Women’s rights in Iran revisited

Following recent elections and continual mass protests, has anything changed for women’s rights in Iran?

Solidarity protests in London after the death of Mahsa Amini - photo by Garry Knight

In September 2022, Mahsa Amini was murdered by the Morality Police for violating the country’s compulsory hijab law. This sparked an eruption of women-led protests, known as the “women, life, freedom” movement which saw hundreds of thousands of demonstrators in 50 cities calling for reform of the theocratic regime. These protests ignited a revolutionary atmosphere, representing the most serious challenge to the Iranian regime in years .

However, since these mass revolts, the state of women’s rights in Iran has remained unchanged. In the first 5 months of the protests, 20,000 activists were arrested and the police killed at least 500 individuals. In the year since the protest, the state executed 700 individuals, rendering Iran one of the largest practitioners of the death penalty in the world. In response to the social unrest, the Iranian regime cracked down, increasing its human rights abuses, and further restricting access to the rights demanded by the protestors. This included the passage of the “hijab and chastity bill” which increased the punishment for those who violate the strict Islamic dress code.

Additionally, elections were held last week for the first time since the protests began. These elections saw the conservative bloc consolidate their power as reformists and centrists alike were prevented from running. Jailed Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi called the election a “sham” and US Spokesperson Matthew Miller commented on the “undemocratic” nature of Iran’s political system. Turnout reached a record low of 41%, which reflects the persisting anger of the Iranian people and further undermines the legitimacy of the regime.

“The brutality of Iranian authorities has not subsided and the violent circumstances surrounding Masha Amini’s death are not an isolated incident.”

Nevertheless, despite the state crackdown on protestors and the immutability of women’s rights, the people of Iran are continuing to fight the theocratic regime. Protests and acts of dissent remain common, with one report suggesting that in 2023, 20% of women were defying hijab laws. Scholars such as Mona Tajali have argued that the persistence of these protests despite state crackdowns demonstrate the “strength and viability of the Iranian women’s rights movement”.  After the immediate aftermath of Amini’s death, media coverage of these protests subsided, yet this does not mean that the regime has reformed or that suffering under its repression has ceased. Demands and calls for rights remain as vocal as they were in 2022.  

Our analysis: Authorities’ continued repression forces activists to find new tactics

Since the beginning of these mass protests in 2022, there has been very little tangible change or reform. In the immediate months after Masha Amini’s death, the regime announced that it would be disbanding the so-called “morality police”, who are an arm of the police tasked with enforcing adherence to religious law. However, barely six months later, the “morality police” had been reinstated and were patrolling the streets again, ready to punish citizens who, according to a police spokesperson, “ignore the consequences of not wearing the proper hijab and insist on disobeying the norms”.

Rather than submitting to protestors demands for a relaxation of the country’s hijab laws, the Iranian regime decided to crackdown on violators. In September 2023, the Iranian Parliament passed the “chastity and hijab bill”, which imposes harsher penalties on women who violate the state’s dress code. Restrictions were also expanded by the bill and the state enforced dress code became more conservative. UN human rights experts compared the bill to “gender apartheid” with the goal of suppressing women into “total submission”.

“…the atmosphere of revolution and the calls for reform have neither subsided nor quietened, despite severe attempts by authorities to quell this spirit.”

The brutality of Iranian authorities has not subsided and the violent circumstances surrounding Masha Amini’s death are not an isolated incident. In October, 16-year-old Armita Geravand died after a violent incident with authorities over her non-conformity to the state’s dress code. This event similarly incited mass protests across Iran. However, like the initial wave of protests, this collective anger has failed to engender reform. This incident reflects a broader pattern of violence against women which is an embedded feature of the current Iranian government, unchanged despite the protests.

However, attempts to quash the voices of activists have failed, with dissenters managing to successfully encourage resistance and protest from behind prison bars. Such voices include Nobel prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, who proclaimed from inside an Iranian prison that “the Iranian people, with perseverance, will overcome repression and authoritarianism”. The nature of activism has also adapted, with social media becoming an increasingly important tool used by activists. WhatsApp, Telegram, and other platforms are being used to discuss and organise mass protests. Such communication is covert and has allowed the protestors to avoid state surveillance and monitoring.

Data from Iran Human Rights, image via Wikicommons

Despite the electoral victory of the conservatives and the exclusion of reformists in the March 2024 Parliamentary elections, the results are actually symptomatic of deep discontent and anger. The lowest recorded turnout in the country’s history reflects the delegitimization of the Iranian regime by the wider society which began with the 2022 protests. Former MP Mahmoud Sadeghi said that this voter apathy should act as “a big warning to the government”. While the attention of mainstream media may have drifted away from the protestors since the initial wave of revolts in Autumn 2022, the atmosphere of revolution and the calls for reform have neither subsided nor quietened, despite severe attempts by authorities to quell this spirit.