Iranian Women Filmmakers Protest ‘Prevalence’ of Violence and Sexual Harassment; Film House Urged to ‘Establish Independent Committee’
Dozens of women working in Iran’s film industry protested on Thursday by publishing a statement against the ‘prevalence of violence and sexual harassment’ in their workplace and called for the punishment of offenders.
The statement, signed by prominent figures such as Nicky Karmari, Hedyeh Tehrani, Puran Derakhshande, Taraneh Alidoosti, Hanieh Toosli, Tahmineh Milani, and Mitra Hajjar, states that in Iran’s film industry, ‘every person with power and fame’ can ‘exploit their position to bully, threaten, insult, humiliate, and harass women, without legal institutions, film industry associations, filmmakers, and critics holding them accountable and accepting responsibility for their actions’.
The statement signatories, referencing the social movement ‘#MeToo,’ cited a list of harassments that exist in Iran’s cinema against women, including ‘disrespect through sexual and gender-charged language,’ ‘exploitation of silence and tolerance of individuals by holding their right to work and wages hostage,’ ‘committing sexual violence through threatening victims’ job positions,’ ‘unwanted physical contact,’ ‘insistence and coercion into sexual acts,’ and ultimately ‘physical violence and assault’.
The statement considers sexual violence against Iranian women filmmakers to be ‘systematic’ and emphasizes: ‘Not only is there no mechanism to prevent a person with power from committing violence, but through an unwritten agreement, committing violence against women in the workplace has been normalized, and the perpetrator faces no serious consequences.’
The statement then proceeds to express the main demand of its signatories: ‘working in a safe environment free from bullying, violence, and sexual extortion.’ To this end, the statement signatories have emphasized the necessity of establishing an independent committee within the Film House to investigate crimes of sexual and gender-based violence.
A support mechanism through professional associations to encourage victims to file complaints, provisions of such mechanisms in employment contracts, imposition of financial penalties, and suspension of activities for offenders are among the other measures demanded by women filmmakers.
The statement ultimately emphasizes the resolve of Iranian women filmmakers to end these acts of violence and states that the aforementioned proposals are an initial step toward implementing a stop to sexual violence in the workplace.
Other signatories of the statement include Vishka Asayesh, Farshte Hosseini, Perinaz Izadyar, Leyli Rashidi, Shaqayeq Dehqan, Katayoun Riahi, Negar Javaherian, and Setareh Eskandari.
Source: Radio Farda
