Deputy of Judiciary: Motorcycle Riding and Saddle Riding are Disliked for Women
The Cultural Deputy of the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic, referring to women riding camels during the time of the Prophet of Islam, stated that motorcycle riding and in general “saddle riding” for women has no “religious prohibition” but is “disliked.” He considered “observance of modesty” as a condition for women’s motorcycle riding.
Hadi Sadeghi, the Cultural Deputy of the Judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran, on one hand said that motorcycle riding for women “has no religious prohibition” and at the same time considered it “disliked” and made it conditional on observing “modesty and hijab.”
Regarding the recent ruling of the Administrative Justice Court on the legality of issuing motorcycle riding licenses for women and in other words the permissibility of women riding motorcycles, he said that this ruling would probably be rejected because: “In Islamic culture, saddle riding for women is disliked but not forbidden. On the other hand, women have been instructed to appear completely with modesty and hijab in the social sphere. Motorcycle riding has no religious prohibition but from the perspective of modesty and hijab, riding a motorcycle may cause women’s hijab to be less observed.”
He also referred to a note that permitted license issuance only for men: “In Article 20 of the Traffic Violation and Driving Law, it is mentioned that the laws that exist for passenger cars also apply to motorcycle riders, but this article has a note that traffic police is obliged to issue motorcycle driving licenses only for men, therefore based on this law, issuing a license for non-men is not permissible.”
Based on what the Cultural Deputy of the Judiciary presented, decision-making in this matter is ultimately deferred to a future in which both this note is removed and motorcycles that “do not easily overturn” enter the Iranian market. Motorcycles that according to him are “easy to sit on” and have “higher safety, modesty and hijab.”
Based on his statements about women’s motorcycle riding, “if the law changes or is amended later, using this vehicle would not be objectionable” and “the government has a duty to create convenient conditions for women.”
The debate over the legality or illegality of issuing motorcycle driving licenses for women intensified again in recent days. The matter started with a complaint from a woman in Isfahan. She, who wanted a motorcycle driving license, filed a complaint against the traffic police for refusing to issue the license. The Administrative Justice Court ruled in favor of this woman, but the traffic police said that the law enforcement only issues licenses for men and is not responsible for such actions.
In the ruling of Branch 31 of the Administrative Justice Court, it stated that driving for women, whether driving light and heavy vehicles or motorcycles and other vehicles, is not prohibited in any of the regulations.
The Judiciary Deputy, in his lengthy statement, provided extensive explanations without contributing to solving the problem of women’s traffic in congested city streets.
Source: DW
