Change for Equality

Internationale Unterstützung für Frauen-Kampagne

Parvin Ardalan — 2007-03-28T22:12:39Z

Iranische Frauenrechtlerinnen initiieren eine breite Kampagne, die das Ende diskriminierender Gesetze gegen Frauen in der iranischen Gesetzgebung fordert. Die Kampagne „Eine Million Unterschriften zur Änderungen der diskriminierenden Gesetze” ist ein Bestreben im Anschluss an den friedlichen Protest vom 12. Juni 2006 auf dem Haft-e Tir Platz in Teheran mit denselben Zielen.

Wir, die Unterzeichner und Unterzeichnerinnen, im Namen von internationalen Frauengruppen und –aktivisten, Menschenrechtsorganisationen und –aktivisten, Universitätszentren, akademischen Zentren und Initiativen für soziale Gerechtigkeit, möchten unsere Unterstützung für iranische Frauen in ihrem Bestreben nach Gesetzesreformen und Gleichberechtigung innerhalb des iranischen Rechtsystems zum Ausdruck bringen.

Beschreibung der Kampagne:

Das iranische Rechtssystem hält Frauen für Bürger zweiter Klasse und fördert Diskriminierung gegen sie. Es ist erwähnenswert, dass gesetzliche Diskriminierung dieser Art in einer Gesellschaft durchgesetzt wird, wo Frauen über 60% der Studierenden an Hochschulen ausmachen. Es wird allgemein davon ausgegangen, dass Gesetze soziale Mäßigung fördern sollten, indem sie kulturellen Normen einen Schritt voraus sind. Im Iran jedoch hinken die Gesetze sowohl den kulturellen Normen als auch dem Status und der Position der Frau hinterher.

Zweifellos leiden Frauen mit niedrigerem sozioökonomischen Status oder Frauen aus religiösen oder ethnischen Minderheiten unverhältnismäßig mehr an gesetzlicher Diskriminierung. Auf der anderen Seite haben diese ungerechten Gesetze schädliche und unausgewogene Beziehungen zwischen Männern und Frauen begünstigt und dadurch negative Konsequenzen auch im Leben der Männer hervorgebracht.

Des Weiteren ist die iranische Regierung Unterzeichner mehrerer internationaler Menschenrechtskonventionen, und ist demnach gefordert, ihre Gesetzgebung auf eine Linie mit internationalen Standards zu bringen. Der wichtigste internationale Menschenrechtsstandard verlangt die Beseitigung von Diskriminierung nach Geschlecht, Ethnizität, Religion usw.

Die Kampagne hat das Ziel, eine Million Unterschriften zu sammeln zur Unterstützung von Änderungen diskriminierender Gesetzte gegen Frauen. Sie wird der Öffentlichkeit und insbesondere Frauen Gelegenheit geben, sich über gesetzliche Kernpunkte zu unterrichten, versuchen das öffentliche Bewusstsein für das Thema zu erhöhen, die Zusammenarbeit von Gruppen, die für Gleichheit zwischen Mann und Frau einstehen, voranbringen und Erfahrungen dokumentieren. Die Kampagne wird durch folgende Maßnahmen realisiert:

1. Sammeln von Unterschriften durch Haus-zu-Haus Kontakt und Gespräche mit verschiedenen Frauengruppen.

2. Sammeln von Unterschriften an Orten und bei Veranstaltungen, wo Frauen zusammenkommen und wo Gespräche und Diskussionen mit Gruppen von Frauen durchgeführt werden können.

3. Durchführung von Seminaren und Konferenzen mit der Absicht, das Profil der Kampagne zu vertiefen, den Dialog voranzubringen, Befürworter auszumachen und Unterschriften zu sammeln.

4. Sammeln von Unterschriften über das Internet. Das Internet wird dazu benutzt Informationen über die Kampagne zu verteilen, einschließlich juristisch bildender Materialien. Jene, die interessiert sind, diese Bemühungen zu unterstützen, können die betreffenden Petitionen der Kampagne unterschreiben.

Kontakt und Information: Für mehr Informationen schauen Sie bitte unter www.we-change.org; oder schreiben Sie an die Organisatoren der Kampagne: forequality@gmail.com

الدعم العالمي للحملة النساء الإيرانيات

Parvin Ardalan — 2007-03-02T21:22:08Z

في استطاعة المنظمات الحقوقية النسائية والناشطين في حقوق الإنسان،كما بالتأكيد المنظمات الأهلية والعالمية دعم جهود النساء الإيرانيات في إنهاء التمييز القانوني ضدهن وذلك عبر التوقيع على العريضة أدناه.

قد قام العديد من الأفراد و المنظمات ذات الشهرة العالمية بكتابة رسائل دعم تم تشرها في الموقع.

عريضة المليون توقيع لدعم مطالب النساء الإيرانيات في إلغاء القوانين التميزية ضدهن

تطلق النساء الإيرانيات حملة واسعة تطلب إنهاء القوانين التمييزية ضد النساء في القانون الإيراني. إن حملة " المليون توقيع لتغيير القوانين التميزية " هي استكمال للمظاهرة السلمية التي حملت نفس الهدف والتي حصلت في 12 يونيو 2006 في ساحة حافظ تير في العاصمة طهران.

نحن الموقعين أدناه نمثل مجموعات و جمعيات عالمية كما أفراد ناشطين في مجال حقوق الإنسان،حقوق النسوة، أستاذة جامعيّن ومراكز أكاديمية، ومبادرات تعمل على موضوع العدالة الاجتماعية: نرغب في التعبير عن دعمنا للنساء الإيرانيات اللواتي يرغبن في إصلاح القوانين التميزية ضدهن و تحقيق المساواة داخل النظام الإيراني القانوني..

معلومات حول الحملة :

يعامل القانون الإيراني النساء كمواطنات من الدرجة الثانية و بذلك يروج للتمييز ضدهن. الجدير بالذكر هنا، إن هذا النظام التمييزي القانوني يتم فرضه على مجتمع تشكل النسوة فيه أكثر من 60% من الطلاب في التعليم الجامعي .من المعتقد أن القوانين يجب أن تروّج الاعتدال الاجتماعي و تتخطى العادات الثقافية، غير أن القوانين الإيرانية لا تزال مرتبطة بالعادات الثقافية ووضع النساء الاجتماعي في هذه العادات.

لا شك أن النساء من مواقع اجتماعية و اقتصادية دنيا، أو النساء القادمات من خلفية اثنيه أو أقلية تعاني أكثر من هذا التمييز، فمن جهة هذه القوانين المجحفة قد رّوجت علاقات غير صحية ، أو متوازنة بين الرجال والنساء و بالتالي قد آثرت على الحياة بشكل سلبي و لاجدال فيه، و من الجهة الأخرى، أن الحكومة الإيرانية موقعة على العديد من الاتفاقيات و المعاهدات الدولية للحقوق الإنسان ،وبالتالي مطالبة بأن تتوافق قوانينها و تعدل بما يتناسب مع المعاهدات التي وقعت. من المهم أن حقوق الإنسان تلغي جميع أنواع التمييز بناء على النوع الاجتماعي، الاثنية و الدين .

تهدف الحملة إلى تجميع مليون توقيع لدعم تغيير القوانين التمييزية ضد النساء. كما ستقوم بتأمين المعرفة القانونية الضرورية للعامة و خاصة النساء، من خلال زياد الوعي وترويج التعاون بين المجموعات التي تطالب بالمساواة بين المرأة والرجل، و توثيق التجارب الحاصلة.

ستنفذ الحملة من خلال الأدوات التالية :

1-جمع التواقيع عبر زيارات المنازل و الحديث مع النسوة

2-جمع التواقيع في الإمكان و النشطات حيث تتجمع النساء و حيث يمكن القيام بمجموعات نقاش مع النساء .

3-تنفيذ المؤتمرات و ورش العمل من اجل دعم ظهور الحملة،ترويج النقاشات،واستكشاف مناصرين للحملة،بالإضافة طبعا إلى تجميع التواقيع

4-تجميع التواقيع عبر الانترنت. سيستخدم الانترنت للمشاركة المعلومات حول الحملة، وتوفير المواد المعرفية القانونية، و للذين ترغبن في دعم هذه الجهود يمكن توقيع المزيد من العرائض المتعلقة بالحملة.

للمزيد من المعلومات الرجاء زيارة الموقع www.we-change.org

او الكتابة مباشرة للمنظمين forequality@gmail.com

Über die Kampagne „Eine Million Unterschriften zur Änderung der diskriminierenden Gesetze“

Parvin Ardalan — 2007-02-19T20:53:00Z

Einige Gruppen von Aktivist/innen der Frauenbewegung entschieden nach den, auf dem „Hafte Tir-Platz" in Teheran stattfindenden Protestversammlungen vom 12. Juni 2006 ihre Bemühungen im Sinne der dort beschlossenen Resolution fortzusetzen und gegen die ungerechten und frauenfeindlichen Gesetze gezielt vorzugehen. Im Rahmen einer Kampagne sollte eine breite Bewegung entstehen, die sich für die Sammlung von einer Million Unterschriften einsetzt, mit dem Ziel die frauendiskriminierenden Gesetze des Iran zu ändern.

Ziele der Kampagne

Die Sammlung von einer Million Unterschriften ist nur eine der Schwerpunkte dieser Kampagne. Diese Kampagne verfolgt weitere Ziele, die im folgenden Programm zum Ausdruck kommen:

1. Die Kampagne soll mit Unterstützung eines großen Teils der Gesellschaft einen positiven Wandel herbeiführen. Das berechtigte Ziel dieser Bewegung ist die Ab-schaffung der frauendiskriminierenden Gesetze.

2. Ein wichtiges Ziel der Bewegung ist das gegenseitige Kennen lernen und die Schaffung eines offenen Dialogs zwischen verschiedenen Frauengruppen und den Bürgern auf einer breiten gesellschaftlichen Ebene. Durch den direkten Kontakt mit den Bürgern wollen die Frauengruppen, als Verteidiger der Gleichberechtigung, auf die Nöte und Probleme in ihrem alltäglichen Leben - insbesondere auf juristischer Ebene - aufmerksam machen. Dies soll dazu beitragen, das Bewusstsein und die Sensibilität der Bürger für die ungleichen Rechte in ihrer Heimat zu stärken.

3. Gleichzeitig sollen die Aktivitäten den Erfahrungshorizont dieser, nach Gerechtigkeit suchenden Frauen und Männer erweitern sowie ihre Kontakte mit verschiedenen gesellschaftlichen Gruppen intensivieren. Diese Kontakte bilden die Basis, auf der auch die bisher schweigenden Frauen ihre Stimmen öffentlich zu Gehör bringen können.

4. Diese Kampagne basiert auf dem Vertrauen in die Erhöhung des Bewusstseins, die Schaffung einer Gesprächskultur, die breite Beteiligung an demokratischen Aktivitäten sowie auf dem Vertrauen in rechtsstaatliche Reformen von unten, d.h. aus der Miitte der Gesellschaft und nicht von oben. Die Voraussetzung dafür bilden neben der Stärkung der gesellschaftlichen Position der Frauen auch der allgemeine gesellschaftliche Fortschritt. Wandel ist aber nur dann dauerhaft, wenn er gesellschaftlich verwurzelt ist und von allen Bürgern getragen wird. Deshalb muss jeder Einzelne nicht nur um die allgemeinen Nöte und Probleme wissen. Er muss zudem erkennen, dass juristische Probleme nicht individueller oder privater Natur sind, sondern dass eine große Anzahl von Frauen mit den schwerwiegenden Folgen dieser diskriminierenden Gesetze konfrontiert sind.

5. Die Aktivist/innen werden sich im Laufe der Kampagne der Tatsache bewusst werden, dass sie mit vielfältigen Schwierigkeiten und einem hohen Preis für ihr Engagement rechnen müssen. Lediglich auf der Basis breiter Unterstützung und Wohlwollens werden sie in der Lage sein, den Geist der Solidarität und den Gedanken der Emanzipation zu verbreiten, sowie die Achtung der Menschen-rechte zu verankern, und damit Ungerechtigkeit und Diskriminierung zu beenden. Aber nicht nur der Rückhalt in der Bevölkerung des eigenen Landes, sondern auch die Erfahrung mit den demokratischen Widerstand der Frauen in anderen Ländern, deren Regierungen und Traditionen mit dem Iran vergleichbar sind, wird sie stärken auf dem vor ihnen liegenden langen und schwierigen Weg. Denn es geht ihnen nicht um die Übernahme von Macht, sondern stattdessen um Information und Sensibilisierung von Frauen und einfachen Bürger über ihre eigene, aber auch über die allgemeine gesellschaftliche Situation.

6. Die erfolgreiche Durchführung dieser Kampagne wird zeigen, dass die berechtigte Forderung zur Veränderung der diskriminierenden Gesetze nicht nur von vier- bis fünftausend Frauen ausgeht. Im Gegenteil: Diese Forderung betrifft die gesamte Gesellschaft. Ein Grossteil der iranischen Frauen und Männer leidet unter der existierenden gesetzlichen Ungleichheit. Die Reaktionen auf diese Ungleichheit sind – je nach kulturellen Voraussetzungen und Möglichkeiten – vielfältig. Beispielsweise dokumentiert eine Journalistin in ihrem Artikel die fehlende Gleichberechtigung. Eine andere Frau verdeutlicht die Ungerechtigkeit durch Photos oder durch Filmvorführungen. Eine weitere Frau protestiert gegen die Unterdrückung durch Selbstverbrennung. Ein Mädchen flieht aus ihrem väterlichen Haus. Eine andere ungerecht behandelte Frau wehklagt im Gerichtssaal wegen der ihr widerfahrenen Ungleichheit. Und Hunderte anderer Fälle solcher gesellschaftlicher Proteste ereignen sich im alltäglichen Leben der iranischen Frauen.

7. Als weiteres Ziel der Kampagne soll verdeutlicht werden, dass die Veränderungen und die Reform der Gesetze nicht nur von wenigen Frauen gefordert werden. Um die Aktivist/innen zum Schweigen zubringen, werfen die Gegner der Kampagne diesen vor, lediglich aus Langeweile, Profilierungssucht usw. zu handeln. Dieser Vorwurf entbehrt allerdings jeglicher Wahrheit! Denn die ungerechten Gesetze wirken sich auf das Leben aller iranischen Frauen aus, gleich ob sie gebildet oder Analphabetin, ob sie wohlhabend oder arm, ob sie ledig oder verheiratet sind, ob sie vom Land oder aus der Stadt kommen.

Der Zeitraum der Durchführung der Kampagne

Diese Kampagne ist langfristig und sie wird solange dauern, bis eine Million Unterschriften gesammelt worden sind. Wir gehen davon aus, dass die Kampagne bis zu zwei Jahre dauern kann. Allerdings ist die Sammlung einer Million Unterschriften auch nur eine der geplanten Aktivitäten im Rahmen der Kampagne. Weitere Aktionen werden folgen.

Die Forderung dieser Kampagne richtet sich nicht gegen den Islam

Die Forderung nach einer Revision der diskriminierenden Gesetze ist weder illegal noch gegen den Islam gerichtet, sondern steht in Übereinstimmung mit den von der Regierung unterzeichneten internationalen Vereinbarungen. Da diese Vereinbarungen die Vermeidung jeglicher Form von Diskriminierung fordern, müssen folglich die Diskriminierungen im Iran beendet werden.

Sie steht auch nicht im Widerspruch zu den grundlegenden Prinzipien des Islam. Über die in dieser Kampagne verlangten Gesetzesänderungen gibt es dennoch Meinungsunterschiede unter den Geistlichen. Viele Kleriker wie Ayatollah Sanei oder Ayatollah Bojnurdi und einige andere Kleriker, fordern seit Jahren eine Revision der frauendiskriminierenden Gesetze. Für sie steht also eine Gesetzesänderung keineswegs im Widerspruch zum Islam.

Die Methode der Umsetzung dieser Kampagne

Die Methode der Umsetzung dieser Kampagne besteht hauptsächlich in der „face to face" Methode. Vier verschiedene Formen werden verfolgt:

1. Individuelle Gespräche mit Frauen, indem von Haus zu Haus gegangen und Unterschriften gesammelt werden.

2. Identifizierung der Frauenzentren, Führung von Gruppendiskussionen, Gespräche in öffentlichen Räumen, wie z.B. in öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln, Parkanlagen, Universitäten, Fabriken, Friseursalons, Krankenhäuser, Gebetsräume, Sportzentren. Überall dort werden die Aktivist/innen der Kampagne versuchen mit anderen Iraner/innen ins Gespräch zu kommen.

3. Organisation von Seminaren und Diskussionsveranstaltungen in Seminarräumen und in Kulturzentren.

4. Nutzung des Internets für die Sammlung der Unterschriften und der Herstellung von Verbindungen.

Die Schulung von Freiwilligen

Um die Kampagne optimal durchzuführen, ist es notwendig die Freiwilligen gut zu schulen. Dafür wurden spezielle Komitees gegründet, die für die Schulungen verantwortlich sind. Alle freiwilligen Aktivist/innen, die Unterschriften sammeln und an der Kampagne teilnehmen wollen, werden in Kursen ausgebildet.

Es ist wichtig zu erwähnen, dass die Freiwilligen nicht unbedingt Experten auf dem Gebiet des Rechts sein müssen. Allerdings erhalten sie in den Kursen ein Grundlagenwissen über die für Frauen relevante Gesetzgebung, so dass sie in Gesprächen auf Fragen der Bürger kompetent antworten können. Zudem erlernen die Aktivist/innen die für die „face to face“ – Methode notwendigen Kenntnisse und Verhaltensweisen.

Die Reichweite der Aktivitäten

Der geographische Reichweite dieser Kampagne wird nicht auf Teheran beschränkt bleiben. Aktive Frauen können in allen Provinzen des Landes an der Kampagne teilnehmen, und sie können zur Teilnahme an den Schulungen nach Teheran kommen, um dann ihre Arbeit in den Provinzen aufzunehmen. Bei zunehmender Anzahl der aktiven Gruppen in den Provinzen besteht die Möglichkeit, die Schulungen auch vor Ort durchzuführen. Unterschriften können auch von im Ausland lebenden Iranern gesammelt und entweder per Post, oder mit Hilfe von Reisenden geschickt werden. Ferner kann man auch eine Unterschrift im Internet leisten.

Die Dokumentation der Erfahrungen für die Gegenwart und für die Zukunft

Ein weiterer Teil dieser Kampagne ist die Dokumentation. In „Tagebüchern“ können die Freiwilligen interessante Erfahrungen, die sie in Gesprächen mit anderen Frauen gesammelt haben, niederschreiben. Diese Berichte werden gemeinsam mit den Unterschriften abgegeben und ausgewertet. Bei den weiteren Schulungen können dann basierend auf diesen Erfahrungen die Gesprächsmethoden verbessert werden. Am Ende der Kampagne werden alle Erfahrungen in Form eines Buches veröffentlicht. Auf diese Weise werden die Erfahrungen an andere Gruppen, die in Zukunft ähnliche Kampagnen planen, weitergegeben.

Das Mindestalter der Unterzeichner

Die Unterzeichner/innen müssen mindestens 18 Jahre alt sein. Diese Unterschriften werden in speziell entworfenen Formularen, gesammelt, damit alle Unterschriften eine einheitliche Form haben. Zudem werden die Unterschriften auf der entsprechenden Website dokumentiert werden. Die Aktivist/innen können freiwillig die Summe von 5000 Tuman in die Kasse der Kampagne einzahlen, damit die Arbeit erfolgreich fortgeführt wer-den kann.

Weitere Informationen

Die Adresse der website lautet: www.we-change.org

Interessenten, die sich an dieser Kampagne beteiligen möchten, können uns auch über die folgende E-Mail erreichen: forequality@gmail.com.

Sie können auch an die folgende Anschrift schreiben: Teheran, Postfach 14335-851

Eine Million Unterschriften um diskriminierende Gesetze zu ändern

Parvin Ardalan — 2007-02-01T21:09:00Z

Aufruf

Alle Gesetze im Iran betrachten die Frauen als ein zweitrangiges Geschlecht und diskriminieren sie. Dies geschieht in einer Gesellschaft, in der mehr als 60 Prozent der immatrikulierten Studenten weiblich sind. In vielen Gesellschaften glaubt man, dass das Gesetz immer ein Schritt weiter sein müsse als die Kultur, damit die gesellschaftliche Kultur wachsen könne. Im Iran hinken die Gesetze jedoch hinter der Kultur und der Lage der Frauen hinterher.

Gemäß des Gesetzes ist ein neunjähriges Mädchen vollständig strafmündig. Wenn das Mädchen eine Strafe begeht, die mit der Todesstrafe geahndet wird, kann das Gericht die Todesstrafe verhängen. Wenn eine Frau und ein Mann auf der Straße einen Unfall verursachen und beide gelähmt werden, bekommt die Frau nach dem geltenden Gesetz nur die Hälfte des Schmerzensgeldes wie der Mann. Wenn sich etwas vor den Augen einer Frau und eines Mannes ereignet, wird die Zeugenaussage einer Frau, die alleine ist, nicht akzeptiert, aber die Zeugenaussage eines Mannes wird akzeptiert. Nach dem Gesetz kann der Vater, mit Erlaubnis des Gerichtes, seine 13jährige Tochter sogar an einen 70 jährigen Mann verheiraten. Gemäß des Gesetzes darf die Mutter nicht die finanzielle Verantwortung für ihre Kinder übernehmen. Die Mutter darf nicht über den Wohnort, über die Ausreiseerlaubnis und noch nicht einmal über die Heilungsmaßnahmen ihrer Kinder Entscheidungen treffen. Gemäß des Gesetzes dürfen die Männer mehrere Frauen haben und ihre Frauen verstoßen, wann sie es wollen.

Diese Fälle sind nur ein kleiner Ausschnitt der gesetzlichen Ungleichheiten und Diskriminierungen gegenüber Frauen. Und ohne Zweifel sind Frauen, die unteren Schichten angehören oder Mitglieder von ethnischen und religiösen Minderheiten sind, noch stärker von den Gesetzen diskriminiert und leiden noch mehr unter diesen. Einerseits haben die ungerechten Gesetze dazu geführt, dass die Beziehungen zwischen den Frauen und Männern sehr ungleichgewichtig sind, so dass auch die Männer deswegen mit vielen Problemen konfrontiert sind. Beispielsweise ist es inzwischen üblich geworden, dass die Männer ein sehr hohes Brautgeld zahlen müssen. Die Frauen fordern diese hohe Summen, da sie damit ihre Nachteile aufgrund rechtlicher Ungleichheit aufzuwiegen versuchen. Andererseits hat die iranische Regierung internationale Abkommen, wie die Erklärung der Menschenrechte unterzeichnet und ist daher verpflichtet ihnen Folge zu leisten. Die wichtigste Garantie, die nach der Menschenrechtserklärung gewährleistet werden muss, ist die Vermeidung von Diskriminierungen, die auf das Geschlecht, die Rasse oder die Religion zurückzuführen sind. Entsprechend der genanten Probleme fordern wir, die Unterzeichner dieser Erklärung, die Abschaffung der Diskriminierung von Frauen auf allen Ebenen des Gesetzes und fordern von den Gesetzgebern die herrschenden Gesetze zu überdenken und diese gemäß der internationalen Verpflichtungen der Regierung zu revidieren.

Die untenstehenden Unterschriften werden im Internet gesammelt und können nicht persönlich entgegen genommen werden. [ http://spip.local:8080/spip.php?article11 ]

La carica di un milione di firme

Parvin Ardalan — 2006-11-30T12:15:00Z

L'obiettivo può sembrare limitato: una campagna per abrogare le norme legali che discriminano le donne in Iran e sancire la parità giuridica di donne e uomini. Eppure la campagna lanciata alla fine di agosto da alcuni gruppi di donne iraniane è interessante ben al di là del suo carattere «riformista» e paritario. L'intenzione è di raccogliere «un milione di firme per cambiare le leggi discriminatorie». Per come è nata, per la diversità delle persone che vi partecipano, quest'iniziativa sta catalizzando un movimento diversificato per età ed estrazioni sociali e politiche. Un milione di firme non sono poche, e le attiviste che hanno lanciato questa campagna intendono raccoglierle una per una, con un lavoro capillare: porta-a-porta, riunioni nelle università e nei luoghi di lavoro, conferenze pubbliche, carovane nei villaggi e nei quartieri periferici...

L'idea di buttarsi in una raccolta di firme è nata dopo la manifestazione femminista tenuta a Tehran il 12 giugno scorso, e sciolta dalla polizia a manganellate. Non era la prima volta che nella capitale iraniana si vedevano cartelli a favore dei diritti delle donne, e neppure la prima volta che la polizia o qualche milizia di vigilantes interveniva per «ristabilire l'ordine». Quel giorno però l'intervento è stato particolarmente brutale, donne d'ogni età sono state malmenate e una settantina arrestate, e la sera stessa su internet circolavano foto del pestaggio. Tra le donne arrestate c'erano note avvocate, giornaliste e attiviste sociali: due di loro sono state poi incriminate per «assembramento illegale». Anche se la manifestazione era un semplice sit-in pacifico, simile a quello tenuto lo stesso giorno di un anno prima, annunciato per tempo e convocato per rivendicare pari diritti giuridici per le donne. in ciò che riguarda matrimonio e divorzio, eredità, diritto proprietario, figli, lo statuto della persona - o le norme di derivazione islamica secondo cui la testimonianza di due donne equivale a quella di un solo uomo.

«A quella manifestazione c'erano anche molti gruppi di studentesse, giovani e giovanissime femministe», spiega Firouzeh Mojaher, insegnante di letteratura italiana all'Università di Tehran e una delle promotrici del Centro Culturale delle Donne, cioè la prima biblioteca e centro di documentazione femminista sorto nella capitale iraniana (era a Roma in occasione di Medlink, la conferenza della società civile nel Mediterraneo e Medio oriente riunita a fine novembre). L'idea di raccogliere le firme, dice, è nata proprio dall'incontro tra diverse generazioni di attiviste. E forse dalla necessità di darsi un obiettivo pratico attorno a cui costruire una mobilitazione.

La campagna «un milione di firme» è stata presentata infine il 27 agosto a Tehran durante un seminario pubblico. «L'esistenza di queste leggi in molti casi degrada le donne, le riduce a cittadine di seconda classe, assegna loro un valore che è metà di quello dell'uomo», dice l'appello, ora pubblicato su un sito web (www.we-change.org) con le firme di 51 promotrici, a cominciare dall'avvocata e premio Nobel Shirin Ebadi o dall'anziana poetessa Simin Behbahani che molte femministe iraniane guardano come una ispiratrice, poi l'editrice Shahla Lahiji, la regista Tahmineh Milani, o Sahla Sherkat che ha fondato e dirige Zanan («Donne»), uno di magazines femminili che alla fine degli anni '90 ha contribuito a cambiare il discorso pubblico sulle donne.

Nomi noti, intellettuali, militanti politiche, donne che hanno pagato a volte con la galera il loro impegno. Come la stessa Firouzeh Mojaher, che ogni tanto divaga e ricorda quando è stata chiusa nel carcere femminile, nell'84, accusata di simpatie di sinistra, e le sono rimaste impresse le scritte lasciate sui muri da generazioni di detenute prima di lei (ragazze in attesa dell'esecuzione in momenti più bui della storia iraniana, prima e subito dopo la Rivoluzione...). Poi riprende il filo: «Questa nuova generazione di femministe giovanissime ha un grande entusiasmo, avranno successo».

«Non so se arriveremo davvero al milione, ma ci siamo rese conto che il processo stesso del raccogliere quelle firme si sta rivelando un'esperienza straordinaria: avremo costruito legami tra le donne ben al di là delle leggi che vogliamo cambiare», dice Firouzeh Mojaher. Per raccogliere quelle firme le femministe iraniane hanno cominciato a mobilitarsi in ambito urbano e rurale, nelle grandi città e quelle piccole.

La firma, da mettere su un modulo apposito, è l'esito finale. Prima ci sono incontri pubblici, discussioni. Il solo problema è trovare una sala per le riunioni, «gli assembramenti indipendenti suscitano sempre qualche timore», spiega Mojaher. Racconta di riunioni affollate: «A volte sono studentesse o insegnanti che prendono l'iniziativa di organizzare una riunione, magari hanno chiamato vicine di casa e amiche. A volte ci arriva la richiesta di qualche gruppo che ha saputo di noi dal sito web». Le riunioni sono spesso animate: «C'è sempre un'avvocata o giurista in grado di passare in rassegna le leggi che discriminano le donne, si parla di famglia, di discriminazioni professionali, di patriarcato: tutto ciò che rende le donne delle cittadine minori». E' più difficile il lavoro porta-a-porta: «Non perché le persone non vogliano parlare, troviamo sempre un dialogo: ma poi sono restie a firmare, un po' dicono che è tutto inutile, un po' sospettano che ci sia dietro qualche trappola, firmare un foglio è sempre un gesto compromettente».

L'appello evoca «il potere dei numeri»: questa campagna, dice, «proverà una volta per tutte che la richiesta di cambiare le leggi discriminatorie non riguarda solo le poche migliaia di donne che si sono già mobilitate in passato», ma «è sostenuta dalla grande maggioranza di donne e uomini che soffrono delle iniquità delle leggi iraniane». Firouzeh Mojaher dice che è proprio così, «abbiamo trovato appoggi inaspettati». Racconta di incontri tenuti in piccoli centri industriali, di una missione a Tabriz e nell'Azerbaijan iraniano: «Là le cose sono più complicate, ci sono stati disordini a sfondo etnico di recente. Però abbiamo conosciuto giovani donne impegnate in movimenti sociali molto attive e piene di speranza».

Alcune delle attiviste più giovani si sono trovate così per la prima volta fuori dai quartieri di classe media di Tehran - magari nelle periferie dove vivono le profughe afghane o le famiglie immigrate dalle regioni più depresse. «Le ragazze di Tehran ora si rendono conto di avere una vita privilegiata: hanno accesso all'informazione, lavorano, vivono sole. L'Iran è molto frammentato, il processo di modernizzazione ha diviso le classi sociali in modo ancor più profondo che ai tempi dello Shah. Anche il ceto medio è diversificato, per reddito e per cultura. Attraverso le differenze però certe idee si vanno affermando: ci sono ragazze che vengono da famiglie molto tradizionali e si sono messe a raccogliere le firme delle parenti durante le feste familiari...».

Nella loro campagna, le attiviste del «milione di firme» hanno con sé due opuscoli. Uno contiene l'appello e un manuale sulle leggi discriminatorie che si chiede di cambiare, «l'altro è un quaderno in cui annotare l'esperienza fatta, tenere una sorta di diario delle conversazioni pubbliche, delle reazioni incontrate. Credo che alla fine tutte avremo tutte imparato qualcosa».

Pubblicato Sabato 6 Gennaio 2007 alle ore 18:31 nella categoria La Politica delle donne.

The Effect of Laws on Women's Lives

Parvin Ardalan — 2006-08-28T09:24:00Z

Farsi version of the article

Why don't we think the current laws are just?

There are many things that we should know, but we don't. There are many things that we do not know and we do not even think about them. The law is one such thing: until we run into difficulty with the law, we don't think about it at all; and once we do, we only consider the laws that have challenged and prohibited us personally, and not in terms of how they affect everyone.

For example, consider a family who is about to give their daughter's hand in marriage, and to send her to the house of bakht, the house of her fate and destiny. Everything goes according to traditions; the groom's family takes the girl with much respect and dignity. But what future awaits her? Is her fate dark and gloomy or light and blissful? What if the groom doesn't turn out to be the good person everyone has hoped? The very house that once filled her soul with excitement and enthusiasm about her future becomes her own personal hell. She cries day and night. Her daily complaints and the general sadness that's fixed on her face, is her only release. She expresses her anger towards her family. She is angry with herself for not thinking before agreeing to this marriage. Girls like this are not rare in Iran, they might console themselves by saying "marriage is like an unbroken watermelon, no one knows how it's going to turn out"; but after a while, when she and her family are running up and down the steps of the court, even if they might not admit it to others, they will admit to themselves that that is not quite true. If instead of being pre-occupied with finding rings and organizing a marriage portion (mehr), the girl and her family were studying the law, and making provisions for its gaps in the marriage contract (aghd), they wouldn't be as lost and miserable today. If the laws pertaining to marriage and family were written in some other way — justly — and the bride's rights weren't dependent on the signature of the groom, but rather enshrined in law, these problems would not arise.

This is why we believe the law is relevant and important in every day life for all; for men and women, for children who are born as well as those who are yet to be born. The law is important to any human being who wants to live in peace. There are only two sets of people who aren't interested in the law: those whose wrongdoing is proscribed by it, and those who don't understand how valuable it is.

Let's return to the story of the girl who was wedded, and has come back to her father's house in tears. If you were this girl's parents, and had gone to court to resolve her problems, and you told the court "my son-in-law wont let my daughter work, wont let her leave the house, wont even let her come and see us" - if you said "the house my son-in-law has picked for my daughter is unbearable to her", if you told them "he won't let the doctors operate on my sick daughter in hospital", and such things, and heard "well, that's the man's right" in reply, surely you'd ask in astonishment "who has given a man such rights?". The simple answer is: the law. This is the predicament the law has put your daughter in. But it's your fault too. Without much thinking, you have given control of your child to another, to someone who is capable of keeping her caged in the house. Someone, who in case of illness can prevent her from getting treatment. A marriage partner who can take her children away, and if he desires, torture and kill her. If he has a psychological problem and suspects his wife has cheated on him, he can kill her with ease of mind, without fear of just punishment. So, by sending your daughter to her "house of fortune", you have enslaved her in the hands of someone who has control over her life and death.

Do you think the stories we've presented are unusual? Unfortunately, they are not. All the family murders we hear about in the papers have roots in the weakness of the system of family laws, and in our own weakness in not being familiar with them. Unfortunately, instead of relying on the protection of law, we rely on customs and traditions and the integrity of our bridegroom, and demand an extraordinary sum for our daughter's mehr. We find it strange to state in the aghd contract that our daughter has a right to divorce. Meanwhile, if a husband and wife get into major difficulties in their marriage, the wife, in order to be freed from the hell of family life, will part with her mehr very easily — well, she has to — and then, to get a divorce, she has to wade so far through the minefields of courts and bureaucracy that she will be willing to forfeit her life.

There is a way to prevent this calamity. All that is needed is that every one of us — women and men, the mothers and fathers and sisters and brothers who care for our loved ones — stops daydreaming. We must go to the trouble of finding out what the laws — which govern the lives of our wives and daughters, and ultimately our families — actually say. We must cover all the gaps in the laws in our marriage contracts; and then we must join the struggle to make the laws fair for all the people who live in our country, so that we all enjoy a better and more peaceful life. A life where we can enjoy our daughter's wedding, resting assured that she and her husband will live a happy and healthy life, rather than sharing a life in a hell they create together.

Some of the unjust laws:

1. Marriage [1]

In our country, Iran, marriage is an important affair which has a big impact on the lives of women. However, if we flip through the pages of the Book of Civil Law of Iran, we can see how marriage, which is supposed to be the "sweetness" of life, sometimes creates mental and physical problems for women, leaving a bitter taste they live with for the rest of their lives.

The first step a woman must take in marriage, according to the existing Law, is to satisfy the "condition of the father's consent"; if a father doesn't want his daughter to marry, she — even if she is a forty-year-old university professor — can never marry, unless approved by the courts. In fact, for marriage, virgin women must have their father or paternal grandfather's permission. If they do not satisfy this condition, their father or paternal grandfather can annul the marriage through the courts — even after the marriage has occurred. Some relate the philosophy of this act to the respect that is due to a father. However, our question is: must it be only daughters who pay respect to their fathers? And are sons not forced to pay respect to their fathers? More importantly, why is the respect and tribute paid only to the father? Why has the mother's respect been forgotten, with no requirement for her approval?

With the courts' permission, a father can marry his daughter, even before the age of 13, to a 70 year old man. Through this unjust law, the marriage of young girls in many regions of our country, especially in rural villages, has come about — because the “law” has given the father this right.

That the legal age of marriage for girls in our law is 13 has caused a lot of problems in society. For example, a research study that has taken place in the county of Booshahr has shown that 70 percent of marriages which have ended in divorce have been from wives and husbands who married young — at 15 to 19. [2].

2. Divorce [3]

According to the law, divorce is the exclusive right of a man, and a man can divorce his wife whenever he pleases. On the other hand, if a divorce is initiated by the wife, she must prove her husband is guilty of misconduct: not paying her subsistence expenses, addiction or imprisonment, etc. Most know that proving such things in a court is difficult. In most cases, the wife can only prove them after many years of running around the court system. Of course, in most cases, women simply forfeit their mehr, in order to be freed of the harassment and domestic abuse of their husbands. Research done in the city of Qom found that 91% of women who got divorced did not claim their mehr in full [4]. In many cases, where the divorce was agreed upon by both husband and wife, the wife has forfeited all her financial entitlements to secure the agreement of her husband. In many cases, the wife has even paid all the financial costs of the divorce. From a religious perspective, it is clearly stated that a woman may easily obtain divorce if she agrees to forfeit her mehr, however Iranian law has added the clause "must obtain husbands consent" to this; so if an Iranian woman wants to get a divorce, she must not only forfeit her mehr, but also obtain the consent of her husband.

A visit to the family court will show that when a man wants a divorce, he will put his wife under immense pressure to forfeit her mehr; so that she will request the divorce herself — forfeiting what little rights she had.
3. The right to have custody of children [5]
In our law, hezanat (day to day caring) and guardianship of children have two different meanings. Hezanat means to look after a child; and guardianship means: wardship, and managing financial affairs, decisions in relation to education, determining where to live, permission to leave the country, expressing opinion and permission to allow child's health treatments and other affairs. In accordance with Iran's civil law, a mother can never be the legal supporter of her child. Also, in a scenario where the father and paternal grandfather are absent, she will not have wardship; she can only be the caretaker of her child. However, in that situation, the mother's guardianship is directly under the observation of the child support agency (Attorney General). Even the right to sell the child's property resides with the child support agency.

A mother cannot open any account in her child's name, besides a loans account, or buy a house for her child without her husband's signature. If a mother (with her own money) does buy a house for her child with the father's permission, the father can sell or rent this house whenever he wants, and the mother has no right in this matter. Or, if a mother's child is sick in hospital and needs to have surgery, it is the father who has to give permission for the surgery to be done; without the father's signature the mother cannot ask the doctors to do surgery on her child. According to law, wardship and guardianship is the “manifest destiny” of the father. Meaning, even if the father himself wants, he cannot give guardianship of the child to his spouse!

4. Number of partners [6]

Among other cases of inequality in the present marriage law is the discussion of the number of partners. That is, multiple wives for men; in such a way that a man can have 4 aghdi (permanently married) wives and infinite sighehi (temporarily married) wives. Many women imagine that their husbands are such good men that they would never do such a thing. However, paying a visit to the family courts shows that many husbands even at the expense of hiding it from their first wives unjustly use this “right by law”. This law along with the lack of possibility of divorce by women and the power in law that has been given to men have caused many problems in family relationships; with it's extreme seen in the incidence of spouse-killings. Research that was done in 15 states of the country about spouse-killings has shown that 67 percent of women who have killed their husbands did this because their husbands were unfaithful to them, and 33 percent have committed the crime in retaliation for violence from their husband [7]. Such outbreaks of unhealthy relationships occur as a consequence of current laws that are discriminatory and unable to formulate a relationship between man and woman in a humane and just way.

5. Age of criminal responsibility [8]

The age of criminal responsibility for girls is 9 lunar years (8 years and nine months) and for boys is 15 lunar years (14 years and 6 months). Thus if a 9-year-old girl committed a crime, she will be treated just as an adult would be treated with all the penal laws (even execution) applicable to her. The only exception is that that child will be jailed or kept in a juvenile institution until she reaches the age of 18 years when the execution verdict can be carried out. It must be asked of lawmakers whether a child, who is 9 years of age (or even after nine!), is wise and mature enough about her actions to take the life she is living away from her?

6. Citizenship [9]

Citizenship is an important legal issue. In the current state of the world, citizenship has an important place; it determines the relationship between a person and the state, and determines the jurisdiction in which a person may marry, be punished, own property etc.
According to the law of Iran, the citizenship of a woman does not transfer to her child. If your father is Iranian, you too are considered Iranian; but having an Iranian mother does not make you an Iranian citizen. This has caused many problems for women who marry Afghani men, for example. Their children are not considered Iranian, and therefore do not have the right to live in Iran. Research shows that around 20,000 children in Iran are without an identity card. These children do not have the right to live or go to school in Iran. The simple reason for this is that their mothers married their Afghan fathers without seeking the permission of the Interior Ministry, therefore their children are not citizens and lack identity cards.

In some cases a woman who marries a foreign man even loses her own Iranian citizenship.

7. Diyeh - Blood Money [10]

Diyeh is the amount of money a murderer or one who has inflicted grievous bodily harm pays the victim or their family. In Iranian law, a woman's life is considered to be worth half that of a man. For example, if a brother and sister are hit by a car on the street, and both have both legs broken, the compensation the brother receives is double that of his sister. If they are killed, the money their family receives for the son is double the money they would receive for their daughter. If a woman who is five months pregnant is in an accident and is killed, the amount of money paid for the woman is half that paid for the male fetus inside her.

8. Inheritance [11]

According to civil law, after the death of the father and mother, sons receive 2 times as much in inheritance as daughters. If a man dies and has a wife and child, she inherits one eighth of her husband's wealth and if the husband has no child, the wife inherits one fourth of her husband's wealth. Having said that, women can never inherit land.
If a man dies and has more than one wife, that same one-eighth or fourth portion gets divided between his wives.

However, if a woman dies and has a husband and child, the husband inherits a fourth of her wealth and if she has no child, the husband inherits half of her wealth. So in actual fact, a husband inherits twice as much as a wife does.

And more painful is that if a woman dies and has no inheritor other than her husband, her husband inherits all of her wealth. However, if a man dies and has no inheritor other than his wife, she inherits only one fourth of the price of his property and wealth. The rest of the money/wealth will belong to the government, meaning, the government is closer to that man than his wife with whom he has lived an entire life time.

9. Laws that support honor killings [12]

Among the discriminatory laws, one can note the law that gives a man permission to kill his wife whenever he sees her in bed with another man and the law will not punish this man. This law in the hands of men has allowed men to kill women. As an example, 20 percent of killings in our country are killings with a motive related to unchastity and sexuality. A research study about this has shown that 90 percent of the men who have killed their wives did it because of mistrusting their spouse and imagined offenses. When these men were asked whether they were sure of their spouse's infidelity, they all indicated that they were not absolutely certain about this and they had only suspected their wives [13]. These men can say in court that their wife had been unfaithful to them (and her blood was wasted, so he had the right to kill her) and according to these laws they are exempt from the heavy punishment for their act. This means a man, who has only been doubtful of his wife, with the support of these laws, can get away with killing his wife. Regarding intentional killing of children, according to the law, a father and paternal grandfather will not be held responsible. For example, if a father kills his daughter for suspecting her (of corruption) or any other reason, he will be exempt from the standard punishment for murder, and the court can only sentence him to a maximum 10-year jail term.

10. Bearing Witness [13]

There are some crimes women can not testify to, these include sodomy, homosexuality, prostitution and drinking alcohol.
In the cases where a female witness is accepted, the testimony of two women equals that of one man, and usually if women testify to witnessing an incident it's not accepted unless at least one man also testifies.

11. Other Discriminatory Laws [14]

There are many other discriminatory laws in Iran's legal system. In our constitution a woman is only recognised as a citizen once she is a mother (married), therefore she has no standing as an independent person in any law derived from our constitution.

1. The condition "Rajal-e siyaasi" - which has been interpreted as "man of politics" to date - appears in the conditions for becoming President. This means that a woman cannot become the country's president.

2. Compulsory prescribed dress for women, regardless of their creed or beliefs. For example, Christian women whose religion does not require them to wear hijab will be punished for not wearing it. If they choose to dress in a way different to how authorities deem fit, they can be jailed or fined.

3. Social Security laws. Even though women pay the same amount of money for insurance as men do, their children can not benefit from their retirement pension or health insurance. This means that a mother can not provide any sort of comfort for her children after her death.

4. Stoning is the frightening punishment prescribed by our law for people who commit adultery. This punishment is usually only performed on women, because according to the law, a man can have an infinite number of temporary marriages (sigheh) and therefore can claim that the woman who he had a relationship with (provided she was single) was his temporary wife.

Why do we want to collect "one million signatures" to change discriminatory laws?

In the world and lives of people, there is no law that cannot be changed. In the opinion of many jurists, law is likened to clothing – when a person gets fat or slim, their clothes have to change accordingly. In many countries of the world, jurists and law makers believe that the Law has to be one foot forward of Culture to be able to play a positive role in the lives of individuals in a society and to uplift the level of culture and standard of lives. Meaning when the culture of a society moves one step forward, the law must change and be one step ahead of the culture. In this way the law becomes a tool for reforming. Actually, law makers in most of the countries of the world see Culture-building as one of the roles of laws and for this reason, believe that law must be relative to the environment and culture of the society for a more advanced view. However, unfortunately at present our law is related with our culture in the opposite manner. That is, the law in Iran is a few steps behind the average culture of society. Although women have shown their strength in different social and financial arenas, this backwardness, in relation to laws related to women is extremely discriminatory and disadvantageous to women.

Women try to upgrade the living standards of their families and themselves by individually struggling to complete many educational or occupational degrees. However because of the existing discriminatory laws many of these individual struggles meet a dead end. Perhaps it is for this reason that women have not complained more about the laws that are affecting their lives and if they have complained it has been individually and their complaints have not got anywhere. Maybe the reason for this is because we have not realized that the advantages for women is inseparable from the advantages of men and children. To remove these inequalities, we – a group of women – have started a campaign collecting “One Million Signatures to Change Discriminatory Laws” to show the decision makers that many women and men in Iran want changes and revision of the existing discriminatory laws and this want for a change in the laws is not only from a small group of Iranian women. The campaign and wide spread request for change and revision of discriminatory laws and collecting these signatures will show lawmakers that the women of Iran are serious and adamant about their request.

Requesting for the review of discriminatory laws is not a request that is against Islam or the Sharia rather it is inline with the Iranian government's international liabilities because Iran's government has made a covenant to implement the convention of international civil-political rights and the convention of international socioeconomic rights. The first step in these conventions is disallowing all kinds of discrimination. Therefore, in coinciding with the international liabilities of the Iranian government, discrimination must be abolished.

On the other hand, requesting for change and correction of these discriminatory laws is in no way opposing the foundations of Islam nor is it damaging to the pillars of religion. Because the laws that we are requesting to be changed lie in an area of controversy between clergy men and religious scholars. Many religious scholars, namely Ayatollah Sanei or Ayatollah Bojnordi and other clergy men have for many years verified the request for revision of discriminatory laws and have not seen this revision as contrary to Islam. Because they believe that considering the circumstances of the time and place, laws must change to be in harmony with the level of culture and with the role and presence of Iranian women. They believe that in Islam we have "Secondary Precepts". According to secondary precepts, even if there is a clear order given in the Quran but this order results in secondary consequences due to circumstances such as the time and place, or is deemed injurious to society, it is possible to suspend and replace them temporarily with other laws. In Islam, as long as the secondary circumstances persist, or expediencies require, the suspension of the precepts is sanctioned and acceptable.

Ayatollah Musavi Bojnordi has clearly announced: “Islam in no way differs from Human Rights and it cannot be said that one gender has eminence and the other doesn't.” In his opinion: “Human rights in an Islamic society have meaning. Rights are for mankind and regardless of gender. God has considered these rights for human beings.”[15]

However, these discriminatory laws will never change and will devastate women's lives unless not only a large number of people request for it's change but also to have this message reach and heard by the authorities and legislators of the country. The collection of signatures for changing these discriminatory laws is being made to deliver this message. By signing the statement of “One Million Signatures for Changing Discriminatory Laws” through people who approach you to collect signatures or sending the form attached to the end of this booklet, you can also take a step in making a change to these laws and improving the lives of Iranian women.

Our website: persian:http://www.we4change.com
English and others: http://www.en.we4change.com
Our email address: forequality@gmail.com

Footnotes:

[1] Article 993, 1005, 1041, 1043, 1044, 1048, 1049, 1060, 1075, 1082, 1105, 1106, 1107, 1108, 1114, 1117, 1233 Civil Law; Paragraph 3, Article 18 Passport Law.

[2] Capital Newspaper, Thursday 18th Khordad, 1385. Issue 194, Page 8.

[3] Article 1120, 1122, 1123, 1129, 1130, 1133, 1145 and 1146 Civil Law.

[4] Cited from IRNA News http://irwomen.com/news.php?id=323

[5] Paragraph 1, Article 18 Passport Law; Article 1167, 1168, 1169,
1170, 1173, 1180, 1181, 1183, 1184, 1185, 1199, 1207, 1218, 1233, 1236, 1241 and 1251 Civil Law.

[6] Paragraph 2, Article 900 and Article 901 Civil Law.

[7] Newsletter, Tir 1385, Issue 51, Spouse Killings - the crystallization of hidden domestic violence. Page 66-62.

[8] Article 1210 Civil Law; Article 49 Islamic Criminal Law; Article 219-213 Criminal Procedure Code.

[9] Article 976, 986 and 987 Civil Law.

[10] Article 294, 295, 300 and 301 Islamic Criminal Law.

[11] Paragraph 1, Article 899, 900, 901, 907 Civil Law.

[12] Article 220 and 630 Islamic Criminal Law.

[13] Article 74, 75, 118, 119, 128, 137 and 171 Islamic Criminal Law; Article 230 Legal Procedure Code.

[14] Article 83 and ammendment 638 Islamic Criminal Law; Article 115 of the Constitution.

[15] Capital Newspaper, Thursday 5th Mordad 1385, Issue 235, Page 8.

Glossary

• Mehr is a "gift" that a husband promises his wife at the time of marriage. It is specified in the aghd which is a pre-nuptual agreement. A wife is entitled to request her husband give her mehr at any time after they get married, and he must give it to her at that time. If a man divorces his wife, she is also entitled to her mehr. Unlike dowry, mehr is not given to the brides parents, but rather to the bride herself, and remains her property for ever. Anything the bride brings into the household and buys during the marriage also belongs to her alone. A husbands property belongs to the family.

• Aghd A pre-nuptial agreement.

• Loans Account This is a special loans account one can open in Iran called a gharz-ol-hasaneh loans account. It is a loans account without interest.

• Rajal-e siyaasi Rajal means man in arabic. Siyaasi means politics.

• Sharia The term Sharia means Islamic Law.

• Secondary Precepts In traditional Shi'i Islamic Jurisprudence, religious precepts can be generally divided into two groups: primary precepts and secondary precepts. Any subject, regardless of secondary consequences, in the first place belongs to the category of primary precepts. For example, it is religiously prohibited to eat meat that is not prepared according to religious guidelines under ordinary circumstances. But in extenuating circumstances, such as hardship and loss, secondary precepts can be implemented. For instance, a starving person may eat such meat. After the formation of the Islamic Republic, in accordance to the late leader's views, a third kind of law, known as state precepts ( ahkam-e hokoomatee ) was recognized in our legal system. In other words, a religious government acting as religious guardian, can issue a law or declare something temporarily necessary or prohibited, according to exigencies and interests of Islamic society. Therefore, in our legal system there exists three religious sources for issuing precepts: the nature of the subject itself regardless of secondary consequences, secondary consequences and emergency, and expedience.

The above explanation of Secondary Precepts was taken from:

http://www.badjens.com/alireza.html

Farsi version of the article

About "One Million Signatures Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws"

Parvin Ardalan — 2006-08-28T05:59:00Z

Iranian women's rights activists are initiating a wide campaign demanding an end to legal discrimination against women in Iranian law. The Campaign, “One Million Signatures Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws,” which aims to collect one million signatures to demand changes to discriminatory laws against women, is a follow-up effort to the peaceful protest of the same aim, which took place on June 12, 2006 in Haft-e Tir Square in Tehran. Preparation activities in support of this campaign commenced in June of 2006 and the campaign will be officially launched on August 27, during a seminar entitled: “The Impact of Laws on Women's Lives.”

The collection of a million signatures in support of changes to the law is only one of several aims of this campaign. The Campaign will also aim to achieve the following:

1. Promotion of Collaboration and Cooperation for Social Change: This campaign intends to serve as catalyst in promoting cooperation between a wide spectrum of social activists in creating and advocating for positive social change.

2. Identification of Women's Needs and Priorities: This collaborative campaign aims to develop connections and linkages with a broad base of women's groups from different backgrounds. Direct contact between equal rights defenders and other women's and citizens' groups will allow those involved in the campaign to identify the everyday concerns of women, especially their legal needs and problems. On the other hand, this direct contact will increase awareness among the general population about the inequities that exist within the law.

3. Amplifying Women's Voices: Through this campaign, the organizers hope to be able to connect with groups whose demands are left unheard. The campaign, relying on the needs identified by women themselves, aims to amplify the voices of women whose needs are often not addressed at the national policy level.

4. Increasing Knowledge, Promoting Democratic Action: This campaign is committed to increasing and improving knowledge through dialogue, collaboration, and democratic action. The campaign steadfastly adheres to the notion that real and sustainable change can be achieved only if it is community and needs driven and reflective of the desires and demands of the society at large. Changes to women's status in society need to be based on the belief that legal problems faced by women are not a private matter, but rather symptomatic of larger social problems faced broadly by women. In other words, this campaign is committed to carrying out bottom-up reform and to creating change through grassroots and civil society initiatives, and seeks to strengthen public action and empower women.

5. Paying our Dues: The initiators of this campaign recognize that social change and the elimination of injustice are not easily achieved. It is through commitment to collaboration and hard work that we will be able to build the solidarity necessary to create change. Surely this solidarity and collaboration in pushing forth the objectives of the campaign will have a positive impact on the future of our country. The experiences of women's democratic movements around the globe, and particularly, in countries within the region, have demonstrated that solidarity and commitment to the goals of collective action are key components to the successful elimination of discrimination. The struggle for equal rights in Iran will indeed be a lengthy, difficult and arduous process. The true path to achievement of equality will not be paved through existing power structures or a dialogue solely with men and women in positions of power. Rather, achieving the goals of this campaign will be based largely on a strategy which seeks to raise awareness among individual women and citizens about their identity and their status within society.

6. The Power of Numbers: The successful implementation of this campaign will prove once and for all that the demand for changes to discriminatory laws is not limited to a few thousand women, who have supported these types of efforts in the past. In fact, the successful implementation of this campaign will demonstrate that support for legal changes are broad-based and that a large majority of men and women are suffering from the inequities that are promoted by Iranian law. The Campaign will strive to demonstrate that women are, and have consistently employed a variety of means and venues to voice their objections to the laws, such as the writing of books, articles, production of films and other forms of artistic expression, and through social activism. Those women with fewer and more limited resources have demonstrated their objection through more difficult channels, such as recourse in the courts, running away from home, or more destructive means such as suicide, or self-immolation. In an effort to demonstrate the widespread dissatisfaction with the status quo, the Campaign will aim to highlight the many strategies used by women to challenge discrimination in the law.

7. Power in Plurality: The successful implementation of this campaign will also shed light on the fact that the demand for changes in the law is not only voiced by a specific group of women. In an effort to silence the voices of women calling for change, critics claim that demands for legal change are expressed by a particular group of women, who are out of touch with the realities of ordinary Iranian women. These critics wrongly claim that only elite and socially and economically advantaged women seek changes to laws, in direct opposition to the real needs and sensitivities of the masses of Iranian women. These claims are indeed incorrect, as discriminatory and unjust laws negatively impact the lives of all women, whether they are educated or not, live in upper class neighborhoods or poor communities, are married or single, live in rural areas or in cities, and so on. The Campaign will work to address some of these issues.

Timeline: This campaign will be ongoing. The first phase of the Campaign will focus on the collection of one million signatures demanding changes to discriminatory laws. It is a fair assessment to claim that the first phase of the Campaign will be carried out over one to two years, after which the campaign will move into its next set of phases focused on proposing new laws.

The Demands of Campaign are not in Contradiction to Islamic principles: The demand to reform and change discriminatory laws is not in contradiction to Islamic principles and is in line with Iran's international commitments. Iran is a signatory to the UN Convention on Civil and Political Rights and as such, is required to eliminate all forms of discrimination. Based on these commitments, the government of Iran needs to take specific action in reforming laws that promote discrimination.

On the other hand, these demands are in no way contradictory to the foundations of Islam. In fact, the changes being demanded by this campaign have been a point of contention and debate among Islamic jurists and scholars for some time. Ayatollah Sanei'i and Ayatollah Bojnourdi, to name a few, have for years called for a revision and reform of laws which are discriminatory against women, and have explicitly stated that such reforms are indeed not contradictory to the basic beliefs of Islam. A million signatures supporting changes to discriminatory laws, will demonstrate to decision-makers and the public at large that a large segment of the Iranian population is in support of revising discriminatory laws against women and that these demands are not limited to a small segment of society. This campaign will also demonstrate to law makers that Iranian women are serious in their demands to change current laws.

Implementation of the Campaign: This campaign will rely largely on face-to-face education and contact to achieve its goals. It will be implemented through the following strategies:

1. Collection of signatures through door-to-door contact and dialogue with individual women.

2. Collection of signatures in places and events in which women gather, and where dialogue and discussions with groups of women can be carried out. Public locations, such as parks, universities, production centers, factories, health centers, religious gatherings, sports centers, and public transportation centers (metro, buses, etc), where groups of women can be accessed, will be identified by members of the Campaign for the purpose of initiating dialogue about the law and collecting signatures in support of changes to discriminatory laws.

3. Implementation of seminars and conferences with the intent of raising the profile of the campaign, promoting dialogue, identifying supporters and collecting signatures.

4. Collection of signatures through the internet. The internet will be utilized to share information about the campaign, including legal educational materials, and those interested in supporting this effort can sign petitions related to the Campaign.

Volunteer Education: In order to successfully implement the Campaign a large number of volunteers will be recruited. Volunteers will receive legal education as well as information on the campaign. Several committees have been established within the campaign, including the “Education Committee” which is charged with implementing educational workshops for all volunteers. All those interested in cooperating with the campaign and collecting signatures will be provided with training on legal issues and laws; the aims and strategies of the campaign; face-to-face and door-to-door education techniques; public education and outreach techniques, etc. All volunteers interested in becoming involved in face-to-face education must participate in the workshops.

It should be noted, that volunteers don't necessarily need to be experts in women's legal issues. These workshops implemented by the “Education Committee” will provide an overview for the lay person with respect to legal rights of women.

Scope of Activities: The activities of this campaign will not be limited to Tehran, and women's rights activists in the provinces are strongly encouraged to participate in this Campaign. Groups and individuals based in the provinces can participate in workshops in Tehran and begin campaign activities in their provinces. Larger numbers of women and women's rights groups interested in receiving training and/or participating in this campaign can request special workshops to be held in their respective provinces. Additionally, Iranians based outside Iran can submit signatures in support of the demands of the Campaign by mail or email.

Minimum Age for Signatures: Women and men signing on in support of the demands of the Campaign must be at least 18 years of age. Signatures will be collected in special forms developed for this purpose, and will also be published on the web.

Support for the Campaign: Participation in this campaign is purely voluntary. Volunteers are asked to support the Campaign through a contribution of 5,000 tomans (roughly 6 USD). These funds will be the major source of support for the activities of the campaign. In order to create change, women have often had to rely on their own limited resources, financial or other, such as time and energy. Women have always managed to rely on their capacities and their beliefs to create change. The success of this campaign, too, will benefit from women's immense commitment.

Contact Information: Those interested in supporting or joining this effort should feel free to contact us, through the following means:

• Web address: www.we-change.org

• Email address: forequality@gmail.com

Initial Supporters (in Alphabetical Order):

1. Babak Ahmadi (Writer and Translator)

2. Farhad Aish (Artist)

3. Simin Behbahani (Poet)

4. Shirin Ebadi (Nobel Peace Prize Recipient)

5. Shahla Ezazi (Professor)

6. Farideh Ghairat (Attorney)

7. Banafsheh Hejazi (Writer and Researcher)

8. Manijeh Hekmat (Director)

9. Shahla Lahiji (Publisher)

10. Tahmineh Milani (Director)

11. Narges Mohamadi (Activist)

12. Jafar Panahi (Director)

13. Fariborz Raees-Dana (Economist)

14. Moniro Ravanipour (Novelist)

15. Ardeshir Rostami (Artist)

16. Omran Salahi (Satirist)

17. Sima Sayah

18. Mahvash Sheikh-ol-eslami (Director)

19. Shahla Sherkat (Journalist)

20. Farzaneh Taheri (Translator)

21. Maedeh Tahmasebi (Artist)

22. Babak Takhti (Novelist)

23. Majid Tavalaee (Journalist)

24. Nahid Tavassoli (Writer and Journalist)

25. Naser Zarafshan (Attorney)

Founding Members of the Campaign (Listed in Alphabetical Order):

1. Tara Ahmadi

2. Noushin Ahmadi Khorasani

3. Parvaneh Ale Boyeh

4. Taraneh Amir Teymourian

5. Zaran Amjadian

6. Elnaz Ansari

7. Parvin Ardalan

8. Faranak Arta

9. Zohreh Arzani

10. Maryam Bahreman

11. Zhila Baniyaghoub

12. Vida Bigleri

13. Fariba Davoodi Mohajer

14. Shahla Entesari

15. Mahdis Farahbakhshi

16. Faranak Farid

17. Farideh Ghaeb

18. Sepideh Gilasian

19. Bahareh Hedayat

20. Azam Heshmat

21. Maryam Hosseinkhah

22. Mahboubeh Hosseinzadeh

23. Nahid Jafari

24. Jelveh Javaheri

25. Mahsa Jazini

26. Parisa Kakaie

27. Fazeleh Khalili Nejad

28. Pooyeh Madadi

29. Homa Maddah

30. Golnaz Malek

31. Nahid Mirhaj

32. Maryam Mirza

33. Khadijeh Moghaddam

34. Rezvan Moghaddam

35. Firouzeh Mohajer

36. Mona Mohammadzadeh

37. Iman Mozafari

38. Kaveh Mozafari

39. Fakhri Nami

40. Sadighe Nasiri

41. Elnaz Nateghi

42. Fatemeh Nejati

43. Negar Rahbar

44. Setareh Sajadi

45. Farnaz Seifi

46. Fakhri Shadfar

47. Mahsa Shekarloo

48. Mansoureh Shojaee

49. Elahe Soroush Nia

50. Talat Taghinia

51. Bita Tahbaz

52. Sussan Tahmasebi

53. Nargess Tayebat

54. Parvin Zarrabi

Launching of the One Million Signatures Campaign Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws

Parvin Ardalan — 2006-08-27T11:02:00Z

With the signing of a petition demanding changes to discriminatory laws, the One Million Signatures Campaign Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws against women, was launched. The text of the Petition as well as those signing on is provided below:

One Million Signatures Demanding Changes to Discriminatory Laws: Petition Requesting Changes to Discriminatory Laws against Women

Sunday August 27, 2006

Iranian law considers women to be second class citizens and promotes discrimination against them. It is noteworthy that legal discrimination of this type is being enforced in a society where women comprise over 60% of those being admitted to university. It is generally believed that laws should promote social moderation by being one step ahead of cultural norms. But in Iran the law lags behind cultural norms and women's social position and status.

According to Iranian penal codes, a girl at nine years of age is considered to be an adult. If she commits a crime which is punishable by execution, the courts can indeed sentence her to death. If a man and a woman become paralyzed as a result of an accident, the punitive damages provided to the woman according to law is half that of those provided to the man. If a man and a woman are both witness to a crime, the law does not recognize the woman as a witness, but the man can serve as a witness. The law allows fathers, who obtain the permission of the courts, to wed their daughters even before the age of 13 (legal age of marriage) to a 70 year old man. The law does not allow mothers to serve as the financial guardians of their children, or to make decisions regarding their child's place of residence, foreign travel, or medical care. The law allows men to take practice polygamy and gives them uncontested rights to divorce their wives at whim.

These are only a few examples of the inequities and discriminatory practices against women, which can be found in Iranian law. Without a doubt, women of lower socio-economic status or women from religious and ethic minority groups suffer disproportionately from legal discrimination. On the other hand, these unjust laws have promoted unhealthy and unbalanced relationships between men and women and as a result have had negative consequences on the lives of men as well. Specifically we can point to the high dowries, that many women demand as a condition of marriage, which in essence are reflective of the lack of a sense of security resulting from legal discrimination and their unequal status under the law.

On the other hand, the Iranian government is a signatory to several international human rights conventions, and accordingly is required to bring its legal code in line with international standards. The most important international human rights standard calls for elimination of discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, religion, etc.

The undersigned ask for the elimination of all forms of legal discrimination against women in Iranian law and ask legislators to review and reform existing laws based on the government's commitments to international human rights conventions.

The Initial Signatures:
1. Shirin Ebadi 2. Simin Behbahani 3. Shahla Lahiji 4. Shahla Ezazi 5. Babak Ahmadi 6. Farzaneh Taheri 7. Tahmineh Milani 8. Manijeh Hekmat 9. Maedeh Tahmasebi 10. Narges Mohamadi 11. Naser Zarafshan 12. Homa Zarafshan 13. Ardeshir Rostami 14. Rakhshan Banietemad 15. Moniro Ravanipour 16. Babak Takhti 17. Banafsheh Hejazi 18. Mahvash Sheikh-ol-eslami 19. Fariborz Rais-Dana 20. Jafar Panahi 21. Shiva Dolatabadi 22. Homa Khodaverdi 23. Shahla Sherkat 24. Farideh Ghairat 25. Khadijeh Moghadam 26. Shahla Entesari 27. Parvin Ardalan 28. Fariba Davoudi Mohajer 29. Homa Maddah 30. Jelve Javaheri 31. Maryam Hosseinkhah 32. Farnaz Seyfi 33. Noushin Ahmadi Khorasani 34. Zohreh Arzani 35. Rezvan Moghadam 36. Sussan Tahmasebi 37. Bita Tahbaz 38. Mona Mohammadzadeh 39. Tala't Taghinia 40. Golnaz Malek 41. Nahid Jafari 42. Setareh Sajadi 43. Mansoureh Shoajee 44. Mahsa Shekarloo 45. Firouzeh Mohajer 46. Taraneh Amir Teymouri 47. Parvin Zarrabi 48. Vida Biglari 49. Zara Amjadian 50. Tara Ahmadi 51. Parisa Kakai'e 52. Nahid Mirhaj 53. Maryam Mirza 54. Zhila Baniyaghoob 55. Mahboubeh Hosseinzadeh 56. Elnaz Nateghi 57. Bahareh Hedayat 58. Eman Mozafari 59. Fakhri Shadfar 60. Bahareh Baghaie 61. Mahsa Jazini 62. Farideh Ghaeb 63. Niloofar Ensan 64. Pooyeh Madadi 65. Faranak Artia 66. Sonia Ghafari 67. Nargess Teybat 68. Hana Darabi 69. Simin Marashi 70. Ehteram Shadfar 71. Delaram Ali 72. Parvaneh Ale Bouyeh 73. Fakhri Nami 74. Negar Rahbar 75. Nahid Keshavarz 76. Sahar Sajadi 77. Kaveh Mozafari 78. Leila Nazari 79. Lili Eslami 80. Masoumeh Hayat-Gheibi 81. Sara Loghmani 82. Masoumeh Loghmani 83. Elnaz Ansari 84. Parinaz Atabaki 85. Nasim Soltan-Beighi 86. Javane Javaheri 87. Saeed Nour-Mohamadi 88. Somaye Rashidi 89. Shima Farzad-Manesh 90. Farshad Ghare- Daghi 91. Forugh Ghare-Daghi 92. Sedighe Nasiri 93. Sepideh Gilisian 94. Fazele Khalili-Nejad 95. Fatemeh Nejati 96. Mahdis Farah-Bakhshi 97. Azam Heshmat 98. Elahe Sorush-Nia 99. Maziar Samiee 100. Houman Kazemian 101. Mina Rabiee 102. Sara Esmi-zade 103. Farid Hashemi 104. Nahid Tavassoli 105. Fariba Vafi 106. Sima Sayah

Les axes de la compagne d' « un million de signatures pour changer les lois discriminatoires envers les femmes en Iran »

Parvin Ardalan — 2006-08-27T10:18:00Z

Des militantes iraniennes pour les droits des femmes lancent une large campagne intitulée « Un million de signature ». Cette campagne vise à collecter un million de signatures pour changer la législation iranienne et mettre fin aux discriminations législatives à l'encontre des femmes en Iran. Elle fait suite à la protestation pacifique qui s'est tenue pour les mêmes raisons le 12 juin 2006 sur la place Haft-e Tir de Téhéran. Les activités préparatoires de cette campagne ont commencé dès juin 2006 et la campagne a été officiellement lancée le 27 août lors d'un séminaire intitulé « L'impact de la législation sur la vie des femmes ».

Collecter un million de signatures pour modifier la législation n'est que l'un des objectifs de cette campagne qui veut aussi :

1. promouvoir la coopération d'un large nombre de militant/es sociaux pour la création et la défense d'un changement social positif.

2. développer les contacts et les liens entre les groupes de femmes de différentes origines, les défenseur/es de l'égalité des droits et d'autres groupes de citoyen/nes, identifier les problèmes quotidiens et juridiques des femmes, et permettre une prise de conscience par la population des inégalités qui existent dans la législation.

3. relayer les revendications des femmes qui sont le plus souvent ignorées au niveau de la politique nationale et amplifier leurs voix.

4. développer et renforcer la connaissance par le dialogue, la collaboration et l'action démocratique. La campagne adhère entièrement au principe selon lequel un véritable changement social ne peut être obtenu que lorsqu'il reflète les désirs et les revendications de la société dans son ensemble. Or, changer le statut des femmes dans la société nécessite la conviction que les problèmes législatifs auxquels font face les femmes ne sont pas une question privée, mais sont symptomatiques de problèmes sociaux plus larges auxquels les femmes sont également confrontées. Cette campagne veut donc soutenir une mise en œuvre de réformes et de changements résultant des initiatives de la société civile. Elle cherche ainsi à soutenir l'action publique et l'évolution positive des femmes.

5. conquérir nos droits. Les initiatrices de cette campagne reconnaissent que le changement social et l'élimination de l'injustice ne seront pas faciles à obtenir. C'est par l'action collective et un travail de fond que nous construirons la solidarité nécessaire au changement et à un avenir meilleur pour notre pays. Les expériences des mouvements démocratiques des femmes dans le monde, et en particulier dans les pays où le statut des femmes est similaire à celle de l'Iran, ont démontré que la solidarité et l'action collective sont les clefs de l'élimination des discriminations. La lutte pour l'égalité des droits en Iran nécessitera un processus long, difficile et ardu. Le chemin vers l'égalité ne sera pas frayé par les structures existantes du pouvoir ni par le seul dialogue avec les hommes et les femmes qui sont au pouvoir, mais par la conscience de chaque femme et chaque citoyen de leur identité et leur statut au sein de la société.

6. mettre en lumière l'ampleur de la portée des revendications et les stratégies des femmes pour s'opposer aux lois discriminatoires : la campagne prouvera que les femmes utilisent, et ont constamment utilisé, un grand nombre de moyens pour exprimer leur opposition aux lois, que ce soit en écrivant des livres, des articles, en réalisant des films, ou sous d'autres formes d'expression artistique, et par leur militantisme social ; que lorsqu'elles avaient des ressources moindres et plus limitées, elles ont marqué leur opposition par des voies plus difficiles, comme le recours aux tribunaux, la fuite du foyer familial, ou des moyens malheureusement plus destructeurs comme le suicide ou l'immolation par le feu ; qu'une forte majorité d'hommes et de femmes souffrent des iniquités de la loi iranienne et que le changement législatif est soutenu et voulu par la base de la société civile.

7. valoriser la pluralité comme force de notre mouvement : la campagne montrera que la revendication de changements législatifs n'est pas uniquement l'expression d'un groupe de femmes socialement et économiquement privilégiées, très éloignées de la réalité et de la sensibilité de la masse des femmes iraniennes, comme le déclarent ceux qui veulent réduire au silence les femmes appelant au changement. Ces déclarations sont tout à fait fausses, puisque les lois discriminatoires et injustes ont une conséquence négative sur les vies de toutes les femmes, qu'elles soient éduquées ou non, qu'elles vivent dans les quartiers de la classe supérieure ou dans les zones pauvres, dans les zones rurales ou dans les villes, etc.

Planning : La première phase de la campagne se concentrera sur la collecte d'un million de signatures demandant le changement des lois discriminatoires, et devrait durer de un à deux ans. La deuxième phase consistera à proposer de nouvelles lois.

Les revendications de la campagne correspondent aux engagements internationaux de l'Iran. Notre pays est signataire de la convention des Nations Unies sur les droits civils et politiques, et de celle sur l'élimination de toutes les formes de discriminations à l'égard des femmes. Il doit donc respecter ses engagements en réformer les lois qui promeuvent les discriminations.

Les revendications de la campagne ne sont en aucune façon contradictoires avec les principes de l'Islam. Elles ont en effet été à plusieurs reprises un objet de débat entre juristes et étudiants islamiques ; et pour ne prendre que deux exemples, l'Ayatollah Sanei'i et l'Ayatollah Bojnourdi ont appelé il y a plusieurs années à la révision des lois discriminatoires envers les femmes, et ont explicitement affirmé que de telles réformes n'étaient en rien contradictoires avec l'Islam.

« Un million de signatures » pour le changement des lois discriminatoires envers les femmes montrera aux décideurs et à l'opinion publique qu'une large partie de la population iranienne soutient la révision des lois discriminatoires à l'encontre des femmes, que ces revendications ne sont pas limitées à une petite fraction de la société, et qu'un grand nombre de femmes est réellement déterminée dans leurs revendications pour le changement.

Mise en œuvre de la Campagne : La campagne se base sur la récolte de signatures par ses sympathisantes et sympathisants qui :

1. font du "porte-à-porte" pour entrer en contact direct et dialoguer avec les femmes,

2. sont présent-es activement aux endroits (parcs, universités, centres de production, usines, centres de soin, les et transports en commun,…) et aux événements (cérémonies religieuses,…) qui rassemblent beaucoup de femmes pour dialoguer et discuter sur les questions relatives à la législation,

3. organisent des séminaires et des conférences pour faire connaître et développer cette Campagne, promouvoir le dialogue et faire adhérer plus de sympathisantes et sympathisants,

4. utilisent Internet pour faire signer la pétition en ligne, mais aussi pour diffuser les informations relatives à la Campagne et informer sur la législation.

Formation des bénévoles : plusieurs comités ont été établis au sein de la campagne dont un « Comité de Formation » chargé de former les bénévoles. Toutes celles et tous ceux qui veulent participer à la campagne et collecter des signatures recevront une formation sur les questions juridiques et la législation, les buts et stratégies de la campagne, ainsi qu'une formation sur les techniques de porte-à-porte, de discussion en tête-à-tête, de prise de parole en public, etc. Tou/tes les bénévoles devront participer à ces ateliers, mais il n'est pas nécessaire qu'ils/elles soient expert/es sur les droits des femmes.

Terrain d'action : les activités de la campagne ne sont pas limitées à Téhéran, et les militantes pour les droits des femmes de province sont fortement encouragées à participer à cette campagne. Les groupes ou individus de province peuvent participer aux ateliers à Téhéran et mener la campagne dans leurs régions. Les femmes ou les groupes pour les droits des femmes qui veulent être formés ou participer à cette campagne peuvent demander la tenue d'ateliers dans leurs régions respectives. De plus, les Iranien/nes vivant hors de l'Iran peuvent proposer leurs signatures pour soutenir les revendications de la Campagne par lettre ou e-mail.

Age minimum pour les signatures : les femmes et les hommes qui signent pour soutenir les revendications de la Campagne doivent avoir au moins 18 ans.

Soutien à la campagne : la participation à la campagne est purement bénévole. On demande aux bénévoles de soutenir la campagne par une contribution de 5.000 Tomans (environs 6 dollars). Ces fonds seront la principale source de revenu pour les activités de la campagne. Pour créer le changement, les femmes ont toujours dû compter sur leurs propres capacités et convictions, et sur leurs ressources en argent, en temps, et en énergie. Le succès de cette campagne dépendra surtout de l'engagement des femmes.

Contact pour celles et ceux qui veulent nous soutenir ou se joindre à notre action :

Site web : www.we-change.org E-Mail : forequality@gmail.com Adresse postale : Iran – Tehran - P.O. Box : 14335-851