Cartoon by Chappatte

Iran under fire amid new restrictions on women’s rights

by Maryam Rezaei Zadeh 

Stimson Center: Faced with widespread protests led by girls and women, the Iranian state has cracked down harshly, killing more than 500 people, shooting others in the eye and arresting thousands.  This state violence, which followed the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody a year ago, reflects both the harsh treatment of women in Iran and the push for change.

State repression is a reflection of the second-class legal status of women and the prevalence of domestic violence in Iran. Such violence against women is not criminalized by Iranian law, which regards daughters and wives as the property of fathers and husbands.

Long before the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement that erupted in Iran last year, Iranian women have been fighting against patriarchal norms and state-imposed restrictions. Decades of activism by Iranian women have included efforts to amend a retrograde family law that, after the 1979 revolution, lowered the age of marriage from eighteen to nine. It was subsequently raised, but only to thirteen.

Despite the law, there are still many marriages of girls to grown men. Women continue to face discrimination in terms of divorce, child custody, and inheritance. Moreover, principles in Islamic jurisprudence grant men guardianship over women and reduce women’s agency in familial and societal matters. Women are also underrepresented in the political and economic spheres, often facing glass ceilings and wage gaps. The mandatory hijab laws that sparked protests last year serve as a palpable manifestation of state-imposed gender discrimination. On Sept. 20, 2023, Iran’s parliament passed a new law increasing punishment for those who refuse to wear the veil to up to 10 years in jail. The law must still be approved by a vetting body, the Guardian Council.

In the 2000s, civil society groups mounted a One Million Signatures Campaign to push for changes in discriminatory laws. This led to proposed legislation, the “Bill to Protect the Dignity and Security of Women Against Violence,” that was formally introduced in parliament in 2021 but has faced considerable backlash and has yet to be enacted.

The bill consists of 58 articles and five chapters and addresses various forms of violence against women, including physical, psychological, sexual, and economic violence. It begins by quoting Quranic verses about the dignity of women in Islam. Then it provides a legal definition of violence as “any behavior that causes physical, emotional, individual harm to women or tarnishes women’s respect or deprives women of attaining their legal rights and freedoms.”

The bill would provide increased support and safe havens for women who have experienced domestic violence, more public information about these crimes and how to combat them and specify punishments for those who harm women.

A first effort to pass the legislation failed when Shahindokht Molaverdi, then Iran’s Vice President for Women’s and Family Affairs, saidin 2018 thatsentences for perpetrators were excessive. The bill proposed a range of punishments for perpetrators including fines, imprisonment and mandatory counseling or educational courses on violence and its consequences. However, the specifics of the penalties, such as the length of imprisonment or the amount of the fines, were not clearly defined and appear to depend on a judge’s decision or refer to laws already on the books.

The administration of former president Hassan Rouhani and the judiciary approved the legislation in 2021after a public outcry following the beheading of a 14-year-old girl, Romina Ashrafi, by her father after she ran off with an older man. However, both the presidency and the parliament have now changed and are under the control of hardliners.

The campaign for the law has been boosted by a 2020 documentary, “The Art of Living in Danger.” The film, directed by Mina Keshavarz, delves into the victims of domestic violence. Keshavarz also discusses the death of her own grandmother, who was forced to marry at a young age, gave birth to seven children, and committed suicide during her eighth pregnancy when she was only thirty-five. The documentary includes interviews with five female lawyers who have campaigned for gender equality and the criminalization of domestic violence.

“The Art of Living in Danger” shows the importance of civic engagement and grassroots mobilization. It advocates raising awareness by visiting girls’ schools, organizing workshops for men and women, distributing booklets and pamphlets about women’s rights, and publicizing safe places women can go to if they are victims of domestic violence. The film also documents peaceful protests before the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

A year after the death of Mahsa Amini, the European House of Photography in Paris screened the documentary to depict Iranian women’s continued resistance to Iran’s discriminatory laws. The director pointed out in an interview that the Iranian government’s efforts to distract people from the issue had been unsuccessful. She was optimistic that Iranians, especially women, would continue to pursue their rights.

The bill on preventing violence against women has some support in the current parliament, including from Tayyebeh Siavoshi Shah-Enayati, a prominent Iranian reformist politician and parliament member, who is also actively engaged with women’s affairs at the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. Other women in parliament who support the bill include Parvaneh Salahshouri and Ashraf Zadegan.

However, conservative women’s organizations, religious figures, and politicians strongly oppose the bill. The hardline Organization of Women of the Islamic Revolution at Tehran sent a letter to President Ebrahim Raisi asserting that the legislation would undermine Iranian values and beliefs. Zahra Ayatollahi, Chair of the Women’s Cultural and Social Council, another conservative group, told Kayhan newspaper that the bill copies Western laws on women and the family. She asserted that approving the bill would pave the way for Iran’s enemies to overthrow the Islamic Republic. She added that this bill does not support “modest” (Afif) women and would instead protect “prostitutes.”

The prospects for the domestic violence bill in Iran are thus uncertain. While conservative ideological leanings pose a significant challenge, growing civil society activism and international attention offer some hope. Policymakers and activists navigating this landscape must employ a nuanced, multifaceted strategy to advance the cause of women’s rights in Iran.

Maryam Rezaei Zadeh is a Faculty Assistant and Mentor for Persian House, part of the Persian Capstone year-long program at the Persian Flagship Program, University of Maryland, and an intern in the Middle East Voices program at the Stimson Center. Her research and academic interests lie at the intersection of international security and relations, focusing on empowering and advocating for women’s and marginalized groups’ rights in the Middle East.