Judiciary Deputy's Opposition to Bill on Violence Against Women

Two days after the remarks of the new Vice President for Women and Family Affairs regarding serious follow-up on the bill to combat violence against women, the Deputy for Legal Affairs of the Judiciary opposed this bill. Zabiollah Khodayan, the Deputy for Legal Affairs of the Judiciary, announced on Thursday, August 24, that the bill to combat violence against women is "merely formulated from a gender perspective." According to Mr. Khodayan, 70 out of 100 articles of the bill have "criminal descriptions" and "even imposes imprisonment for the slightest tension between spouses." This judiciary official did not provide further explanations about this bill. Last year, some government officials and members of parliament reported on the final reviews for the approval of the bill to combat violence against women in the government. This bill is set to be approved under the name of the bill for the security of women against violence, but it has not yet been presented to the parliament. Meanwhile, Masoumeh Ebtekar, the Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, announced on August 22 that she would "seriously pursue" the bill for the security of women against violence. Several members of parliament with different political orientations have also supported this bill. For instance, Zahra Saei, a representative from Tabriz, stated in an interview with the House of the Nation website, affiliated with the parliament, that this bill "will legally guarantee women's security." Mohammad Ali Pourmokhtar, a principlist member of parliament, also emphasized that the bill for the security of women "can significantly help support them." According to Mr. Pourmokhtar, based on this bill, special courts will be established to punish violence against women, and a female advisory judge will be used in these cases. Soheila Jaloudarzadeh, a representative from Tehran in parliament, also mentioned that "the lack of support for women against violence and abuse has caused them to remain silent in the face of such violence to preserve their honor, which has increased their psychological pressure." Last year, a meeting was also held at the Bar Association regarding violence against women. Maryam Kian-Arthi, a lawyer, stated at that meeting that "according to research by the Ministry of Interior in 2004, about 66% of Iranian women experienced violence at least once during their married life." Additionally, statistics published in January 2017 by forensic officials in Tehran indicate that spousal abuse was the main reason for citizens' visits to forensic medicine after accidents and street fights, with an average of 52 cases of spousal abuse reported daily to forensic medicine in Tehran. However, in December 2014, Mohammad Ali Esfahani, the spokesman for the Legal and Judicial Commission of the Iranian parliament, stated that only "less than 35%" of domestic violence cases in Iran are reported to the police. According to Mr. Esfahani, based on the results of a study, out of 180 complaints by women against domestic violence, 128 cases were not pursued legally for various reasons. In 2014, Shahindokht Molaverdi, the then Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, reported that 32 volumes containing the results of a national study on forms of domestic violence against women in Iran were "lost," and no copies were found "in the Ministry of Interior or the Center for Women and Family Affairs." According to Ms. Molaverdi, this project was carried out in 28 provinces by the Ministry of Interior and universities across Iran during Mohammad Khatami's presidency, but during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency, these reports were "set aside," not utilized, and ultimately lost. November 25 is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, established in 1981 to unite and create global efforts in this area. On November 25, 1960, three sisters named Maria, Patria, and Antonia Mirabal were killed by agents of Rafael Trujillo, the former dictator of the Dominican Republic, and this date was designated as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. According to United Nations assessments, one in three female citizens will experience sexual or physical violence in their lifetime.