Women, Life, Freedom: The Iran Charter
Women, Life, Freedom: The Iran Charter
Blog Article
Five months after the launch of Iran’s "Woman, Life, Freedom" protest movement, Iranian scholars and activists published a charter designed to unify the opposition around a minimum platform for a future democracy. The charter was quickly embraced by Iranians and others outside of Iran, including women’s groups, civil rights organizations, and survivors of government massacres. It was particularly notable for addressing assumed taboo topics such as gender equality and recognition of non-binary identities—which will be important in the effort to address systemic violence and discrimination against historically marginalized populations in a democratic, pluralist Iran.
The first section of the charter outlines principles of free and democratic elections, including a requirement that the form of government be decided by referendum. This should be held under international supervision to prevent fraud and duress, which were widespread in the 1979 referendum organized by Islamists. The charter specifies that it is compatible with both an elective monarchy and a republic, though the authors explicitly exclude hereditary monarchy (though they support an elective one). It also guarantees that the state will provide funding for electoral campaigns.
Chapter 2 lays out a series of Irancharter commitments regarding the rule of law, democracy, human rights, environmental sustainability, and economic transparency and prosperity. It includes a pledge to respect the rights of minorities, a call for the establishment of a public prosecutor's office, and a requirement that religious freedom be guaranteed in all legal proceedings. It also outlines specific provisions concerning women's rights, LGBT rights, and environmental protection.
Articles 3-7 lay out a vision for an Islamic society with the goal of establishing and nurturing "the needed staff at seminaries, such as great Islamic jurists, analysts, philosophers, and preachers in different fields of Islamic sciences. It also entails raising and improving the quality of education and training at all levels in accordance with the intended goals."
The draft also establishes that "all laws and regulations must be based on Islamic criteria" (which it calls “velayat-e faqih”). Olivier Roy notes that this language would seem to give the Supreme Leader and Khomeini’s legal advisors considerable authority over legislation, as well as allowing them to impose their interpretations of sharia.
Finally, paragraphs 8-11 recognize the linguistic, ethnic, and religious diversity of Iran and guarantee that this will be consistent with its unity ("territorial integrity"). This is a significant point of convergence between the different factions of the opposition, which are split over whether to favor federalism or a unitary state. It is not clear whether this proposal will satisfy critics of minority rights who insist on a decentralized state, but it may serve as an attempt to bridge the gap between those who prefer federalism and those who argue that a republic is more appropriate.
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