Md. Muddassir Quamar
Women, Life, Freedom! (In Persian: Zan, Zindagi, Azadi!)
This slogan has echoed among Iranian protesters and their supporters worldwide. The protests were triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year old Kurdish-Iranian girl, on September 16 2022, in the custody of morality policy, known as Ghast-e-Ershad (Guidance Patrol). Amini was detained for not wearing her hijab(head cover) properly while on a trip to Tehran from her home town Saqqez in northwest Kurdistan province. After detentions, she was reportedly taken to a counselling session where she was allegedly assaulted, and later succumbed to her injuries in a hospital.
The death caused widespread anger leading to protests which has now continued for close to two months, and has resonated among a large section of Iranians, especially the youth. Although other socio-political and economic issues have coalesced to make into a larger political movement, at the core the protests remain about women’s rights and freedom.
The issue of women’s rights in Iran is complex. One of the key mobilising issues against the Shah’s rule that eventually led to the 1979 revolution and foundation of the Islamic Republic was the question of women’s role in the society. While the elites and sections of the urbanized populace preferred adopting modern life choices, a vast section of the populace saw unveiled women as sinful and a reflection of westernization.
After the revolution, one of the early decisions taken by Ayatollah Khomeini was imposing restrictions on women’s movement and dressing. Accordingly, women in public were mandated by law to cover themselves completely using a chador– a long piece of dull-colored clothing. Alternatively, Iranian women use loose and long overcoats and trousers along with hijab to cover their head and body fully. Women also face other restrictions based on sharia laws interpreted according to Ja‘fari jurisprudence. This has also led to lower representation of women in politics, bureaucracy and sports although women participation in education, arts and unorganized economic activities remains high.
Nonetheless, the status quo on imposition of dress code on women in public has caused some women activists to raise their voice from time-to-time, but it has hardly had any political impact. Women did partake in protests movements such as during the 2009 Green Movement and the frequent protests due to economic and governance-related grievances, the issue of women’s rights have seldom been raised prominently. In the aftermath of the Green Movement and during the early days of Arab Spring, Iran did witness some social media activism on women’s rights issues by activists including Masih Alinejad but the issue largely remains out of the purview of broader public debate and mobilization. Even the frequent protests witnessed in the country since 2017-18 have hardly touched upon issues of women.
In that respect, the protests triggered by the death of Aminiare extraordinary and the slogan women, life, freedom!Underline the growing dissatisfaction of young Iranians, men and women, on the status quo they have to endure. Iranian youth, like their counterparts in the broader region, are increasingly connected to the world and their aspirations do not necessarily remain in tune with the regime’s expectations.
This was considered as one of the primary reasons that triggered the widespread protests and uprisings in the Arab world in 2011-12. Nonetheless, the question in everyone’s mind is what direction the protests in Iran are heading. Can it lead to any political change? Will it force any reflection on part of the Islamic Republic on issues being raised in the demonstrations?
The fact that the protests have acquired a wider manifestation of anti-regime protests, and many demonstrators have even shouted slogans such as “death to the dictator” and tore away posters of prominent figures including Ali Khamenei, the octogenarian Supreme Leader of Iran, have led some to believe that the Iranian regime will collapse under pressure or at least,will be significantly weakened from within.
Such hopes have been encouraged by the fact that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has, thus far, not directly confronted the demonstrators, and has preferred to use its auxiliary arm, the basij (voluntary militia), to tackle them. There are also reports of many within the regime and its supporters cautioning it about the futility of suppressing the protests by force leading to speculations that the regime is losing support from within.
Notwithstanding the widespread nature of the protests, the response of the regime and its security forces, and the internal divisions, it is difficult to argue that the Islamic Republic is facing an existential crisis as a result of the ongoing protests. Undoubtedly, the protests have created serious challenges for the regime and the government of Ebrahim Raisi, already struggling to respond to mounting economic and foreign policy challenges.
It also underlines the width and depth of the discontent among the populace against the policy choices of the regime and the government. But to suggest that it is likely to force a political change or even a rethink is perhaps an overestimation of the situation in the current scenario. Statements from the Supreme Leader, government figures, judicial authorities and security apparatus underscore the regime’s view on the protestors as mere disruptors acting in accord with “enemy” countries.
Predictably, the regime has been terming the protestors as “rioters” and “arsonists” supported and funded by the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Regime figures have warned protestors of action and reports suggest that over 250 Iranians have lost their lives, while thousands have been arrested. On 31 October, Iran’s judicial authorities announced that 1,000 protesters will be tried in public in Tehran for indulging in “subversive” activities.
Iran has also tried to deflect attention from the protests by attacking the headquarters of Iranian-Kurdish opposition groups based in the Iraqi Kurdistan region. The government has imposed restrictions on the internet, and arrested those viewed as leaders organizing the protests hoping that the movement will gradually lose esteem. It has also been cautious in use of force to avoid large scale killings to avoid further escalation. Thus, the regime has hoped to blame the protests on external forces and has used mild force to keep the situation under control.
This does not mean that the regime can claim to have successfully managed the crisis as the protests are going on with the country witnessing serious outpouring of mourners and demonstrators on 26 October 2022 to commemorate the 40th day of Amini’s death. There is no doubt that the Iranian regime is facing an unprecedented credibility and legitimacy crisis, and the youth have gradually become distanced from the revolutionary ideals.
The popular discontent underlined that the regime can no longer afford to ignore the political and economic crises facing the country. The protests are likely to increase the pressure on the Raisi government to deliver better public services, solve economic problems and find a way to reach out to the growing political opposition.In other words, the crisis generated by the protests poses questions on maintainability of the political status quo. This question becomes more complicated because of the fact that the Islamic Republic will have to choose a successor to Khamenei sooner than later, and the new Supreme Leader will inherit a crisis-ridden country.
Political consequences notwithstanding, the protests triggered by Amini’s death have challenged the status quo on women’s rights. Modern Muslim societies have struggled to come to terms with changing gender norms, especially when it comes to the women’s freedom of choice.The prevalence of restrictions on women is even more pronounced in the Middle Eastern societies including in Iran.
Women have to often face highly restrictive social, political and economic circumstances limiting and restricting their rights and freedom. This is also visible in states imposing dress codes on women as the case is in the Islamic Republic that mandates women to be modestly dressed and fully covered including their head and hair. Violation of the dress code attracts public reprimand, and is even punishable by imprisonment up to two months or a fine of up to 50,000 Iranian riyals. The religious police overzealously implements the dress code in public places and have been often accused of high-handedness when dealing with “defiant” women.
The protests triggered by the killing of Mahsa Amini by morality police over imposition of dress code and hijab has seriously challenged the status quo on restrictions on Iranian women. Protestors have come out in large numbers in defiance of the dress code to remove their hijab and even cut off their hairs, an act that is customarily considered sinful. For the first time since the Islamic revolution, Iranian women have come out in such large numbers protesting against imposition of dress code and public restrictions on them and are demanding a change.
That it has resonated widely among the populace and even among a section of regime supporters is indicative of the way the aspirations of young Iranians are changing. Whatever might be the outcome of these protests, they have undoubtedly challenged the status quo, especially on the restrictions on women. Thus, going forward it might be difficult for Iranian authorities to continue imposing strict compliance of dress code on women in public. The situation might as well not lead to any serious legal and procedural changes if the regime figures decide to remain defiant in the face of mounting challenges.
The author is Fellow, Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies & Analysis, New Delhi.
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