Iran Volleyball Federation Announces Ban on Women's Entry to Competition Halls

Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) reported on Wednesday, June 17, citing its sources within the Iranian Volleyball Federation, that the entry of women to the volleyball competition hall for the match between Iran and the USA has been prohibited. This news came a day after some attendees at the funeral ceremony for 270 victims of the Iran-Iraq war in Tehran held placards demanding action against the presence of women in stadiums and warned responsible bodies such as the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Sports and Youth that they would react if women's presence in stadiums was realized. Based on images broadcast by Iranian television from this ceremony, the placards called for a protest gathering on Wednesday in front of the central building of the Ministry of Sports and Youth. Meanwhile, Shirin Ebadi, head of the Center for Human Rights Defenders and Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate, wrote a letter to the head of the UN Women’s agency discussing the intensified crackdown on women activists, including arrests and heavy judicial sentences, and the prohibition of women's entry to stadiums. In her letter, Ebadi emphasized that 'the government [of Iran] has the duty to provide women with the opportunity to watch sports competitions.' According to the Nobel laureate, 'Women, especially young Iranian girls, have been striving for years to attend sports stadiums and watch competitions.' She referred to the formation of a campaign related to this issue, noting that some of its activists, including Ghoncheh Ghavami, have faced crackdowns. Previously, Reza Hassani-Khoo, head of the security department of the Ministry of Sports, stated that various plans regarding women's presence in halls and stadiums have been reviewed, but these plans have not yet led to a final decision. According to this official from the Ministry of Sports and Youth, 'observance of divine and religious limits,' 'non-mixing of women and men,' 'supervision of women's attire,' 'classification of sports competitions according to the separation of sports disciplines,' and criteria such as 'athletes' attire,' 'the spirit governing the sport,' and 'age category' of the sporting event are emphasized in this plan. Previously, the Iranian Volleyball Federation had announced that, considering the emphasis and sensitivity of the International Volleyball Federation regarding the single-gendering of sports environments, family members of players and a specific number of female spectators would be allowed into the hall with identification cards. Hopes for women's presence in the hall for the World Volleyball League competitions were bolstered when, recently, women were allowed to attend the final of the Iranian Basketball Premier League between the teams of Mahram and Azad University. However, this news was met with reactions from hardline groups, including 'Ansar Hezbollah' and 'teachers and seminary students of the Irovan seminary,' who issued a call to confront women's presence in stadiums. Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, Minister of Interior in the eleventh government, also announced after the escalation of tensions regarding women's presence in stadiums that 'there is no new directive for women's entry into stadiums, and we will act according to past laws. Media should reflect this issue so that there are no problems in the upcoming volleyball match in the sports stadium.' The International Volleyball Federation has threatened that if women's presence in the hall for the World Volleyball League competitions is prevented, Iran will be deprived of the right to host these competitions. The Iranian volleyball team will host the USA volleyball team on June 18 and 20 as part of the World Volleyball League.