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The future prospects of Iranian activists' protests against gender discriminations in the constitution
Mehrangiz Kar
27 Jun 2006
Not too long ago Mr. Mohammad Ali Abtahi, the legal aide to former president Mohammad Khatami between 1997 and 2005 announced: After the presidential elections of 2001 which took Mr. Khatami to the presidential house for his second term, a messenger informed the president that one of the senior clerics from Qom had a message for the chief executive. I went to the cleric. I was told to inform the president that if a woman was included in the president’s cabinet, he would issue a fatwa (religious decree) that paying taxes to the government would be a religious sin.
Mr. Abtahi added a note to his historic quip. He said four years after that event, there are now 5 women in Iraq’s new cabinet and ayatollah Sistani’s protest could have prevented them from being appointed. Instead, he officially approved the cabinet.
The reason for relating this episode is important because women’s demands, both announced and unspoken ones, are moving rapidly like a snow ball so that the threats of Messers is not likely to stop the ball. The ball is neither red nor orange, but white. The color of peace. It is not the white of surrender as it shows signs of movement and growth. Men cannot stop this. In fact the ball has been rolling for years but it has not been heard. Indisputably, after learning valuable lessons from the historic mistakes of Iranian leaders with whom he mingled for years, Iraq’s ayatollah Sistani is aware of the snow ball. Even though his Iranian hosts continue to ignore it.
Shite clerics and religious authorities in Iran have used two methods to deal with women’s legal demands: they either pinned women against each other and stormed the streets, or they proclaimed that Islam could accommodate their demands, making women from across the world envious of Iranian women. But both methods have created more problems than solved any. The first method has now become the official approach to women’s demands, while the second is now the way of the opposition. None of these options have improved the lot of Iranian women during the last 27 years. In the first method where clerics refer to a formal interpretation of religion and the scripts, one should not expect any better. But regarding the second method through which clerics can present modern interpretations no positive results have yet emerged. The latter continue to claim that women’s modern needs can be met through proper interpretation of texts. But the fact is that these gentlemen have so far not come forward to actually put word and claims into action.
According to the views of the first group, a woman becomes mature and full grown at the age of 9 and is thus personally responsible for her actions. So the various punishments can be applied to her according to the Islamic Punitive Code. But at the same time clerics differ on the age of a mature person and agree that when the difference is clear, then changes can be implemented. So one can conclude from this that the legal age of a 9 year old woman can actually be raised, without contradicting Islamic tenets.
But the narrow views on women’s rights is such that even religious decrees that permit and sanction the improvement of women’s legal status are not used, let alone global human rights standards provided in the convention on the rights of children, with whom they fundamentally are at conflict.
Disregard for legal discrimination against women will soon turn into a political crises. Especially as the world community is supporting the demands of Iranian women.
Today, women in Iran are preparing themselves to combat those laws that humiliate them. 27 years of disregard has brought them to the point of revolt. So today, it is natural for them to cry out for help from others when their security is lost. This is the most natural human reaction.
Freedom and liberation from discriminatory bonds is the right of women. Half the population of this country have been legally ruled to be ‘incomplete’ and ‘defective’ beings. In their peaceful march and rally two weeks ago, women simply asked that they be recognized as a full human being, not a half. When during the rally and the crackdown that followed the police would ask the protesting women ‘when will you become a human?’ the women would respond with a ‘whenever we are recognized as a human by law. When our life is recognized to be equal to a man’s. When our share of inheritance equals those of men. When we are not viewed as half humans in the laws of the country.’
The responses that these women provided were appropriately chosen for the questions that the police raised. There is no doubt that women have no broken the old taboos. The number of participants at the rally or protesting is irrelevant. What is important is that women are now on the move. In the not too-distant future, even policemen and policewomen would join them. You don’t believe me?
Just take a look at the events that led to the 1979 revolution. Remember how those in the military bases and the police joined the revolutionary forces one after another. To disregard history is dangerous. Look at history and acknowledge the rolling snow-ball. See it as it is, growing and affecting change.
* This article was originally published in Rooz Online.
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