The Debate Surrounding Iranian Gender Rights
Originally produced, November 7th 2014.
As Maryam reflects upon her experiences as a woman in Iran, she takes a moment to sip her chai tea latte. Strands of strawberry blonde hair spill out rebelliously from beneath her Adidas visor, and through the window of the coffee shop, the bright glare from the large advertisements surrounding Times Square illuminate the side of her face.
As she speaks of being groped in subways and arrested on the street for incorrectly wearing the hijab, her relaxed posture serves as a poignant contrast between her life then and now.
“I want to be honest, I don’t want to exaggerate”, said Maryam, 29 who asked to be identified only by her first name to protect her family and friends left in Iran. “You can see a lot of changes, things are getting better. But Iran is a man’s country”.
“I was really depressed there. When you go down the street, you can see that they want to touch you and you hear a lot of verbal abuse.”
Maryam moved from Iran a year and a half ago, choosing to leave her family and friends behind as she felt angry at the way she was being treated as a woman. For her, freedom and respect were imperative.
Women’s rights in Iran have been forced into the spotlight once again in recent months following a number of horrific acid attacks upon women in Isfahan. The global outrage has only been exacerbated further by the execution of Rayhaneh Jabbari.
On 25th October, 26-year-old Rayhaneh Jabbari was executed by hanging after being convicted of murder back in 2006. Her crime was defending herself against a former intelligence agent who tried to rape her.
In early October the Iranian government passed a law protecting citizens who felt driven to correct women, and men, who did not appear to be following Iran’s social laws. Iranian women are required by law to wear a hijab covering their body and hair. It is believed that the acid attacks in Isfahan were carried out by extremists enforcing these morality laws, attacking them for being “badly veiled” or showing too much of their hair or face.
Although Maryam acknowledges that there have been some improvements for women in Iran, she believes women are still actively discriminated against. After living in Iran and visiting home a few months ago, she now sees how prejudice was an integral part of her life.
In one incident, after being harassed, followed and touched by a man on the street, Maryam approached a policeman for help.
“He told me, maybe it’s because you didn’t cover yourself completely. They think it’s your fault. You made him do that.” Despite wearing the required hijab, Maryam was blamed for her harasser’s crimes.
Perhaps what is most concerning, in Maryam’s mind, is that women have become used to this treatment. With no guarantee that the authorities will do anything to protect women, many now no longer consider it abusive. Equally, when attacks or harassment become such a frequent occurrence, “when you live in hell, you get used to it”, she says.
For Maryam, the experience of being victimized for incorrectly wearing the hijab is uncomfortably familiar. In Iran “morality police” arrest women in the street if they are incorrectly dressed, often taking them into a van and holding them until their father or husband comes to release them. Maryam was arrested three times, in the last instance while going to a party without covering her hair properly and wearing tighter clothes.
The police had already arrested another woman, a 50-year-old who was sat, weeping in the back of the van, holding bandages up to her face. She had been on the way to visit the dentist.
“She was exactly like my mum. She was crying and begging, ‘please let me go, I have guests at mine, I should go and cook and clean my home’,” recalled Maryam.
After attempting to reassure the woman, telling her she had done nothing wrong, Maryam was rebuked by the police. They called her a whore and shouted at her, “look at yourself, how can you say you’ve done nothing wrong?”. When Maryam’s boyfriend called to check where she was, they confiscated her bag and phone.
Faraz Sanei, Iran researcher for Human Rights Watch, said that although incidences such as the acid attacks primarily highlight a public security issue, it is concerning that only women are being targeted.
“Lots of men and women alike were extremely worried about what was happening. Acid attacks have been happening in Iran for years, but not to the extent seen in the past month or two, and especially in large cities like Isfahan.”
Sanei expressed concern about further discriminatory legislation being brought in by the Iranian government. Following the acid attacks, thousands of protestors gathered in Isfahan, declaring their opposition to the extremists and the Iranian authorities for playing down the incident. However, several demonstrators and journalists were arrested by the Iranian authorities.
“These are important issues that need to be talked about, but instead of actually promoting it and encouraging that, they’re stifling it. That’s what’s very troubling and problematic.”
Misogyny has permeated many of Iran’s laws. According to the Iranian penal code, a woman’s diya — blood money, or the money that must be paid for murdering or injuring a person — is worth half of a man’s. Women are also considered to be worth half of what a man is worth regarding inheritance, where a son is entitled to twice as much as a daughter would be. To leave the country, a woman must gain their husband or father’s consent.
Discrimination against women even extends to attending sports events, a point unfortunately exemplified by the arrest of Ghoncheh Ghavami, a British Iranian woman who attempted to attend a volleyball match.
According to the Global Gender Gap Report, released by the World Economic Forum, Iran ranked 137th out of 142 countries for gender equality and 140th for labor force participation.
Allen Tasslimi, president of the Association of Iranian-Americans in New York and New Jersey, argued that the execution of Rayhaneh Jabbari exemplifies gender discrimination in Iran.
“It is one of the darkest stains on the face of this regime”, says Tasslimi. However, he believes that as the Iranian youth become more vocal and see how women are treated elsewhere — 60% of the population is under the age of 30 — the Iranian authorities will be forced to change.
“Historically, every oppressive regime has a life. They’re at the apex of their savagery, killing a woman for defending herself and her honor. These are the kind of things that brought the Shah down, and he didn’t even do a fraction of what these guys did.”
As Tasslimi notes, discrimination against women has been an unfortunate part of Iranian history. Shirin Nariman, 51, was imprisoned in the 1980s for supporting the People’s Mujahedin of Iran. Shirin fled the country and moved to the US in 1986, a decision she deems “the best decision” she ever made. During her incarceration, Shirin witnessed torture on a daily basis and watched as her friends were raped or taken away for execution.
“It wasn’t a big deal, it’s something I went through and I survived it. That’s how I look at it”, said Shirin, in a steady voice. “Young, old, pregnant women were severely tortured. What they did in Iran was that they used cables, for the lashes. They would cable them so much that their flesh was torn apart on their back and their feet.”
With around 80 people all cramped into one room, witnessing such horrors was inescapable. However, for the women, the punishments were particularly pointed towards their gender. The Iranian authorities saw female insurgency as something that was forbidden.
During the torture, they would say, “You’re a woman, how dare you decide to fight against us”, explained Shirin. “Even during the torture, if you cried they would say “Oh, you’re crying. Didn’t you say you were a strong woman? You’re equal to a man?”, so you have to say nothing. If you didn’t cry or didn’t say anything, they’d beat you more, because how dare you. You are standing up to them and you don’t give them the joy of seeing you crying or giving up.”
Shirin’s best friend died while being tortured and some women were raped by their guards. They believed that by raping them before their execution, the women would be denied entrance to Jannah, or heaven.
Though Iranian rights have improved in some ways, women’s rights still have a significant distance to go. When asked if Maryam will ever return to Iran, she shakes her head. Though her response is defiant, there is an inescapable sense of longing in her voice. Maryam often works 12-hour shifts for work and admits that affording to live in New York has proved challenging.
“I love my country. I cry in the day here because I miss my country, I want to see my family. Sometimes when I’m walking here, and I feel wind through my hair, I feel guilty. I think, oh my god, my sister is there and she can’t do it.”
And yet, despite the financial struggles and separation from her family, for her there is no choice. Though she hopes women’s rights in Iran will improve, there is no guarantee she’ll go back.
“Freedom is everything”, said Maryam. “I could have a better life there because I have my family there, I had a lot of money there. But I didn’t have freedom. I prefer to be free and not make any money. I don’t want to be in a luxury cage.”
