“Women, Life, Freedom”

“Freedom, liberty, down with the compulsory hijab”

“Our scarf is the rope [by which] we will hang you!”

 

These are some of the slogans you can hear being chanted by enraged Iranian protestors. The demonstrations in Iran were incited following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died in police custody on the 16th of September 2022. On September 13th, three days before her death, Amini was detained by the Iranian Gasht-e-Ershad, or “morality police,” in Tehran for allegedly violating Iran’s strict hijab law, which requires women and girls over the age of nine to cover their hair in public. While Amini’s family was told that she would be released from police custody following a “re-education session,” witnesses reported seeing police beat Amini in the detention van following her arrest. In response to her death, officials stated that Amini’s death was the result of a heart attack, however, Amini’s family vehemently denies these claims.

Immediately following Amini’s funeral held in Saqqez on the 17th of September, the first protests occurred, where women ripped off their hijabs in solidarity. Since September, protests and demonstrations have been ongoing, reportedly taking place in nearly 80 cities throughout Iran, as well as attracting international support. Demonstrations have been majorly spearheaded by women protestors, many of whom have been fueled by the shared feeling that “they could be Mahsa”. As the demonstrations have gained traction, large numbers of men and teenage boys have protested alongside women protestors, and, notably, many schoolgirls have also been showing their support by burning their hijabs throughout schools across Iran.

 

In response to these protests, Iranian security forces have taken violent action, including the firing of live ammunition on streets. Due to media censorship by the Iranian government, there is limited information on how many people have been killed amid protests, however, Human Rights Activists in Iran have reported that at least 529 people have been killed in demonstrations and that nearly 20,000 individuals have been detained by authorities. Resultantly, many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international organisations (IOs) fighting for human rights and gender equality have made statements concerning the Iran protests – one of which has been UN Women.

 

UN Women: Who are they?

UN Women was established in July 2010 following a resolution passed by the United Nations (‘UN’), which demanded the “strengthening of institutional arrangements for support of gender equality and the empowerment of women.” UN Women is the result of decades worth of feminist activism within the field of international politics, where scholars such as Cynthia Enloe and J. Ann Tickner highlighted the importance of including gendered perspectives in international relations. Gender considerations have thus become an increasingly significant factor in all areas of international relations, particularly in the examination of the effects of conflict and structural gender biases on women. Accordingly, UN Women was established to support UN Member States in their journey to set global standards for achieving gender equality, and to support governments and civil society as they design laws, policies, programmes, and services to ensure that these standards truly benefit women and girls globally. UN Women’s mandates specifically state that their four strategic priorities are:

• “For women to lead, participate in and benefit equally from governance systems;
• For women to have income security, decent work and economic autonomy;
• For all women and girls to live a life free from all forms of violence; and
• For women and girls to contribute to and have greater influence in building sustainable peace and resilience, and benefit equally from the prevention of natural disasters and conflicts in humanitarian action.”

While UN Women is headquartered in New York, they are able to establish relationships with countries across the globe through a network of regional, country, and liaison offices, the last of which holds seven offices worldwide, including a location in Geneva, Switzerland which was established in 2016. This was both a practically and symbolically important development for UN Women. Firstly, it was a practical development because Geneva hosts over forty UN entities, four-hundred NGOs, thirty-five IOs, and numerous renowned academic institutions. Thus, by bringing UN Women closer to these institutions, it enabled them to broaden and strengthen their partnerships with crucial stakeholders. Secondly, this was a symbolically significant development because it placed a women-focused UN institution into what can be considered an epicentre for the progression of human rights. To the global community, this symbolises and reinforces the pertinence of women’s rights in the fight to protect all human rights; you cannot protect all human rights without protecting women’s human rights.

Thus, in the face of civil unrest in Iran, it is not a surprise that UN Women has voiced their concerns regarding the death of Mahsa Amini and the Iranian government’s violent actions towards protestors.

 

How has UN Women reacted to the protests in Iran?

September 22: UN Women publish their first statement seven days after the death of Mahsa Amini – this statement is published on the organisation’s main webpage and across their social media platforms, including Instagram and Facebook. Although the statement is brief, it clearly conveys UN Women’s concerns over the circumstances of Amini’s death and highlights that “she was detained and treated in violation of the most basic human rights” – an incident which UN Women believes reflects the abuses experienced by women and girls worldwide. UN Women concludes their statement with the demand for an impartial investigation by an independent authority into the circumstances of Amini’s death, and with the sombre words, “may Mahsa Amini rest in peace.” 

September 27: UN Women issue their second statement, this time addressing the demonstrations and protests in Iran that were triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini – this statement is also published across UN Women’s social media platforms. UN Women emphasise their support towards the Iranian protestors, stating “UN Women stands with the women of Iran in their rightful demands to protest injustice without reprisal, and to be free to exercise their bodily autonomy, including their choice of dress and also supports them in seeking accountability, and the upholding of their basic human rights as stipulated in the Charter of the United Nations.” They also urge authorities to support the protestors’ expression of their full human rights in a safe environment free from fear of violence, prosecution, or persecution and additionally demand that all women who have been arbitrarily detained are released. UN Women concludes this statement by reiterating the demand for Iranian authorities to hold an impartial investigation into Amini’s death and to hold all perpetrators accountable. 

November 23: UN Women’s webpage publishes a feature piece covering the work of Iranian American feminist activist and organiser, Mana Shooshtari. The feature covers her efforts to amplify the voices of Iranian feminists and protestors. Shooshtari states that women and girls have faced decades of systematic oppression in Iran and that the death of Amini has incited nationwide outrage, pushing Iranian women to protest on the streets, where they wave their hijabs in the air and risk their lives in the fight for their basic rights. Shooshtari also emphasises the importance of speaking up, stating that “we can all act in solidarity with the women of Iran…particularly those of us with the privilege to speak up safely. That can mean posting on social media, penning an op-ed, starting a rally…take action when you do have the ability to do so, because it makes a larger impact than you think.”

“Take action when you do have the ability to do so, because it makes a larger impact than you think.”

And then, the statements and features on UN Women’s webpage regarding the protests in Iran stops there.

A further look at UN Women’s official Instagram page reveals that they have only published six posts related to the crisis in Iran out of the 177 posts published since the 16th of September, when Mahsa Amini was killed. Of these 177 posts, three posts have accumulated the highest number of comments:

• September 18: A post on Ruther Bader Ginsburg accumulates 10,951 comments. The majority of comments are in support of Iran, and many contain the message, #mahsaamini.
• September 19: A post with a quote from Maya Angelou accumulates 107,637 comments, nearly all of them in support of Iran.
• September 22: UN Women’s first statement on the death of Mahsa Amini accumulates 88,445 comments. While many of these comments show support towards Iran, a large number of them also include heartfelt pleas from users, who plead that UN Women amplify the voices of Iranian protestors, stand with them, and take action.

 

The importance of feminist digital activism in Iran

The number of comments on an Instagram post may seem unimportant concerning the fight for women’s rights in Iran, however, previous feminist movements in Iran indicate just how important these comments actually are.

One of the earliest examples of hashtag activism in Iran was demonstrated during the 2009 Green Movement, where individuals would comment #WhereIsMyVote on social media to mobilise and protest against dictatorships. However, the most recent case of feminist digital activism in Iran was seen in 2020, when thousands of Iranian women used the hashtag, #rape, to bring attention to sexual assault and harassment in Iran. This movement was closely associated with the larger #MeToo movement, which sought to bring attention to widespread gender discrimination. The emergence of the #rape movement in Iran, however, was incredibly significant because of the strict legal and cultural restrictions on the public discussion of sex-related issues, which largely prevented women from advocating for their sex-related rights. But, through the use of digital activism, Iranian women were able to name more than 130 sexual perpetrators, something which had not been achieved to such an extent in the country before. While many social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram were blocked in Iran at this time, Iranian protestors were able to use proxies and VPNs to access these platforms and speak out about their experiences, which mirrors the situation currently happening regarding the Iranian hijab protests.

 

Is UN Women doing enough for Iranian protestors?

Although UN Women has issued statements on the death of Mahsa Amini and the protests taking place in Iran, these statements do not appear to do more than urge authorities to impartially investigate Amini’s death and express support towards the rights of protestors. And Iranian protestors have noticed.

The women (and men) of Iran are realising how significant these protests can be. In Iran, women suffer under systemic discrimination and inequality that prohibits them from watching men’s sports in stadiums, from travelling outside of the country without their husband’s permission, and even from choosing what they can wear in public. The laws and culture in Iran are inherently patriarchal and misogynistic, and Iranian women have finally had enough. These protests have evolved into something much more complex than whether or not women should have to wear hijabs; it’s evolved into protests against institutionalised gender relations, where the mandatory hijab is just one example of state techniques used to control women’s bodies and public participation.

These protests are much more than just protests against the hijab – they are a symbol of female power and the power of people to protest against an authoritarian government. But, like many protests, these are not without risk, as can be seen by the number of protestors being killed and arbitrarily arrested in Iran. And it is under these conditions – where Iranians are putting their lives on the line in protests and surpassing government censorship to deliver information to the global community – that Iranians plead for the support of UN Women. Yet, despite these efforts, Iranian protestors are only finding brief and scarce statements expressing superficial support towards their efforts on UN Women’s social media platforms. Thus, considering UN Women’s social outreach (two million followers on Instagram), their mandates to support gender equality worldwide, and their access to other human rights organisations (especially through their Geneva liaison office), the Iranian protestors are justifiably disappointed in UN Women’s lack of action.

Women in Iran, even schoolgirls, are putting their lives in danger by fighting for their right to bodily autonomy. These women-led protests are one of the most prominent symbols of feminist activism and the fight for gender equality that we have seen in recent years. And as far as the public can see – especially the Iranian public, who have limited media access and who need the most support – UN Women is not stepping up to the plate. These protests have the potential to incite uprisings for women’s rights across the globe, but the Iranian people need support, even if that support comes in the simple form of distributing information. UN Women quoted Mana Shooshtari in their feature piece on the Iran protests, where Shooshtari advised on how we can support the brave men and women of Iran. One particular piece of Shooshtari’s advice may be especially useful to UN Women themselves: “take action when you do have the ability to do so,” even if it is just to speak up.

 

Notes from the author

In the instance that I would be able to meet or correspond with a representative from UN Women, I have prepared these questions for discussion:

• How do UN Women’s regional, country, and liaison offices interact with one another?
• How are principles of feminist theory applied/utilised in the day-to-day processes, and in the development of policies, at UN Women?
• Considering that there are constant developments and crises in women’s human rights across the globe, how do you decide which situations to prioritise as a preliminary focus?
• How can we, as ordinary citizens, further support the protestors in Iran?