Robbed Riches is the story of the stolen wealth of Iranian women, a report to CSW68
The central theme of the 68th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68) is dedicated to the paramount objective of “accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment for all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective.”
This involves a comprehensive approach encompassing the mitigation of poverty, bolstering institutional frameworks, integrating a gender perspective into financing mechanisms, and assessing countries’ outcomes in areas such as social support, access to public services, and sustainable infrastructure.
The overarching goal is to fortify systems that contribute to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
The session will also review the agreed conclusions of the sixty-third session, “Social protection systems, access to public services and sustainable infrastructure for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.”
Iran is a country rich in wealth and resources yet is ranked among the world’s worst economies. A glance at the lives of Iranian women and the general population shows that the ruling regime is incompatible with carrying out and upholding international norms and 21st century standards.
Due to vast corruption and mismanagement by government authorities, Iran is facing serious inflation, absolute poverty, high unemployment, a widening class gap, a high poverty gap, and price hikes signaling a new crisis in the economy.
These challenges resulting from the destructive policies of the regime have caused an alarming and concerning impact on the overall population, specifically families, women and children.
As a result of the calamitous decisions taken by the regime, the Iranian people have been led into a dark world of poverty and destitution. With each passing day, Iranian women find themselves descending further into what is metaphorically described as the challenging circumstances imposed by the ruling mullahs.
The cause of the failing economy is vital to keep in mind. The examination of women’s poverty in Iran requires an understanding that the government’s policies are centered on sustaining its own continuity. The linchpin of the dictatorial regime’s strength lies in the Revolutionary Guards, which are deeply involved in internal repression and alleged international terrorism. In other words, the regime utilizes domestic crackdown against its people and warmongering in the region as a means to hold grip on power. The resources, wealth, and economic potential of the Iranian people are disproportionately directed toward supporting and fortifying the Revolutionary Guards, perceived as a negative influence by all means.
The country’s economy heading towards collapse?
Soaring inflation concerning food, transportation, healthcare, housing, and water and electricity, are among difficulties that Iranians face every day. The true inflation rate is unclear as some say it stands at over 40%, while others including government officials argue it is much higher with some putting the figure over 100%. More than half of Iran’s population live under the poverty line and around 30 million people in Iran are living in absolute poverty, meaning individuals lack the minimum income necessary to purchase essential needs such as food, shelter, clothing, and access to healthcare.
Examples of price hikes are seen in essential food commodities such as liquid oil (294%), onions (222%), pasta (139%), various sauces (105%), noodles (100%), butter (92%), cucumber, and banana (approximately 90%), eggs and chicken meat (about 82%), milk (79%), and rice (more than79%).
The price of bread is frequently on the rise in various provinces across the country. In a report issued by Jahan-e Sanat newspaper in November 2023, the Minister of Economy revealed that bread consumption among different societal strata had decreased by 40%, highlighting further challenges faced by the population. Crucial food items are also affected leading to a decrease in meat and dairy consumption.
The rising prices and overall conditions have made life all the more difficult for the average Iranian. The effects of poverty have led to a decrease in calorie consumption, especially in quality calories. The head of the Endocrine and Metabolism Research Institute of Melli University of Medical Sciences (a.k.a Beheshti) mentioned a prevalence of endocrine and metabolic diseases in Iran. Other sources indicate nearly 60% of Iran’s population is reportedly malnourished, including over 14 million children. According to Hossein Raghfar, an economic expert, the country’s economy is heading towards collapse.
Exploitation and severe consequences of poverty on women and girls
Poverty in Iran has extremely painful consequences for women and girls.
Despite working more than eight hours a day behind sewing machines in noisy and challenging environments, women endure physical strain, including back pain and neck arthritis. The low wages, coupled with the demanding work conditions, result in a situation where even working a full month without any breaks does not yield a monthly income equivalent to the minimum wage for a worker. This places them several circles below the poverty line.
Women face discrimination in the workplace, resulting in lower wages and limited opportunities. For example, a report from the state-run Salary 99 website highlights the disparity in employment rates between men and women in government companies and organizations. While the employment rate for men in these entities stands at 74%, only 26% of women are employed. Women also endure extended work hours, sometimes exceeding 12 hours a day, and receive only 60% of the salaries earned by their male counterparts. This policy forces them into a precarious state of subsistence, compelling them to accept short-term and part-time positions with the longest working hours.
The comparison with countries like the United States underscores the difference in the financial remuneration for nurses. Data shows that nurses in Iran are not adequately compensated for their work. For example, while a nurse in the U.S. may receive four thousand dollars for seven hours of work, Iranian nurses shockingly only earn around 120 dollars for 10 to 12 hours of work, sometimes even extending to 20 hours a day.
A statement from the spokesperson of the teachers’ union displays another type of existing economic disparity. The average salary ceiling for teachers currently ranges between 7 and 9 million tomans but the poverty line is estimated to be above 20 million tomans.
Among other hardships for women include the absence of safety measures in the workplace. Massoud Heydari, the CEO of ILNA state news agency, candidly acknowledges that the working conditions for Iranian workers deviate significantly from international standards, lacking essential safety measures and necessary equipment. Particularly in service fields, where women are predominantly employed, the risk of accidents is heightened.
Tragic incidents, such as fires in workshops or accidents involving fabric-cutting machines, result in severe injuries, including the loss of limbs or, at times, fatalities. A disturbing trend emerges where some employers, seemingly aware of the hazardous conditions, seek guarantees from workers. This unethical practice absolves the employer of responsibility in the event of accidents, placing an undue burden on the workers who are often left to cope with the physical and emotional aftermath without proper support.
A former member of the Labor Dispute Resolution Council, also shed light on a distressing aspect of the legal landscape affecting women workers. In the unfortunate event of an accident, many women find themselves in a precarious situation, unable to be legally pursued due to their lack of insurance coverage.
Women heads of households also face many hardships. Due to factors such as reduced job security, lower average income, and heightened economic insecurity among women under the rule of the mullahs, the brunt of inflation in recent years has been disproportionately borne by female heads of households.
In a report on the repercussions of the “inflationary wave on women heads of households,” the state news agency Rokna highlights that, under the current circumstances, a staggering 40 percent of women heads of households in Iran, equivalent to one million and 700 thousand people, find themselves below the poverty line. This stark statistic underscores the severe economic challenges faced by a significant portion of female-headed families in the country.
It can be concluded that women are the most exploited under this system and unfair conditions.
However, the dismal world of poverty for women in Iran delves much deeper. It has led women and girls into child labor, forced marriages, child marriages, and the trafficking of women. Young girls are compelled to abandon their education and engage in work from an early age. In order to be able to make ends meet for a very short period, some even resort to selling their body parts or hair.
Another appalling tragedy resulting from poverty is the prevalence of the phenomenon of selling newborns and babies. A children right’s advocate shared a harrowing story that occurred in Iran of an addicted man who forced his wife into pregnancy three times, subsequently selling the newborns to individuals that were complete strangers to the woman. Shockingly, when the same woman sought to prevent further pregnancies and visited the hospital, she was told that she required her husband’s permission.
Women sometimes even pre-sell their babies. These practices that the regime is known to have a part in are not only unethical but also illegal and a grave violation of human rights.
Tragic phenomenon of child labor, sleeping on the streets, and the selling of kidneys and other body parts
The exploitation and engagement of underprivileged women and children in garbage collection is a distressing manifestation of social and economic challenges. In Tehran alone, there is said to be around 4,500 child laborers working in the sector of garbage collection. Due to poverty, many children across Iran are forced to drop out of school in order to work under inhumane and unsanitary conditions.
The impoverishment has left no option but for homeless people and even children and women to sleep in cardboard boxes on the streets, in graves, under bridges, and in buses.
Ahmad Alavi, a member of the Cultural and Social Commission of Tehran City Council, highlighted a “new phenomenon” where “non-addicted people” are found sleeping in BRT buses on overnight routes. According to Tehran Municipality officials, these individuals “have a legitimate appearance and are not drug addicts; they are even employed.” These individuals, unable to afford house rent or guest house expenses, resort to «choosing the bus to sleep» because it provides a «safe and warm» option during cold nights.
People selling their organs for a small income is yet another terrible and shocking phenomenon that has been going on for years in Iran. These people turn to this option out of poverty and to be able to survive a little longer. The report from Jahan-e Sanat newspaper on 12 April 2023 highlights the distressing increase in cases of individuals resorting to selling body parts, such as kidneys, liver, bone marrow, eye cornea, and more.
The mention of a known kidney market in Tehran, which has expanded to include the sale of other body parts, indicates the severity of the economic struggles experienced by people in the country.
Suicide has increased and has become all the more common. Only in the last eighteen days of August 2023, at least 13 suicides of teenagers under the age of 18 were recorded in Kurdistan province alone. Two -12year-old girls from Diwandarreh and Sardasht were among them.
Four decades of government mismanagement and the mullahs’ fear for another uprising
When the Iranian people peacefully attempt to voice their opinion against the intolerable conditions that the regime has forced them into, they are quickly met with violence. The regime answers their demands with beatings, expulsion, harassment, torture, and/or arrest.
Retirees, teachers, nurses, and people from different walks of life in Iran have been persistently active in organizing protests in many provinces across the country. Despite the heavy suppression, the fact that they are willing to protest given the circumstances underscores the gravity of their grievances. The cry for their rights, echoing the concerns of millions of workers, the poor, and retired individuals, highlights a broader sentiment regarding economic challenges and dissatisfaction with the current system.
This pamphlet examines only the tip of the iceberg. Over four decades of government corruption and mismanagement has caused widespread poverty and complete misery for the Iranian population. And as for women, on one hand it is the discrimination, gender gap, excessive working hours, inadequate and unequal wages, unfair working conditions, and lack of safety measures they must deal with. On the other hand, it is the selling of their own body parts and organs or selling their own children out of destitution.
Unquestionably, these conditions are not limited to only women, as there are millions grappling with poverty in Iran and living in absolute inhumane and intolerable circumstances.
Eradicating poverty was one of the hollow promises of the current president, Ebrahim Raisi. Information, data, and statistics have proven that the situation has in fact worsened, and the country today is facing a severe economic crisis.
In today’s Iran, an increasing number of parliament members and regime officials have admitted to the alarming economic situation and how it can lead to an eruption of anti-government protests.
For example, Mohammad Bagheri Banaei, a member of the Parliament’s Economic Commission, has candidly expressed his apprehension, implying a fear of the potential eruption of public anger. Banaei issued a cautionary warning, pointing out that the escalation of the poverty line and the growing population submerged below it in Iran “may lead to social and political problems in the not too distant future.”
The state-run Jomhouri Newspaper also emphasized, “People are fatigued by mere slogans and yearn for tangible actions. It is essential to recognize that people’s patience has limits. Beware of the day when a hungry populace rises against you.” The paper goes on to say, “People refuse to accept a scenario where in a nation blessed with abundant wealth and resources, a select few prosper while millions of families endure the burden of poverty.”
Iran has witnessed a number of widespread nationwide uprisings in previous years in support of freedom and against the worsening economic conditions. The last major uprising erupted in September 2022 and continued for six months. The Iranian people are well aware that while this dictatorship is in power, misery and suffering will consist. After more than 40 years of the figurative hell that the mullahs’ have created along with brute repression against anyone voicing dissent, the brave people of Iran are determined to overcome the wall of repression in order to establish freedom, justice, human rights, and gender equality.