Posted By S.B. Anderlini, Hadi Ghaemi, Dokhi Fassihian
Tuesday, April 27, 2010 - 3:40 PM
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The Iranian regime must have a real sense of humor. In a year when their human rights abuses reached ever lower depths with an exponential rise in political prisoners, prison rapes, torture and executions, the regime tried to get a prime spot on the UN Human Rights Council. Their bid failed. But the jokers had another trick up their sleeves.
Last week just as a senior Iranian cleric declared that women's un-Islamic garb - meaning a wisp of hair showing - is the root of men's immorality and the cause of earthquakes, the regime moved to secure a seat on the UN's Commission for the Status of Women (CSW). The CSW, comprising 45 countries, voted in by regional blocks, is the principal global policy-making body dedicated exclusively to the advancement of women. Its mandate is "to evaluate progress, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and advancement of women worldwide."
The Iranian government by contrast has taken every conceivable step to deter women's progress and institute a regressive regime against gender equality. In the past year, it has arrested and jailed mothers of peaceful civil rights protesters. It has charged women who were seeking equality in the social sphere - as wives, daughters and mothers - with threatening national security, subjecting many to hours of harrowing interrogation. Its prison guards have beaten, tortured, sexually assaulted and raped female and male civil rights protesters
The Ahmadinejad government has also initiated systematic discriminatory action against women in every other sphere. In universities where women have represented over 60 percent of the student body, the government is now banning women from key areas of study. Childcare centers are being shut down to hamper women's ability to work outside their homes. Healthcare and reproductive care services provided to men and women, that had turned Iran into a global success story for family planning, are being withdrawn. Women's publications that addressed gender equality have been shut down. The regime is attempting to erase decades of struggle and progress.
This is not a government that supports equality. It is one of the only governments in the world that continues to shun the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and to treat women as second-class citizens with half the value or legal rights of men. Even on seemingly minor issues, such as the equal right to selecting their clothing, the Iranian government stands against its own female citizens. The morality police and chastity guard are on patrol every day.
Iran does not deserve a spot on the commission; it should earn it by providing Iranian women their basic human rights. Yet on Wednesday, Iran is likely to ascend to the CSW because it agreed to pull out of running for the Human Rights Council in exchange for securing an uncontested seat for the CSW. That it can do so, with such ease, is a denigration of the very principles for which the CSW and UN stand.
It is also indicative of the ways in which women's rights are continually sold down the river in exchange for political favors and horse trading on other issues at the UN. This is so commonplace among member states that its rarely remarked upon. But the implications are profound.
First, Iran will claim the win as a major diplomatic victory and indication of an international community that supports and respects it. Second, as a member of the CSW Iran will be well placed to shape the agenda for discussion and the recommendations made. It will bring the same regressive attitudes and cynicism towards women that it enacts in Iran to the global community. No doubt it will have cheerleaders among other nations that prefer to see women as second class citizens.
Finally, as a CSW member, Iran will be well placed to block the participation of independent women's human rights groups from UN forums, while easing the way for its many counterfeit or ‘government-led non-governmental organizations' (GONGOs) to participate at the UN as if they are legitimate independent civil society and human rights defenders.
Iran is attempting to control every venue and avenue through which its own citizens reach the world with real news. It is bringing its cynicism and misogyny to the international community. Instead of being challenged and blocked, Iran is making good progress thanks to the inertia of other member states. In Tehran they must be pleased with the likely turn of events. But in New York, this should be a wake up call. If we are to take the UN's entities seriously, they must demonstrate a seriousness of purpose. Membership in the CSW as with the Human Rights Council must come with minimum conditions.
Iranian women have fought this regime non-violently and resolutely for 30 years. Its young women have been shot and killed on the streets of the Tehran, for the simple crime of being young and female. To have Iran join the CSW will be the ultimate sign of disrespect to them and women worldwide.
S.B. Anderlini is the Executive Director of International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN). Hadi Ghaemi is the Executive Director of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. Dokhi Fassihian is the Executive Director of Democracy Coalition Project.
AFP/Getty Images
this rather funny piece is filled with elements of:
1. Western supremacism
2. Culture-phobia (unremitting fear of different cultures or perspectives)
3. Selective reading
4. Unqualified and prejudiced judgements
5. Radical feminism
its a sad day when Foreign Policy editorials begin to take such a hysterical and rather childish and simple-minded view of one of the most complex countries in the world (politically, socially, religiously, historically, geopolitically, and culturally)
grow up and start thinking deeper than the surface.
I think this piece is taking away from the "Middle East Channel"'s credibility.
So in your estimation Iran's recent history is a good resume for applican to the commission?
Three members of the National Iranian American Council are western supremacists who are afraid of their own culture? Really? It may be over the top in some parts (apparently women are randomly shot in the street because they are young and female), but are you seriously suggesting that Iran should get the position? And if all this is "radical feminism" then what is the CSW and what would Iran want with it? Please, explain.
America look at thyself in the mirror
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES
MURDER : :
Every day four women die in this country as a result of domestic violence, the euphemism for murders and assaults by husbands and boyfriends. That's approximately 1,400 women a year, according to the FBI. The number of women who have been murdered by their intimate partners is greater than the number of soldiers killed in the Vietnam War.
BATTERING:
Although only 572,000 reports of assault by intimates are officially reported to federal officials each year, the most conservative estimates indicate two to four million women of all races and classes are battered each year. At least 170,000 of those violent incidents are serious enough to require hospitalization, emergency room care or a doctor's attention.
SEXUAL ASSAULT :
Every year approximately 132,000 women report that they have been victims of rape or attempted rape, and more than half of them knew their attackers. It's estimated that two to six times that many women are raped, but do not report it. Every year 1.2 million women are forcibly raped by their current or former male partners, some more than once.
THE TARGETS:
Women are 10 times more likely than men to be victimized by an intimate. Young women, women who are separated, divorced or single, low- income women and African-American women are disproportionately victims of assault and rape. Domestic violence rates are five times higher among families below poverty levels, and severe spouse abuse is twice as likely to be committed by unemployed men as by those working full time. Violent attacks on lesbians and gay men have become two to three times more common than they were prior to 1988.
IMPACT ON CHILDREN : Violent juvenile offenders are four times more likely to have grown up in homes where they saw violence. Children who have witnessed violence at home are also five times more likely to commit or suffer violence when they become adults.
IMPACT ON HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES . Women who are battered have more than twice the health care needs and costs than those who are never battered. Approximately 17 percent of pregnant women report having been battered, and the results include miscarriages, stillbirths and a two to four times greater likelihood of bearing a low birth weight baby. Abused women are disproportionately represented among the homeless and suicide victims. Victims of domestic violence are being denied insurance in some states because they are considered to have a "pre-existing condition."
SOURCES:
"Violence Against Women: A National Crime Victimization Survey Report", U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., January 1994.
"The National Women's Study," Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, 1992.
"Five Issues In American Health," American Medical Association, Chicago, 1991.
Bullock, Linda F. and Judith McFarlane, "The Birth Weight/Battering Connection," Journal of American Nursing, September 1989.
McFarlane, Judith, et. al., "Assessing for Abuse During Pregnancy," Journal of the American Medical Association, June 17, 1992.
Federal Bureau of Investigation statistics, 1992.
Sheehan, Myra A. "An Interstate Compact on Domestic Violence: What are the Advantages?" Juvenile and Family Justice Today, 1993.
Sherman, Lawrence W. et al. Domestic Violence: Experiments and Dilemmas, 1990.
FACTS ABOUT WOMEN'S ABUSE IN THE 'CIVILIZED' WEST :
* Domestic Violence accounts for a quarter of all reported violent crime. [Working Party Report, Victim Support, 1992]
* Each year 100,000 women seek treatment in London for violent injuries caused in their homes.
[Punching Judy, BBC TV Documentary, 1989]
* Domestic Violence is not limited to physical assault. It includes sexual abuse and mental cruelty which undermine a woman's self-esteem. [McGibbon and Kelly, "Abuse of Women in the Home", 1989]
* Research conducted by Police found that 2/3 of all men believed that they would respond violently to their partners in certain situations. [Islington Council, 1994]
* Almost half of all murders of women are killings by current or former partners. [National Working Party Report on Domestic Violence, Victim Support, 1992]
From OASIS - "Opposing Abuse with Service, Information, and Shelter". You can visit their website: http://www.oasisinc.org/ Adapted from the American Bar Association.
Every day 4 women are **murdered** by their husbands, boyfriends, or ex-boyfriends after reported abuse.
An estimated 2 to 6 million women are battered annually in the USA.
Battering is the leading cause of injury to women between the ages of 15-44.
One out of four pregnant women are battered. The battering may start or excalate during pregnancy.
Medical expenses from Domestic Violence total at least $3 billion annually and businesses lose another $100 million in sick leave, absenteeism and productivity.
One out of 7 girls is abused by her boyfriend, and many will be abused by their husbands.
Every Day four women are murdered by their husbands, boyfriends, or ex-boyfriends after reported abuse.
Courtship violence is wide-spread and underreported by both men and women. 30% of High School students have experienced physical or sexual violence in dating relationships. 37% of Men and 35% of Women have inflicted some form of physical aggression on their dating partners.
Women sustained more injuries than men, and they were two to three times more likely to experience unwanted sexual intercourse.
95% of violent crime on Campus is alcohol or drug related.
37% of the assailants and 55% of victims of rape had used alcohol or other drugs.
Husbands and boyfriends commit 13,000 acts of violence against women in the workplace every year (United States Department of Justice, 1994).
Over 1.7 million women were physically abused in 1995 by their male partners, one every 12 seconds (Federal Bureau of Investigation).
There were approximently 4.5 million violent crimes against women in 1992 and 1993. (The Justice Department recognizes that this is an under-estimation of domestic violence and violence against women). (Bureau of Justice Statistics’ National Crime Victimization Survey).
50% of all women will be involved in some type of abusive relationship in their life time. We could be talking about your daughters, your mothers, your wives, your girlfriends.
In 95% of VIOLENT CRIMES on campuses, ALCOHOL OR DRUGS WERE A FACTOR.
30% of High School students have experienced physical or sexual violence in dating relationships.
37% of men and 35% of women have inflicted some form of physical aggression with their dating partners.
For every 1 rape that IS reported, 10 are NOT reported.
By the most conservative estimate, each year 1 million women suffer nonfatal violence by an intimate. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p. 3.)
Other estimates suggest that 4 million American women experience a serious assault by an intimate partner during an average 12-month period. (American Psychl. Ass’n. Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.)
Nearly 1 in 3 adult women experience at least one physical assault by a partner during adulthood. (American Psychl. Ass’n. Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.)
In 1993, approximately 575,000 men were arrested for committing violence against women, approximately 49,000 women were arrested for committing violence against men. (American Psychl. Ass’n. Violence and the Family: Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family (1996), p. 10.)
Domestic violence is statistically consistent across racial and ethnic boundaries. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p. 3.)
90-95% of domestic violence victims are women. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Selected Findings: Violence Between Intimates (NCJ-149259), November 1994.)
Much of female violence is committed in self-defense, and inflicts less injury than male violence. (Chalk & King, eds., Violence in Families: Assessing Prevention & Treatment Programs, National Resource Council and Institute of Medicine, p. 42 (1996).)
47% of men who beat their wives do so at least 3 times per year. (AMA Diagnostic & Treatment Guidelines on Domestic Violence, SEC: 94-677: 3M: 9/94 (1994).)
In homes where partner abuse occurs, children are 1,500 times more likely to be abused. (Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, Family Violence: Interventions for the Justice System, 1993.)
26% of pregnant teens reported being physically abused by their boyfriends, about half of them said the battering began or intensified after he learned of her pregnancy. (Brustin, S., Legal Response to Teen Dating Violence, Family Law Quarterly, vol. 29, no. 2, 333-334 (Summer 1995) (citing Worcester, A More Hidden Crime: Adolescent Battered Women, The Network News, July/Aug., National Women’s Health Network 1993).)
Female victims of violence are 2.5 times more likely to be injured when the violence is committed by an intimate than when committed by a stranger. (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report: Violence Against Women: Estimates from the Redesigned Survey (NCJ-154348), August 1995, p. 4.)
Domestic violence is an ongoing cycle producing increasingly severe injuries over time, battered women are likely to see physicians frequently. (Children’s Safety Network, Domestic Violence: A Directory of Protocols for Health Care Providers (1992) p. (1).)
65% of intimate homicide victims had separated from the perpetrator prior to their death. (Florida Governor’s Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Morality Review Project, 1997, p. 47, table 17.)
88% of victims domestic violence fatalities had a documented history of physical abuse. (Florida Governor’s Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Morality Review Project, 1997, pp. 46-48, tables 14-21.)
44% of victims of intimate homicides had prior threats by the killer to kill victim or self. 30% had prior police calls to the residence. 17% had a protection order. (Florida Governor’s Task Force on Domestic and Sexual Violence, Florida Morality Review Project, 1997, pp. 46-48, tables 14-21.)
From the YWCA of San Diego and the Domestic Violence Research and Training Institute. You can visit their website: http://www.ywcasandiego.org/
A female is battered every nine seconds. [California Alliance Against Domestic Violence, 1994]
It is estimated that one third of all high school and college students will have been in an abusive relationship by the time they graduate. [Levy, 1992]
Relationship violence is the number one cause of injury to women ages 15-44: more that rapes, muggings and car accidents combined. [Center For Community Solutions, 1997]
There are three times as many animal shelters in the United States as battered women shelters. [Senate Judiciary Committee, 1990]
63% of all boys ages 11-20 arrested for murder, murdered the man who was assaulting their mother.[Center For Community Solutions, 1997]
As many as 15 million women have been abused at some time during their lives. [Former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, 1989]
As many as one-quarter to two-thirds of battered women report abuse during preganancy.["Battered and Pregnant: A Prevalence Study," Journal of the American Public Health Association]
In a prospective study of 1,200 white, Hispanic and black pregnant women, one in six reported physical abuse during pregnancy. ["Abuse During Pregnancy: A Cross-Cultural Studyof Frequent and Severity of Injuries," J. McFarlane, 1991]
The average battered women is attacked three times each year. [Intimate Violence, R. Gelles and M. Straus, 1988]
22 to 35 percent of women who visit emergency departments in the United States are there for symptoms related to on-going abuse. ["Domestic Violence Intervention Calls for More than Treating Injuries," Journal of the American Medical Association, 1990]
Families in which domestic violence occurs use doctors eight times more often, visit the emergency room six times more often and use six times more prescription drugs than the general population. ["Domestic Violence: A Community Crisis Waiting for an Effective Response" Seattle Domestic Violence Intervention, 1989]
the long list of references you gave comes because we can say an d report the truth. the figures will be much higher in Iran. how about we both take a mirror each and look at ourselves, because i bet you are more ugly??
Lal, you missed the point, yet again
Violence against women is a universal problem.
The article is alluding to the normative legal position that a given State takes towards their share of the universal problem.
Yes, violence against women happens in the "Western World" and especially in the United States.
The point is how the authorities treat such violence. Do they give adequate legal recourse to the women that have been victims of said violence? Do they provide protections against abusive husbands and families? Do they have strict laws against workplace abuse or harassment?
I think the author's point is to say that the Iranian government under Ahmedinejad is actually regressing and taking away the rights that women had secured under successive reformers from within the approval of the Supreme Council, such as Khatami.
Violence is always a reality. It's the normative position that a government takes in protecting its female citizens that ought to determine which nations get to be members of councils charged with advancing the cause of protecting womens' rights.
And clearly, Iran's current regime and its attitude does not fit the bill.
Iranian women have fought this regime non-violently and resolutely for 30 years. Its young women have been shot and killed on the streets of the Tehran
From the Iranian perspective, are they not just trying to establish the proper place for women in society and hope that, by becoming a part of this organiztion, attempt to correct the many, Western ideological flaws that create the host of immoral problems, and earthquakes, that resound throughout the non-Islamic Republic world? I mean, when was the last time an earthquake hit Iran? If it was before the Shah was ousted, obviously they have something here. Maybe we should attempt to hide stray hair in the hopes of not having another Haiti, or saving ourselves from our downward spiral to complete immorality.
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