Sanction Iran for women's rights failures
Following the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Iran drastically shifted their politics, prioritising political Islam as its guiding ideology for the government and its people. This pivot enabled the government to maintain repressive control over their people while consolidating their power.
Their foreign policy subsequently followed, depicting a desire to proliferate their strength beyond their own borders, and reflecting a desire for domination as a means for gaining the Ayatollah’s own warped version of political stability in the region. This approach has gone hand in hand with a series of sever human rights abuses, which are going on to this day.
Especially the fierce and gruesome crackdown by the Iranian regime on women and women’s rights activists necessitate a strong response from the international community. For the soon-to-be Labour-led UK government, which holds the principles of human rights in high regard, here lies an opportunity to take the global lead in taking a stance against Tehran’s crimes that goes beyond just words and incorporates additional sanctions against the regime to make it clear that these basic values of humanity cannot be treated lightly.
It is imperative that incoming Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his administration reinstate past financial sanctions against Iran, to give a clear sign that Tehran’s malpractices will not be tolerated by the West.
Since the 1979 revolution and particularly in recent years, the rights of women in Iran have rapidly deteriorated, for the worse. Before the Islamic Revolution, women enjoyed advancement in education, employment, and legal rights under the Shah.
Despite societal barriers, there were still significant efforts in order to create a more accepting and progressive environment for women. The balance between the traditional and the modern was not only respected, but expected, with the growing openness of globalisation.
In September 2022, Mahsa Amani, who has since become a symbol for women’s right in the region, was detained by Iran’s morality police for improperly wearing her hijab and subsequently killed, sparking outrage throughout the country. Her death served as a symbol of resistance against the Islamic Republic’s outdated policies, leading to protests and civil unrest In Iran. Amid the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement, Iranian authorities are determined to track and arrest women’s rights activists.
While the protests call for an end to the compulsory hijab law, they also address the need for greater freedom and rights for women, holding the current regime responsible for the extreme deterioration of human rights. The government has retaliated through mass beatings, arrests, as well as the restricted flow of media and communication between countries. Despite the global support that the movement has garnered, the state ran propaganda campaigns in order to discredit the protests and target journalists reporting on the news.
Narges Mohammadi, an Iranian human rights activist, has fiercely advocated for women’s rights in Iran for most of her career. Mohammadi is currently in Tehran’s infamous Evin Prison, serving time for “spreading propaganda” against the Islamic Republic. With an increase of activists and journalists being imprisoned for their efforts in protecting the rights of women, Iran relies on external sources for aid and respite.
As Iran extends its reach in surrounding countries by taking advantage of the existing power vacuums in the Middle East and Africa, more and more women risk being stripped of their rights. Supreme leader of Iran since 1989, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has pushed his interpretation as truth and sought to spread his beliefs to Middle Eastern countries like Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria, and African countries like Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
In Lebanon, Shia Islamist political militant group Hezbollah aligns and looks for support in Khamenei’s principles. As Iran exerts their power, Hezbollah doubles down on restrictive policies, many of which are placed on the personal freedoms of women and their submission to men.
Additional Shia extremist groups that operate out of Iraq, Nigeria, and Yemen, have received aid and the backing of the Islamic Republic, advocating for conservative values that put women in harm's way. While Iran aims to gain political stability and cultural relevance in these countries, they default to exhibiting controlling behaviour over their citizens to keep them submissive.
Acts such as The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) that was adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, must be encouraged and supported in order to protect women’s rights internationally.
Providing the protection for media outlets and women’s rights activists that cover the atrocities that women face in Iran and Iran aligned countries must remain at the top of the international communities’ attention. Economic sanctions against countries that directly engage in restrictive and harmful behaviour towards women may also serve as a deterrent for countries that support the ideologies that Khameini’s government spouts. This is something that a new UK government should explore with priority, to contain and counter the spread of these women’s rights violations as much and as quickly as possible.
The deterioration of women’s rights and its exportation to susceptible nations is a significant human rights violation. The protests from the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement have displayed the consolidated efforts that are required in order to grab the attention of the international community and cause a disruption to the current system. The women under the repressive Islamic rule touted by Khemeini remain vulnerable in Iran without the help of the foreign nations.
Ultimately, with the growing political influence of Iran, women are reliant on the international community to counteract the negative influence of these repressive policies. A unified and proactive approach from foreign actors is necessary to ensure the protection of the rights of women in Iran and the region at large. Now more than ever is the time for the UK to take on this responsibility and stand firmly behind the values it holds so dearly.
Julieta is a political scientist from the Casa Grande University of Ecuador. She is an expert and professor of public administration and public policies.
