Regime Consolidation and Female Status in a Fledgling Theocracy: Khomeini's Vilayet-e-Fiqh, 1979–89

Abstract

The Iranian Revolution, through Khomeini's consolidation measures, quickly morphed into an ‘Islamic Revolution’. Khomeini's regime abrogated popular legislation such as the Family Protection Laws of 1967 and 1975, which protected the rights of females, as the clerics sought to institute Shariah (Islamic) laws in an ‘Islamic Republic’. The historical record reveals that the precipitous legal transformation from secular to Shariah law under Ayatollah Khomeini's personal tutelage placed females in a dangerous predicament. Regressive gender policies, however, served to mobilize females to push back against the new social paradigm which had emerged under the rubric of Velayat-e-Fiqh. This article examines this misogynistic trajectory during Khomeini's rule and how it served to galvanize many Iranian women to ‘gender activism’.

Notes

1. Interview in The Guardian, 6 Nov. 1978.

2. For more on the Fedayeen-e-Khalq see V. Martin, Creating an Islamic State: Khomeini and the Making of a New Iran (London: I.B. Tauris, 2000), pp.129–32.

3. For more on the Mujahidin-e-Khalq see J. Masters, ‘Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (aka People's Mujahedeen of Iran or PMOI)’, Council of Foreign Relations, 18 July 2012, http://www.cfr.org/iran/mujahadeen-e-khalq-mek-aka-peoples-mujahedin-iran-pmoi/p9158

4. S. Razavi, ‘Islamic Politics, Human Rights and Women's Claims for Equality in Iran’, Third World Quarterly, No.27 (2006), p.1225.

5. For more on the Family Protection Law, see I. Pakizegi, ‘Legal Reform and Social Positions of Iranian Women’, in L. Beck and N. Keddie (eds.), Women in the Muslim World (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1978), pp.216–27; P. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997), pp.153–7; J. Afary, Sexual Politics in Modern Iran (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009), pp.216–18; D. Zahedi, The Iranian Revolution Then and Now: Indicators of Regime Instability (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2000), pp.76–7.

6. N. Yeganeh, ‘Women, Nationalism and Islam in Contemporary Political Discourse in Iran’, Feminist Review, No.44 (Summer 1993), p.11.

7. For an uplifting memoir on a small secret literary group of Tehrani women led by Professor Nafisi, who defied the regime and their informants by holding literary circles to discuss banned western literature, see A. Nafisi, Reading Lolita in Tehran (New York: Random House, 2004).

8. On the role of Mujahidin-e-Khalq women during the Khomeini regime's ‘consolidation’ period see R.S. Shoaee, ‘The Mujahid Women of Iran: Reconciling “Culture” and “Gender”’, Middle East Journal, No.41 (Autumn 1987), pp.519–37.

9. For more on the politics of the hijab see Yeganeh, ‘Women, Nationalism and Islam in Contemporary Political Discourse in Iran’, p.15; N. Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran: The Revolutionary Ebb and Flow’, Middle East Journal, No.47 (Summer 1993), pp.408–9, 421–3.

10. M. Bowden, Guests of the Ayatollah: The First Battle in America's War with Militant Islam (New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 2006), p.161. For more on the politics of veiling in Iran see A. Zahedi, ‘Contested Meaning of the Veil and Political Ideologies of Iranian Regimes’, Journal of Middle East Women's Studies, No.3 (Fall 2007), pp.75–98.

11. N. Alavi, We are Iran: The Persian Blogs (New York: Soft Skull Press, 2005), pp.169–74.

12. H. Afshar, ‘Khomeini's Teachings and Their Implications for Women’, Feminist Review, No.12 (Oct. 1982), p.61.

13. A. Khomeini, Sahifa, Vol.IV, pp.156–7 as cited in V. Martin, Creating an Islamic State: Khomeini and the Making of a New Iran (London: I.B. Tauris, 2000), p.154.

14. Afshar, ‘Women, Nationalism and Islam in Contemporary Political Discourse in Iran’, p.61.

15. For more on sigheh/muta, see Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.278; Afary, Sexual Politics in Modern Iran, pp.284–7.

16. G. Nashat, ‘Women in the Islamic Republic of Iran’, International Society for Iranian Studies, No.13 (1980), pp.183–4; Afshar, ‘Women, Nationalism and Islam in Contemporary Political Discourse in Iran’, p.67.

17. On Iran's war widows see sociologist Ashraf Zahedi's excellent study on war widows: A. Zahedi, ‘State Ideology and the Status of Iranian War Widows’, International Feminist Journal of Politics, No.8 (June 2006), pp.267–86.

18. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, pp.344–5.

19. Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, p.411.

20. For more on the more ‘traditional’ versus educated Iranian women (i.e. the majority of the populace) see M.E. Hegland, ‘Traditional Iranian Women: How They Cope’, Middle East Journal, Vol.36, No.4 (Autumn 1982), pp.483–501.

21. Afshar, ‘Women, Nationalism and Islam in Contemporary Political Discourse in Iran’, p.63.

22. M.Tamandonfar, “Islam, Law, and Political Control in Contemporary Iran.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, Vol. 40, No.2 (Jun 2001), pp.205–219. p.206.

23. For a comprehensive examination of the 1979 Constitution see H. Algar, The Constitution of the Islamic Republic (Berkeley, CA: Mizan Press, 1980).

24. Z. Mir-Hosseini, ‘Sharia and National Law in Iran’, in J.M. Otto (ed.), Shariah Incorporated: A Comparative Overview of the Legal Systems of Twelve Muslim Countries in Past and Present (Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2010), p.332.

25. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, pp.270–71.

26. Tamadonfar (2001), Islam, Law, and Political Control in Contemporary Iran, p.206; for a more detailed examination of the constitution and its implications for women see Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, pp.256–62.

27. V. Martin, Creating an Islamic State: Khomeini and the Making of a New Iran (London: I.B. Tauris, 2000), p.163.

28. V.M. Moghadam, ‘A Tale of Two Countries: State, Society, and Gender Politics in Iran and Afghanistan’, The Muslim World, Vol.94, No.4 (Oct. 2004), p.459; H. Kapoor (ed.), Women Living Under Muslim Laws, Dossier 21 (Sept. 1998), Grabels Cedex, France, 33, http://www.wluml.org/fr/node/320

29. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.271.

30. Otto, Shariah Incorporated, p.334.

31. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.272.

32. Ayatollah Khomeini coined the word ‘taghut’ to describe the pre-revolutionary Pahlavi regime. ‘Taghuti’ was someone who worshipped idols or a westernized person. For more on Khomeini's objectives during the revolution in which he coined the term ‘taghut’ to describe the shah's regime, see Martin, Creating an Islamic State, pp.150–53.

33. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.273.

34. ‘Tawzih al-Masa’el’ refers to books of religious instruction or rulings of a particular marjah taghlid (literal meaning: the source of emulation). It refers to an Islamic law scholar who, through rigorous study, has attained this position to practise ijtihad (independent reasoning) in order to interpret the Quran and Hadith to arrive at specific rulings. Here it specifically refers to Ayatollah Khomeini's interpretation on gender matters and certain family affairs. For more on his Tawzih al-Masa’el prescriptions see Nashat, ‘Women in the Islamic Republic of Iran’, pp.183–5.

35. Ibid., p.183.

36. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.273.

37. Ibid., pp.273–4.

38. Ibid., p.274.

39. H. Afshar, ‘Women, Marriage and the State in Iran’, in H. Afshar (ed.), Women, State and Ideology: Studies from Africa and Asia (Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 1987), pp.70–86.

40. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.276.

41. A. Kian, ‘Women and Politics in Post-Islamist Iran: the Gender Conscious Drive to Change’, in Kapoor (ed.), Women Living Under Muslim Laws.

42. For Azam Taliqani's views see A. Tabari and N. Yeganeh (eds.), In the Shadows of Islam (London: Zed Press, 1982), pp.171–200.

43. S. Mahdavi, ‘Women and the Shii Ulama in Iran’, Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.19, No.1 (Jan. 1983), p.25.

44. S. Ebadi, Iran Awakening: A Memoir of Revolution and Hope (New York: Random House, 2006), pp.42–3.

45. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, pp.348–9.

46. For more on the bill of vengeance (Layeh-ye-Qasas), see F. Kazemi, ‘Civil Society and Iranian Politics’, in A.R. Norton (ed.), Civil Society in the Middle East (Boston, MA: Brill Academic Publishers, 1995), pp.130–31.

47. The sentence of the court which enforced the qisas law of 2008 would have allowed Bahrami to personally place drops of acid into each of Movahedi's eyes in order to ensure justice for his actions towards her when she spurned his marriage proposal in 2004. See http://articles.cnn.com/2009-02-19/world/acid.attack.victim_1_acid-attack-blind-eye?_s=PM:WORLD

48. ‘Iranian Women Spares Attacker Acid Punishment’, Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty, 2 Aug. 2011, http://www.rferl.org/content/iranian_woman_spares_attacker_acid_in_eyes/24283843.html

49. ‘“The Victim's Family did not Forgive Shahla Jahed until the Last Moment,” Says Lawyer’, International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, 1 Dec. 2010, http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2010/12/the-victims-family-did-not-forgive-shahla-jahed-until-the-last-moment-says-lawyer/

50. For coverage of Shahla Jahed's case and death see S.K. Dehghan, ‘Iran Executes Woman Accused of Murdering Lover's Wife’, Guardian.co.uk, 1 Dec. 2010, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/01/shahla-jahed-executed-iran

51. Kian, ‘Women and Politics in Post-Islamist Iran’, p.39.

52. For more on Iran's family planning programs see H. Hoodfar, ‘Devices and Desires, Population Policy and Gender Roles in the Islamic Republic’, Middle East Report (Sept.–Oct. 1994), pp.1–17; Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, pp.414–15.

53. See R.K. Ramazani, ‘Burying the Hatchet’, Foreign Policy, Vol.60 (Fall 1985), pp.52–74; Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, pp.409–28.

54. Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, p.410.

55. For more on the female struggle to defend their rights see H. Esfandiari, ‘The Majlis and Women's Issues in the Islamic Republic of Iran’, in M. Afkhami and E. Friedl (eds.), In the Eye of the Storm: Women in Post-Revolutionary Iran (New York: Syracuse University Press, 1994).

56. V. Moghadam, ‘Women, Work, and Ideology in the Islamic Republic’, International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.20 (1988), pp.228–33; Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, pp.413–14.

57. Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, p.412.

58. ‘Mehr’ is a sum of money or property that a husband pledges to his wife at the time of marriage in case of divorce.

59. For an interview with an outspoken Iranian feminist lawyer, Mehranguiz Kar, see M. Kar and H. Hoodfar, ‘Women and Personal Status Law in Iran’, Middle East Report, No.198 (Jan.–March 1996), pp.36–8.

60. For more on child custody in the Islamic Republic, see Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, pp.294–7.

61. Kar and Hoodfar, ‘Women and Personal Status Law in Iran’, p.36.

62. On 27 July 2007, the US designated the Iran-based Martyr's Foundation as a terrorist support network and imposed financial sanctions on it and its US branch and the finance firm Al-Qard al Hassan under Executive Order 13224. For more on the Martyr's Foundation see Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Iran: Information on the Martyr's (Shahid) Foundation (Martyrs’ Foundation) and on the Treatment of Family Members of ‘Martyrs’, 1 Nov. 1995, http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/category,IRBC,QUERYRESPONSE,IRN,3ae6ac8170,0.html 

63. Kar and Hoodfar, ‘Women and Personal Status Law in Iran’, p.37.

64. Ibid.

65. Paidar, Women and the Political Process in Twentieth Century Iran, p.295.

66. Ibid., pp.295–6.

67. Ibid., p.296.

68. Ramazani, ‘Women in Iran’, pp.417–18.

69. For more on this period see A. Kian, ‘Gendered Occupation and Women's Status in Post-Revolutionary Iran’, Middle Eastern Studies, Vol.31, No.3 (July 1995), pp.407–421; V. Moghadam, Women, Work, and Ideology in Post-Revolutionary Iran (East Lansing: Michigan State University, 1988); H. Afshar, ‘Women and the Politics of Fundamentalism in Iran’, in H. Afshar (ed.), Women and Politics in the Third World (London: Routledge, 1996), pp.124–44; N. Keddie, The Roots of Revolution: an Interpretative History of Modern Iran (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1991); F. Azari, ‘The Post-Revolutionary Women's Movement in Iran’, in F. Azari (ed.), Women of Iran: The Conflict with Fundamentalist Islam (London: Ithaca Press, 1983), pp.190–225.

70. For a recent case which garnered international attention see M. Sheridan, ‘Iran Official Hints Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani Death by Stoning may be Commuted’, New York Daily News, 2 Jan. 2011, http://articles.nydailynews.com/2011-01-02/news/27086171_1_stoning-sentence-face-death-iranian-authorities