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Iranians never willfully accepted the hijab [Veil] (History with pictures)
Iranian ^ | 12/17/03 | Iranian

Posted on 12/17/2003 3:59:11 PM PST by freedom44

After the fall of the Pahlavi regime in February 1979, Iran's religious leaders imposed strict rules on women's clothing in public. The following is a chronology of women's protests in the early days. From In the Shadow of Islam by Azar Tabari and Nahid Yeganeh. See photos here.

10-11 Feb 1979 Overthrow of the government of Prime Minister Shapour Bakhtias and establishment of the first Islamic government administration under the premiership of Mehdi Bazargan.

26 Feb. 1979 Family Protection Law suspended by a letter issued by the Office of Ayatollah Khomeini. A Government spokesman later stated that the old law would remain in effect until new legislation was drafted.

3 March 1979 Issuing of decrees appointing women as judges was stopped. Qualified women were told to apply for administrative posts in the judiciary.

4 March 1979 Khomeini, in a speech addressed to thousands of women who had gone to Qom to pay him respect, said that in Islam the right to divorce is the prerogative of the husband, but women could specify in the marriage contract that in case of maltreatment by the husband they are entitled to divorce themselves.

6 March 1979 Minister of Defense, General Madani, declared that women would not be drafted into the army in future. All women serving their conscription terms were dismissed and released from military service.

7 March 1979 During a speech addressed to thousands of visitors in Qom, Khomeini said that women were not prohibited from taking jobs, but that they must wear the Islamic veil at work

8 Mach 1979 Mass demonstration of women to celebrate International Women's Day, and to protest against Khomeini's statement regarding the veil. From early hours of the morning meetings were held in girl's high schools and in Tehran University. Marches, spontaneously decided upon in such meetings, got on their way during the day , some converging on Tehran University, others going to the Office of the Prime Minister Bazargan, others heading for the Ministry of Justice. Some of the slogans of the demonstrators were: 'Freedom in our culture; to stay at home is our shame' 'Liberty and equality are our undeniable rights' ' We will fight against compulsory veil; down with dictatorship' ' In the dawn of freedom, we already lack freedom' 'Women's Day of Emancipation is neither Western, nor Eastern, it is international' 'Freedom does not take rules and regulations".

In several incidents women demonstrators were physically attacked on the streets. Revolutionary Guards fired in the air to disperse women demonstrators, estimated by the press at 15,000, from the streets around the Prime Minister's office. Many meetings, planned in advance by various women's groups on the occasion of International WOmen's Day, were held throughout the day, each drawing an audience of several thousands.

9 March 1979 Segregation of sports was proposed. Women were subsequently barred from international sports on the grounds that coaches, judges, spectators, etc. in such events include men.

10 March 1979 Further demonstrations and sit-ins against imposition of the veil. A mass meeting of women held at the Ministry of Justice. The meeting was attacked by hard-liners and women were beaten by armed men. 10 March 1979: Demonstration of women in front of the National Television, protesting against the news black-out of their demonstration and activities. Prime Minister Bazargan announced that wearing the veil is not compulsory and that Imam Khomeini's statement had been misunderstood.

11 March 1979 Even though, following Bazargan's statement, some of the women's organizations withdrew their support for the demonstration planned for this day, some 20,000 women attended the rally in Tehran University. After several speeches, women marched towards Azadi Square. Along the route the march drew support from offices, hospitals and schools. It was attacked at several points by Muslim fanatics, men and women. The final rally had to be abandoned because of the increasing number of fanatics encircling the rally point.

21 May 1979 Ministry of Education banned co-education. All educational institutions were ordered to segregate all classes. Many institutions indicated that since the number of female students alone would not justify setting up separate classes they could be unable to register any female students. In late September, when schools opened, female students of technical training schools staged a protest against de facto suspension of their studies as a result of this decision. They were told to change their courses of training to fields where there were enough female students to justify separate training courses.

3 June 1979 The Ministry of Education banned married women from attending ordinary high schools. They were told they should continue studies on their won and take part in special examinations in order to obtain final degrees. Coupled with the lowering minimum age for marriage of women to 13 years, this would mean an increase, over the coming years, in lower educational levels for women.

13 June 1979 All the day-care and nursery centers at work-places were closed and women with children were encouraged to quit their jobs and stay at home. The women employees of the Communication Corporation were threatened with mass lay-off.

8 July 1979 Several Caspian Sea resort towns initiated a sexual 'segregation' of the sea. Many women were flogged in public during the summer of 1979 on charges of swimming in the men's section.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: iran; islam; muslimwomen; pahlavi
Excellent chronology w/ pictures
1 posted on 12/17/2003 3:59:12 PM PST by freedom44
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To: freedom44



Iranians in 1979 protesting possible 'mandatory veil'
2 posted on 12/17/2003 4:00:09 PM PST by freedom44
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To: freedom44

March 8, 1979 demosntration on International Women's Day.


Women protesters, some expelled by the new head of Iranian state radio and TV Sadegh Ghotbzadeh. Sign reads: "All forms of dictatorship is condemned; all forms of reactionary actions are condemned."
3 posted on 12/17/2003 4:01:53 PM PST by freedom44
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To: freedom44



Iranian females demonstrate against possible mandatory veil.
4 posted on 12/17/2003 4:03:46 PM PST by freedom44
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To: knighthawk; McGavin999; SJackson; tet68; Eala; Stultis; river rat; risk; F14 Pilot; DoctorZIn; ...
iran history ping
5 posted on 12/17/2003 4:05:02 PM PST by freedom44
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To: freedom44
They all look like normal westerners in those pictures.... Such a sad thing what happened to Iran since.
6 posted on 12/17/2003 4:05:25 PM PST by smith288 ("The United States has a system of taxation by confession." - Hugo Black,Supreme Court Justice)
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To: smith288
Yeah Iran was very westernized... now it's in the pits of hell.
7 posted on 12/17/2003 4:06:45 PM PST by freedom44
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To: ConservativeLawStudent; The Bronze Titan; FairOpinion; Cicero; marron
ping
8 posted on 12/17/2003 4:07:14 PM PST by freedom44
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To: smith288
13 June 1979 All the day-care and nursery centers at work-places were closed and women with children were encouraged to quit their jobs and stay at home.

Very progressive for the time. Day-cares at businesses didn't become a perk here in the US until the nineties, and most businesses still do not provide it.

9 posted on 12/17/2003 4:08:41 PM PST by Pan_Yans Wife ("Your joy is your sorrow unmasked." --- GIBRAN)
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To: freedom44
Thank you for posting the pictures, freedom.
10 posted on 12/17/2003 4:09:13 PM PST by Pan_Yans Wife ("Your joy is your sorrow unmasked." --- GIBRAN)
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To: freedom44
What's fascinating, from a pampered westerner's point of view, is that everything changed so rapidly.

I suppose when constitutionalists here in the US remind us to watch and protect our freedoms, they see the incrimental damage.

What happened in Iran is a travesty.
11 posted on 12/17/2003 4:14:24 PM PST by Pan_Yans Wife ("Your joy is your sorrow unmasked." --- GIBRAN)
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To: freedom44
Wonderful pictures! Thanks for this post.
12 posted on 12/17/2003 4:14:31 PM PST by EggsAckley
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To: freedom44
Dude, persian chicks are hot!

I'm sorry...after 12 years of public school education that's all I can muster.
13 posted on 12/17/2003 4:19:44 PM PST by AreaMan
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To: AreaMan
Check out Catherine Bell from JAG. Hmmmmm Catherine Bell.
14 posted on 12/17/2003 5:04:48 PM PST by FreedomSurge
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To: Pan_Yans Wife
What's fascinating, from a pampered westerner's point of view, is that everything changed so rapidly.
I suppose when constitutionalists here in the US remind us to watch and protect our freedoms, they see the incrimental damage.

It seemed to change so rapidly only because the West (and the press) wasn't really paying much attention. My wife recalls the protests and demonstrations in Tehran six years earlier, and even two years earlier I saw it myself on an American college campus -- though at the time to me it only looked like an echo of the Vietnam protests.

A book by the (former? exiled) Anglican Bishop of Iran notes precursors as far back as 1961.

But things do seem to move slow, until you reach the tipping point. And we haven't reached ours -- yet.

15 posted on 12/17/2003 5:06:47 PM PST by Eala (Sacrificing tagline fame for... TRAD ANGLICAN RESOURCE PAGE: http://eala.freeservers.com/anglican)
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To: FreedomSurge
Can't stand watching JAG.

Too PC. The one that did it for me is when Ms. Bell's character was lecturing a jarhead, probably for doing something too masculine, and berated him saying, "John Wayne is dead ...."

Although, you are right, she is smokin' hot.
16 posted on 12/17/2003 9:51:52 PM PST by AreaMan
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To: AreaMan
She's Iranian you know.
17 posted on 12/17/2003 10:04:47 PM PST by FreedomSurge
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To: freedom44
Thanks~!
18 posted on 12/17/2003 10:14:20 PM PST by F14 Pilot (A wise man changes his mind, a fool never does.)
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