Larijani's Directive to Courts in Effort to Resolve 'Crisis' of Dowry

Following increased criticism regarding the number of dowry prisoners in Iran, which has seen a '71 percent increase', the head of the judiciary issued a directive on Tuesday to prevent the imprisonment of those convicted of dowry. In the directive published on the official website of the judiciary, Sadeq Larijani requested that courts address requests for 'adjustment' of the dowry amount presented by husbands 'out of turn and without setting a hearing date'. He added that courts should 'extend the payment deadlines for the dowry in accordance with the financial situation of the convicted party to prevent their imprisonment'. The highest judicial authority in Iran stated that this directive was issued because 'according to some reports, a number of those convicted of dowry payments are unable to pay due to the unreasonable increase in the price of gold coins and are therefore sent to prison under the law regarding the execution of financial convictions.' Following the renewed discussion on the increase in the number of dowry prisoners in Iran, Naser Makarem Shirazi, a cleric residing in Qom, suggested in an open letter to the head of the judiciary that several experts come to meet him in Qom 'to address the four important issues regarding dowry in a scholarly environment away from anger'. Mr. Makarem Shirazi wrote in his letter to Sadeq Larijani that his aim for this correspondence and discussion is to 'clarify the progressive laws of Islam and assist a group of those trapped by dowry'. Sadeq Larijani also responded to the criticism that the judiciary has become 'detached from the religious domain' by stating: 'I respectfully say to him, why is it spoken of as if the judicial officials and judges have come from the mountains? We have also come from these religious circles.' The correspondence between these two political-religious figures in Iran comes as the official website of the judiciary stated: 'Unpaid dowries were only a major problem in previous years, but the heavy legal costs and enforcement efforts, along with the 71 percent increase in these debtors, have turned the issue of dowry into a crisis.' The news agency Mizan reported, citing the public relations office of the Iran Diyeh Fund, that 'at the beginning of the year 1397 (2018), the number of dowry prisoners was 2,978, which has since seen a 40 percent increase due to various reasons, including the rising price of gold coins; this ratio is from the beginning and middle of the year, but comparing the current prisoner statistics with those from 1393 (2014) shows a 71 percent increase in this number.' This report warns that comparing the number of dowry prisoners over the past five years shows that from 2,148 prisoners in Farvardin 1393, the current number of dowry debtors has 'doubled'. Of the total 4,194 dowry prisoners in Iran, Fars province has the highest number with 514 prisoners, followed by Tehran and Isfahan, each with 431 debtors. Mizan reported that according to statistics, 'nearly 60 percent of prisoners for non-intentional crimes in cities like Kerman are dowry debtors.'