Human Rights Watch Calls for Swift Passage of Women’s Protection Bill in Iran
Human Rights Watch has urged Iranian authorities to expedite amendments to the bill titled “Protection, Dignity, and Security of Women Against Violence” and bring it to a vote in parliament, as it provides limited protections for survivors of domestic violence in Iran.
Human Rights Watch announced on Friday, December 5, in a report on the matter, that Iranian women’s rights activists have been working on this legislation for sixteen years, and the Iranian government has been working on this bill since 2013. According to the report, although the judiciary’s review has been completed and the bill has been returned to the government, the government cabinet has continued to review the bill since September 17, 2019.
Human Rights Watch urged Iranian authorities to commit to repealing discriminatory laws that expose women to domestic violence while approving the women’s support bill.
Tara Sepehri Far, Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch, pointing out that this legislation has faced significant delays and parliament should not waste time in approving it, said: “For decades, Iranian women have been waiting for comprehensive legislation to prevent violence against women and to prosecute perpetrators.”
According to the Human Rights Watch report, although the bill contains positive provisions such as the formation of a national inter-ministerial committee to design strategies and coordinate government responses to violence against women and requires ministries and government institutions to consider standards for assisting women and preventing violence, it still falls short of international standards. The report noted that, for example, the bill fails to criminalize certain forms of gender-based violence, such as child marriage and spousal rape, and does not amend the limited and problematic definition of rape in the criminal law—which explicitly excludes spousal rape from offenses.
This is while in the declaration “On the Elimination of Violence Against Women” issued by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, violence against women is defined as “any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life.”
The United States has consistently condemned violations of women’s rights and the pressures exerted against them by the system governing Iran—including deprivation of access to stadiums, lack of choice in clothing, and various social and occupational discriminations—and has called for the full realization of women’s rights.
Source: Voice of America
