A sociologist stressed on the need to revise the plans and executive arms of the deputy for women’s affairs. Tahmineh Shaverdi, a sociologist and member of the University Crusade (Jihad), said: “Attracting the cooperation of popular organizations was the most important step that could benefit the deputy on Women’s Affairs,
however, it seems that the directorate has been successful in this field, either.”
Conflicting Molaverdi’s remarks on the formation of a Women’s Ministry, Shaverdi added, “In his election campaign, Rouhani made specific pledges regarding women, most of them were promises mentioned for the first time. One of Rouhani’s most important promises was the formation of a Women’s Ministry to prepare the grounds for restitution of women’s trampled rights. This plan indicated the 11th government’s approach to the issue of women and he maneuvered on it very much during his election campaign… The formation of this ministry was among the most important demands of women, but it has not been fulfilled yet, while none of the other ministries have been granted to women.”
Shaverdi criticized the government for not delivering on its most important plans and promises: “According to Molaverdi, the government is concerned about women’s employment… but women’s employment and its relevant guarantees stated in the presidential promises, have not been addressed. They include issues such as equal employment, increasing the maternal leave, equal wages, decreasing the number of working hours for women who are in special conditions, supporting educational programs and promoting plans for production and sale of agricultural products, paying for women’s housework and considering their work in the Gross National Product, etc.”
Shaverdi underlined the women’s directorate’s failure in preventing the expulsion of 74,000 women who had used their maternity leaves and blamed Molaverdi for not acting in time.
Stressing the great impact the implementation of each plan could have on women’s social conditions, Shaverdi added, “Only 50 per cent of the planned legal support for the victims of acid attacks has been done in 2014. The same is true regarding the insurance of housewives and other government plans in support of women… Other plans such as empowerment of women who have rehabilitated from addiction, single mothers in charge of households, families of prisoners, revision of the penal laws including the legal age of punishing women and plans to support women from various sectors like their health insurance, have not been realized while each of them could have a great impact on the social conditions of women.”
(State-run ISNA news agency, September 12, 2015)
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