Source: Radio Zamaneh
Zahra Rahnavard issued a statement today, condemning "backward" laws that discriminate against women in the Islamic Republic.
Zahra Rahnavard
In her statement, which was published today at
the threshold of the International Women's Day, in the Kalemeh website connected
with the opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, she declared that the "family
protection" bill is based on "hedonism" and will destroy the family unit.
Rahnavard added that the bill was "discriminatory and anti-woman" and the direct
product of the Islamic Republic's "dominant culture and made-up laws."
Articles 23 and 25 of the "family protection" bill, which was prepared two years
ago and is now under review at the parliament, have aroused great controversy in
Iran.
According to article 23 of the bill, men are allowed to marry several women
concurrently without obtaining the approval of their first wife so long as they
obtain a legal permit by showing financial means.
Article 25 maintains that the prenuptial sum agreed upon to be paid to the wife
in case of a divorce, referred to as mehrieh in Iran, is subject to government
taxing.
These two articles were previously omitted from the bill under pressure from
women's rights activists, but were recently reintroduced back into the bill by
the Cultural Commission of the parliament.
Iranian women rights activists being attacked by police in Tehran (2007 file
photo)
Zahra Rahnavard also condemns "inequality of men
and women and laws pertaining to divorce and citizenship" as examples of
"backward and discriminatory" laws against women.
She writes: "I am certain that the liberated men of our country are also pained
and ashamed by this discrimination."
Many Iranian women activists have been detained since the June 2009 elections
Zahra Rahnavard also addresses the continued
arrest of women's rights activists who have been repeatedly detained for trying
to defend their rights by participating in gatherings and for their media
activities. She writes: "The reputation and legitimacy of a system is tied with
the respect is dons on its people and their demands, especially the level of its
respect for its women."
Rahnavard urges the Islamic Republic to respect women and their demands, and
also expresses great hope that the Green Movement would take giant steps toward
eliminating discrimination against women.
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