Wednesday
March 7, 2000
Redemption
In reference to "She
changed overnight.", I would once again like to say a few things
not only to the writer but all those Iranian men seeking a bride from home.
I would like to discuss what's it like to be a woman in our Islamic regime,
even with the birth of reformist groups. Bsides the marriage failures of
imported brides, Iranian women produced largely by the Islamic regime have
real social problems. Most of us dismiss the real issue, which lies within
our torn down society of women in Iran. Their perseverance in pursuit
of freedom and equality has blinded us from discussing the damage that
Islamic tyranny has imposed upon these impoverished human beings.
Having lived in Iran during the revolution and war, I have an intense
understanding of what's like to be a woman in an Islamic Iran even with
President Khatami's pseudo reform. Women's situation during the past two
decades has created one of the saddest outgrowths of our history. An outgrowth,
which is propagated by years of physical and psychological restrains, a
social deformity. These women are not crazy or incompetent, but depraved
and often humiliated, salacious and physiologically battered. This disease
goes beneath our routes and foundations.
Forcing to cover up her hair from the age of six, a progressively growing
age, naturally creates a route to depressing self-esteem not to mention
denying her most basic instincts as a human being. To some it may not
be a big issue, but to me it's a BIG problem to exploit children. Image
the enforcement of those kinds of deprivations against 40+ million women
for decades! For adults it's even harder to put up with hijab fascism,
day in and day out. It takes away one's sense of pride and dignity. It
is emotionally humiliating and depressing. I know it; I once lived through
it.
It's tragic enough to be young, energetic, enthusiastic, bright and
intelligent individual in Iran; just image being all that and a woman.
Imagine your day to day life of restrictions, a constant reminder of being
a second rate citizen in your own home. It's no wonder how Iranian girls
are dying to get out of the country at any price. Marrying a strange man
half way a cross the world is a ticket for FREEDOM! It's not necessarily
about marriage; it's about recovering from a lifetime of destitute and
faded dreams. It's about gaining their basic rights as human beings first,
not as married wives. It's about redemption!
Having said all that, I don't see the reformist groups discussing the
issues of social restrictions on women. I can see the complications with
recovering nation's economy, creating jobs, bringing in foreign investors,
recovering environmental problems, recovering health and medical services,
building more businesses and schools. But how difficult is it to allow
personal choice when it comes to to the hijab? How difficult is it to
respect women's image? In the future, I hope to see a picture of a woman
in Iran without being tied up holding the chador, but holding the symbolic
torch of freedom.
Saghi Zarinkalk
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