Women’s Rights Are Human Rights
Written by Natalie Guo | Edited by Gwen Nicole
Women in Iran have long faced legal, political, as well as socioeconomic challenges. Iran’s 1906 constitution promised “equal rights before the law” for all Iranians alike. Between 1967 and 1975, women legally gained their rights — to vote, to divorce their spouse, run for office, inherit property — during the reign of a monarchy.
When the second Iranian Constitution was enacted, composed by Islamic revolutionaries, it explicitly stated that women were ‘equally protected’. However in actuality, it granted fewer social rights and personal liberties to women. Women’s rights activists and civil society organizations faced numerous counts of harassment, intimidation, detention, and smear campaigns. Iranian courts often decreed harsh sentences, with insufficient evidence, on activists who challenged the unjust legislation.
Narges Mohammadi, who was sentenced to 11 years due to her creation of a human rights organization for ‘colluding against national security’ and ‘generating propaganda against the state’. Nasrin Sotoudeh, who was sentenced 38 years in prison for protesting the compulsory hijab covering, on counts of ‘espionage’ and as well as ‘collusion against national security’. Sepideh Gholian, who was sentenced to 19 years for her reports on labor protests on counts of ‘publishing false news’ and ‘propaganda against the state’. Saba Kordafshari, who was sentenced to 24 years in prison for ‘encouraging moral corruption and prostitution, collusion against national security, and “propaganda against the state’. Despite being ‘protected by law’, Iranian women face discrimination in many areas of their lives, including education, employment, in marriage/divorce, and political participation.
Additionally, another notable mention of women’s rights in Iran is the forced veiling of women. The government has imposed strict dress codes on women, requiring them to cover their heads and bodies in public. Women who do not comply with these dress codes face harassment and arrest. In addition to these legal violations, Iranian women also face violence and harassment in their daily lives. Domestic violence is a rampant yet an intentionally unaddressed problem in Iran, and women who report abuse often face little support or protection from the authorities.
The current discriminative discrepancies in Iranian law and practices that must change. For the women in Iran in numerous aspects of their lives, including in marriage, divorce, employment, and culture; where they are either unjustly restricted or require explicit permission from their husbands or fathers to navigate their daily lives safely, depriving them of their autonomy and human dignity.
To restore justice for Iranian women there are a multitude of steps to be taken. This can be done by educating and informing others about the ongoing situation in Iran and by supporting organizations like Human Rights Watch, The Center for Human Rights in Iran, as well as United for Iran and amongst others that work to promote women’s rights. It’s crucial to support Iranian women’s rights activists especially during these perilous times. These brave individuals are working tirelessly to bring about change in Iran, and they need to be able to gain traction and engagement with the international community to continue their work.
With the help of governments, the United Nations, and along with nongovernmental organizations as they wield the power in inching forward needed change, and it is important that they effectively utilize their abilities not only to safeguard the rights of women in Iran, but so that women globally can breathe easy.
- Hanna, A. (2020, December 10). Part 3: Iranian laws on Women. The Iran Primer. Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://iranprimer.usip.org/blog/2020/dec/08/part-3-iranian-laws-women
- Human Rights in Iran. Center for Human Rights in Iran. (2022, December 21). Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://iranhumanrights.org/category/womens-rights/
- Iran: Where Women and Girls Treated as Second Class Citizens. OHCHR. (2021, March 8). Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2021/03/iran-women-and-girls-treated-second-class-citizens-reforms-urgently-needed
- Iranian Women’s Demands for Freedom Must Be Heard. Human Rights Watch. (2022, November 16). Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/11/16/iranian-womens-demands-freedom-must-be-heard
- Women’s Rights in Iran. Human Rights Watch. (2020, October 28). Retrieved January 27, 2023, from https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/10/28/womens-rights-iran
