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Parliament
members and elected officials in courts and prison
Article
86 [Independence, Indemnity] of the Iranian Constitution:
Members of the Assembly are completely free in expressing their
views and casting their votes in the course of performing their
duties as representatives, and they cannot be prosecuted or arrested
for opinions expressed in the Assembly or votes cast in the course
of performing their duties as representatives.
Over
the past year, the Judiciary has handed down a series of verdicts
against reformist members of the Iranian parliament, the Majlis, for
a mishmash of charges ranging from “inciting public opinion” to
“misinterpreting the words of Ayatollah Khomeini.” The
Majlis has protested the arrests as un-Constitutional, citing
deputies’ parliamentary immunity for statements made in the line
of duty.
Despite
the chorus of disapproval and public denunciations by influential
figures such as Zahra Rahnavard, chancellor of Al-Zahra University
and President Khatami himself, approximately 60 deputies have been
summoned to court during the past year. The following are some of
the women who have been charged and sentenced:
Fatemeh
Haqiqatjou’s legal troubles began in February of last year when
she publicly condemned the use of violence against detainees and
prisoners. When a notice to appear in court arrived mid-Majlis
session, Vice-Speaker Behzad Nabavi refused to deliver the summons
on the grounds of its un-Constitutionality. Shortly after
Haqiqatjou defiantly denounced any future summons as a violation of
deputies’ immunity, a warrant for her arrest was issued.
On
March 27, she appeared in court for statements made in connection
with the arrest of reform journalist, Fariba Davoudi Rad. Haqiqatjou
had blasted officials for allegedly using force at the time of
Davoudi Rad’s arrest, and denounced officials’ tactics in
securing student activist Ali Afshari’s confession, claiming it
was made under duress. She was ultimately convicted on August
20th of misinterpreting Ayatollah Khomeini’s words, propagating
against the Islamic Republic, slandering members of the Guardian
Council and the judiciary, and inciting public opinion.
The
High Court recently upheld her sentencing, although she has yet to
begin serving time.
City
of Oroumieh MP, Shahrbanou Amani, was sentenced to four-months in
prison and given a four-year suspended sentence for “insulting
conservative deputy Mohammad Abbaspour in an interview with a local
publication,” said her colleague Ahmad Bourghani (IRNA,
March 12, 2002)
In
January, Zahra Amoujani, an alternate member of the Islamic City
Council of Zanjan was arrested with her 8-month old baby, and
subsequently sentenced to three years in a closed hearing. Ms.
Amoujani was accused of helping her husband, Rassoul Abassi flee the
country after his no-show for questioning by authorities. Her
family has filed a complaint with the Majlis 90 Commission
concerning her arrest, and several MP’s have requested information
from the Ministry of Intelligence regarding her case.
The
Majlis 90 Commission is responsible for investigating grievances and
claims of individuals against the three branches of government, as
well as other state affiliated organs. More than half of the
filed complaints have been against the judiciary.
Despite
speculations concerning Amoujani’s husband’s unconfirmed past
employment with the Intelligence Ministry, its representative to the
Majlis has publicly denied any illegal activity.
Majlis
to review the UN Convention on the Elimination Against all forms of
Discrimination Against Women
The
6th Majlis has announced that the bill on Iran’s membership to the
Convention would brought to the floor by mid-May. Originally
scheduled for early March, it is believed the date was postponed due
to concern over insufficient support for the bill, and to buy time
to garner more votes. [See “Joining on the Condition of
Discrimination” in this edition for a full discussion.]
Quotas
for dumb men
In
response to the widening gap between women and men’s performances
on the nation-wide university qualifying exams, concerned men
proposed the use of quotas to ensure the stability of the family.
Last fall, men’s rights advocates shuddered when women
outperformed their male counterparts once again, claiming 62% of
incoming university spots. Up four percentage points from the
previous year, some newspapers voiced their concern over the
alarming trend and proposed implementing quotas for male students,
stressing that if women began marrying less educated men, the
stability and harmony of the family unit would be jeopardized.
National
Lawyers’ Institute elect two women to board of directors
For
the first time, two women were elected to the 12-member board of
directors of the Tehran office of the National Lawyers’ Guild.
Responsible for issuing practicing licenses, the influential 1,200
member guild voted women’s rights attorney, Farideh Gheyrat and
Minoo Ashari Rad to the board on March 7. Ms. Gheyrat has
begun plans to revitalize a women’s lawyers’ association.
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