By Syma Sayyah, Tehran
We have been lucky in the past three
years that a couple of pigeons have found a home for their nest on top of the
cupboard on our north side balcony. This year we believe that the chicks from
last year came and made their nest in the same place. We have a few photographs of our
pigeon's offspring that we took, taking great care not to disturb them.
Writing for Payvand has brought me
many good things, in particular finding new friends, many of whom write to me
and, when they are in Tehran, come to visit me; and when we click, we
usually stay good friends. This has
been truer among the lady readers, as I believe that these days many women,
wherever they are from and whatever background they have, share many common
goals and values. What we miss in the length of our new friendship we compensate
with depth.
One such friend is F who for me is
like a dear niece in my heart. This
lady has an Iranian mother and a Swedish father. She was in Tehran about two years ago
meeting her grandmother and other members of her family. She wanted to be able to stay here and
work without being treated as a foreigner.
We tried everything and went to many offices in vain. Sadly she left but still wants to come
back here to stay. Recently I met a
young man from England, here
in Tehran, who
is also in the same situation.
Recently, I accepted an invitation
to be on a committee of volunteers and activists who want to try to change the
particular law which specifies that Iranian nationality can only be passed to a
child through his or her father. They campaign for the right of
Iranian nationality to be given to the children of Iranian mothers who have
married foreigners. The campaign has a website where you may find out
more.
http://www.meydaan.com/English/campaign.aspx?cid=43&pid=0
One of the aims of this campaign has
already been reached. The Iranian
Parliament (Majlis) last month passed a law granting the children of Iranian
mothers the right to apply for Iranian citizenship after they reach 18 years of
age. This bill has to be approved
by other higher councils in order to be applicable and become law. It does not however apply to those
children who were not born in Iran. We can only hope that soon an amendment
will be added to this law to include all children of Iranian mothers.
I am writing this piece in order to
let you know about the issues here at large and to also ask your help. If you know anyone who is in the same
situation please ask them to contact me or write to the campaign directly. We are gathering cases in order to
show the lawmakers that there are many who are affected by this situation which
is yet another discrimination against women. We can only hope and pray that this
change happens soon and one by one, all such laws that discriminate against
women change as well. Inshallah!
Related
articles:
Iran offers citizenship to children of foreign
men
We
Change
Citizenship
for children
