Iranian Women in the Society - Essay Example

? Iranian Women The view of women in Iran has changed over the years during different historical and political eras. Views in regards to Iranian women on issues such as marriage law, education rights, clothing, divorce law, right to vote, and health rights have changed significantly over the years. Women in Iran participated strongly in the Iranian revolution of 1979 but their efforts got betrayed by the fundamentalists who took power and implemented a crushing system of gender apartheid in the country (Povey & Rostemi-Povey, 2013). The revolution created the Islamic republic of Iran which got built on the ideas that women were intellectually, physically, and morally inferior to their male counterparts. This system denounced the equal participation of women in any social or political activity. Women got expected to carry out their duties and roles according to their biological predisposition, which entitled them to bear children, take care of them, and provide comfort and satisfaction to their husbands (Ali, 2010). Over the last 20 years, changes have become effected in regards to women in the Iranian society. These changes have both freed and place restriction on women in the Iranian society. The proclamation of the Iranian constitution after the revolution served to change the view of women in the society. The constitution in its treaty of women’s rights and responsibilities recognizes women’s rights to high standards of learning. The constitution promotes the rights of women to attain higher education to the very highest academic levels. Women are encouraged through the constitution to seek the highest quantitative and qualitative levels of specialist skills. During the last 20 years, the Islamic revolution has managed to attain significant levels of equality in eradicating illiteracy among the Iranian population. The percentage of literate women in Iran has risen over the last 20 years (Ali, 2010). Education has also provided jobs to Iranian women with a rise in the number of female teachers around the country. Girls have also continued to post impressive results in education and they have competed admirably well against their male counterparts. The number of women being accepted and graduating from Iranian institutions of higher learning has also risen significantly over the years since the revolution. Women also face restrictions in pursuing higher education in various fields of study in the country. Some fields of study get taught in segregated classrooms. Culturally, women have also become viewed with much dignity with a special emphasis on not letting them become viewed as sexual objects. Leaders and managers have placed emphasis on the notion of not letting women get exploited as sexual objects in the country. A law that got enacted in 1988 prohibits the abuse of individuals, which includes disrespecting women or abusing a woman’s body through text or image. The revolution also resulted to the imposition of various cultural restrictions on women in Iran (Afshar, 2012). The revolution emphasized on the need for women to wear hijabs to in all public places to avoid receiving unwanted attention. According to the Islamic council of Iran, it is vital for women to wear hijabs to maintain their purest forms. Women are expected to cover their body and hair except for their hands and faces. Women are also not encouraged to use cosmetics. Punishment for not wearing hijabs may range from verbal reprimands, whip lashing, and even imprisonment. The legal marriage age for a girl in Iran is 9 years, which got reduced from the initial 18years. Polygamy is very much legal in the country with men allowed to marry various wives. Women are not allowed to travel without the approval in writing of their husbands (Povey & Rostemi-Povey, 2013). Women do not get allowed to get in the company of other men who are not their husbands or male relatives. Women also get restricted to participate in sporting activities that may allow them to get seen by men. They are also not allowed to watch men’s sports where the male sportsmen legs are not fully covered. Iranian women have always resisted the restrictions placed on them by the various political regimes in the country. Recent indications from women in the country show that women are increasingly opposing leading subordinate lives ruled by the mullahs. Women are increasingly campaigning for equal inheritance rights compared to those of men and also for more rights in regards to child custody. Women in Iran are also evolving their dress code in a sense that outlines the limits of the hijab. Women are also taking an active role in the media and far more publications by women are getting seen. Iranian women are increasingly calling for radical changes in various sectors (Tizro, 2013). Resistance to the impositions place on them by clerics and political hierarchy has resulted to the rebirth of women’s movement in the country. The country’s ruling class had used the war with Iraq to crush any dissenting voices and active voices including secular organization, oppositional, and women’s movements’ which all got banned. The result of women fighting for equality in Iran has seen them take a role in social and political environment of the country. Women have increasingly participated in the political and social spheres of the country over the last two decades. There has been a steady rise in the percentage of female members in municipal and village councils within the country. Women have also increasingly taken position as ministerial advisors on women’s affairs in government ministries and bodies. The number of rural female officials has projected over the last two decade. These women got elected via the country’s electoral process and this shows a shift in attitude about women holding political positions. Between 1976 and 2007, the percentage of female managers, senior employees, officials, and legislators has risen significantly (Ali, 2010). Women have also taken roles in non-governmental organizations over the years. The women’s socio-cultural council has also assisted in drawing attention to female problems in the country. After the war with Iraq, the country exerted pressure on improving women’s economic abilities. Women economic capabilities at the individual and family level got empowered by introduction of protective laws in regard to marital payments, meeting women’s basic needs, and dowries. Several laws have also become effected to cease the oppression of women at home (Afshar, 2012). Husbands get required to pay their wives for the work they carry out within the house. There has also been the development of marriage contracts which provide stipulations to both men and women on their capacities within a marriage. These provisions take care of future rights and interest of women in politics. These laws assist the woman to become economically empowered in marriage. The woman can ask for divorce and incase of their husband seeking marriage annulment, they have the ability to attain property (Ali, 2010). There was introduction of protective labor laws which insured women against performing difficult and dangerous tasks at the workplace. Women’s participation in the economy has risen over the last two decades in the country. The Islamic republic of Iran displays the laws that got impacted on the country as a result of the Iranian revolution and Iraq war. The laws aimed at protecting the chastity of both women and men by warning people against perceiving women as sexual objects (Ali, 2010). The laws aimed at protecting the family and stipulating the roles of women. The laws also provide direction on the need for women to balance their professional ambitions with their role inside the family. There have been achievements in regard to the level of women’s involvement in social, political, and economic fields. The revolution also resulted to restrictions for women in the country. These restrictions continue to face opposition by the women in the country through various movements. References Afshar, H. (2012). Women and Fluid Identities: Strategic and Practical Pathways Selected by Women. London: Palgrave Macmillan. Ali, A. K. (2010). Iranian women after the islamic revolution. A conflicts forum monograph, 1-21. Mahdi, A. A. (2004). The Iranian's Women movement: a century long struggle. Iranian women's movement, 427-448. Tara Povey, E. R.-P. (2012). Women, Power and Politics in 21st Century Iran. London: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. Tizro, Z. (2013). Domestic Violence in Iran: Women, Marriage and Islam. New York: Routledge. Read More