906, and the second thereafter. Before the Constitutional Revolution, In general, discrimination against women was prevalent. A mother, for example, could be held responsible – and made to feel ashamed – for giving birth to a baby girl. During childhood, a girl was required to behave in a “mature” way, and was always asked to keep quiet and not speak in public. After reaching the age of nine, which was considered the age of maturity, she might marry someone whom she may never have met before. Polygamy – a male privilege – was very popular during that time.
After the Constitutional Revolution of 1906, when a parliament was established in Iran, significant changes occurred. The Constitution provided for public education, and women took advantage of this provision and started to promote education for girls. They also took advantage of the laws that granted freedom to the Press, and they began to publish women’s newspapers aiming at promoting women’s education. Their efforts in promoting women’s education led to opening schools for girls. The first school for girls was founded in 1918, and became the springboard for the women’s movement in Iran.[1] However, one should bear in mind that, according to the Constitution, women – along with criminals and people with mental problems – were still deprived of the right to vote, and this naturally restricted them from actively participating in public life.
2. Iranian women during the Pahlavi Era, 1925-1979
After 1925, when Reza Shah came to power, industrialization, judicial and administrative reforms occurred in Iran. These changes led to the improvement of women’s lives. During the Reza Shah reign (1925-41), women were encouraged to participate in public affairs. As a result, the number of women in schools increased, and some women occupied positions in governmental agencies. But despite all the changes in women’s state, they still did not have equal rights with men in law. The civil code adopted by parliament in 1925 included a section on the family which considered men superior to women and granted them more rights. For example, divorce was a right exclusively reserved to men; women had no right to divorce their husbands. However, one could not ignore the significant changes that occurred in women’s lives, and which provided them with more active participation in public life.
During the Mohammad Reza Shah reign (1941-1979), women were more educated and had access to more information. Comparing their situation with women in other countries where there was a greater degree of equality between the two sexes, Iranian women demanded changes in the Iranian legal system. Despite many objections from clerics, women’s struggle for equal rights provided them with the right to vote in 1963. In the subsequent elections, six women were elected in parliament and two were appointed to the senate. Although some progress was made during the Pahlavi Era, in the early 1960s women were still considered as second-class citizens and were deprived of many of their basic legal, social, civil and political rights. Divorce was still the right of the men, polygamy was allowed, and many other discriminatory laws were enforced. After 1963, Iran’s economic growth played a significant role in changing Iranian society and preparing the climate for introducing changes in the existing structure of society. The family protection act, which provided equal rights between women and men in some family issues, was adapted in 1967.
3. Iranian women after the Revolution of 1979
Iranian women played a vital role in establishing the Revolution of 1979. Despite some changes in their situation during the Pahlavi era, women were not satisfied with the existing legal and political systems in Iran. Some women argued that the changes introduced were not effective, since several of their basic rights were not granted. They also argued that discrimination remained in the country’s laws, and that changes introduced from the top down and with no roots among the ordinary people could not be considered as effective.
In 1979, the Iranian Revolution changed the country’s political system from monarchy to Islamic Republic. According to the Islamic Constitution (introduced after 1979), all laws in Iran should be compatible with Islamic Law. Some Islamic jurists argue that the principle of equality violates Islam, because, according to Islamic Law, women and men should not be treated equally, as there are different roles and responsibilities for each sex.
Iranian Law largely follows this school of thought, and does not provide equal rights for men and women. Iran’s constitution does not identify any rights for women as independent entities, although it has recognized some rights for married and pregnant women. Following the 1979 Revolution, although women have been participating more actively in society, returning to Sharia law has restricted women’s mobility in various aspects of their lives. The compulsory hijab, for example, has prevented women from participating in several social activities. Although it has been argued that the hijab is not compulsory according to Sharia, Iran’s penal code considers it as an Islamic obligation and penalizes its absence.[2] Furthermore, Iran’s Law has deprived women of some of their social and legal rights. Being prohibited from doing a number of jobs is a case in point. Women who were judges during the Mohammad-Reza Shah era, for instance, lost their jobs. Moreover, according to the Iranian criminal code, a woman’s life is worth half of a man’s life in terms of the compensation-known as blood money – paid to the family of the murdered individual.
A Muslim woman cannot marry a non-Muslim man, but an Iranian man can marry whomever he pleases. Under Iranian law the nationality of a woman is not automatically transferred to her children. However, the same does not apply for a man. Consequently there are approximately 20 thousand children in Iran who lack a birth certificate simply because their fathers are not Iranian citizens, although their mothers are Iranian nationals.
Furthermore, according to civil law an Iranian girl is not free to choose her husband. She is dependent upon the permission of her father or parental grandfather, regardless of her age.
A final example: the age of criminal responsibility for girls is 9 while a boy cannot be prosecuted for a crime until he is 15. In fact, in Iran, a 9 year old girl is actually regarded as an adult woman.
Due to the fact that women are more educated now (more than 62 percent of university students are women),[3] the harshness of discriminatory laws is more visible to them than ever, and, consequently, a matter of grave concern. Therefore, some women activists have decided to combat existing discrimination against women. In order to reach better results in their struggle for equality, these activists have tried to involve Iranian women from all religious, political and social backgrounds. The one-million-signature campaign for legal equality between men and women was launched in Iran in August 2006. The campaign provided education on legal issues to the public, particularly to women, raised public awareness, promoted collaboration among groups demanding equality, and documented personal experiences. We work on a grass-roots level, collecting signatures and spreading information about the changes we believe must be made.
Since the campaign’s launch, more than one hundred activists have been arrested, some of which were sentenced to prison, just because they demanded equality with men. Newspapers and magazines which promote equality have been banned, and the one-million-signature campaign’s website has been blocked several times.[4]
In the face of great difficulties we have continued to pursue our campaign for equality and human rights. Despite all restrictions, however, women’s movement became stronger after the revolution of 1979. A possible reason for this may be found in the contradictory position that women found themselves in after 1979. The discriminatory laws against women made even the most traditional women realize that they could not reach equal rights with men through a fundamentalist interpretation of Islam. As a result, many women belonging to traditional and religious families have now joined modern and secular women in their efforts for equality. Another explanation could be that, ironically, the revolution itself played an important role in encouraging women to participate in the public and social arenas. Now that women have presented themselves so successfully in public life, it is not possible to force them back into the private sphere of their homes.[5]
Leila Alikarami, 23 October 2010
[1] Ettehadieh, M. 2004. “The Origins and Development of the Women’s Movement in Iran, 1906-41”. In Beck, L., and G. Nashat (eds.), Women in Iran: From 1800 to the Islamic Republic. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 86-95.
[2] Criminal Code, IRAN (I.R), Art. 638. Note to article 638 states that “Women who appear in public without a proper Hijab should be imprisoned from ten days to two months or pay a fine of 50,000 to 500,000 Ryal.” Available from: http://www.iranhrdc.org/htpdocs/english/pdfs/codes/ThePenalCode.pdf [Accessed 10 May 2009].
[3] “CEDAW Iran, Issue 2: Access to Education”. Available from: http://www.cedaw-iran.org/impact-of-cedaw-access-to-education/ [Accessed 15 July 2009].
[4] Amnesty International Report: ‘Women Act Against Repression and Intimidation in Iran’ (2008) Available from: http://www.amnesty.org/…/report/women-act-against-repression-and-intimidation–Iran 20080228- [Accessed 10 May 2009].
[5] Touhidi. N., “Post-fundemantalist, green movement and the significant presence of women”. Available from: http://www.feministschool.com [Accessed 18 July 2009].