A month ago the BBC was proclaiming that the Iranian Islamic revolution was a good thing for women….the BBC is rather too keen on promoting Iran’s interests for some reason….the BBC sees its job as an effort to combat and counter those who characterise Iran as a malevolent force in the world which aims to destroy Israel, arms and funds a variety of militias and terrorist groups and has been a major opponent of British forces in Iraq and in Afghanistan.
But the BBC’s belief that everything is relative, there are no black and whites, no good and bad, means even Hitler would have had his spokesmen on the BBC during the war…and in Iran’s case the BBC likes to portray it as the victim of an aggressive America with enemies surrounding it intent in its destruction…much indeed as they portray Putin and his drive to rebuild the Soviet empire.
If as part of that drive to polish Iran’s reputation and image the BBC has to manage the truth then so be it….here it reports that Amnesty International has criticised Iran…Iran birth drive ‘turns women into baby-making machines’, but the report is remarkably short and very unlike the usual BBC analysis that goes into deatil about such cultural and social issues.
How different to this positive one about the wonders of Islamic feminism where we get much more information…How Iran’s feminist genie escaped telling us that ‘Iran’s 1979 revolution may have put an ayatollah in charge – but for women it had plenty of positive side-effects… in education, in the workplace, and even in the home, discovers Amy Guttman during a ride on the Tehran underground’.
‘Positive side effects’ such as these from the Amnesty report that the BBC has decided to omit from its report…..
Despite claims by Iran’s authorities, including statements by President Hasan Rouhani that men and women in Iran are treated equally, in reality this is far from the truth. Sexual violence and discrimination against women in Iran is rife and women in Iran are denied equal rights with respect to marriage, divorce, child custody, inheritance, travel, and even in their choice of clothing.
Iran’s Penal Code penalizes women and girls as early as nine years old who fail to cover their hair with a headscarf and comply with compulsory dress codes with imprisonment or a cash fine. These laws are regularly used by the police to harass and detain women in public for their appearance and clothing.
According to Iran’s existing Civil Code, a woman would not be entitled to spousal maintenance if she refuses to comply with the “duties of marriage”, which can include refusing to have sex with her husband or leaving the house without permission .
A woman’s testimony in court is valued at half that of a man in legal proceedings and reparations paid for killing or causing injury to a woman are half those payable for same harms to a man. The age of criminal responsibility for girls is just under nine years old but just under 15 years for a boy. Rape within marriage and domestic violence are not recognized as criminal offences. Engaging in lesbian sex is punishable by 100 lashes with a fourth time conviction resulting in the death penalty.
Early and forced marriages are common with 41,226 girls between the ages of 10 and 14 getting married, according to the 2013-2014 annual report by the National Organization for Civil Registration, and at least 201 girls under the age of 10. At some universities women are barred from studying certain subjects, ranging from engineering to English literature, as a result of quotas that seek to reverse advances made in the number and proportion of female university students. They also face restrictions on watching sports in public stadiums.
If they are examples of that ‘positive’ side effect of the Islamic Revolution life must have been really, really terrible before.
