With regard to the national level,some of the civil society groups, in an open letter in November 2007, pointed to the
ee
and argued that no right for men to practise polygamy could be found in this text." Fätimeh Äliyä, a member ofpar-liament from Tehran and responsible for the parofpar-liamentary committee of women and the family (Komiteh-ye zanän va Ijänevädeh-ye Magles),59 pointed to the positive points and achievements in the Draft Bill,such as female counsellors in the family courts (Art. 2), the right given to mothers to file a suit against their husbands for not paying maintenance for their children (Art. 7),the possibility57 A starting point for the events in the discourse was the following website,which contains the most important events: hup:llmeydaan.org/.showArticleaspx?arid=660,with the title Rüz!ollläreh -ye vaqäyei-e ettefäqiyeh-ye läyeheh-ye hemäyat-e bänevädeh. Interviews were used as an additional source to articles and internet presentations.I selected some representatives of the groups taking part in the discourse (civil society,juqahä' and state representatives) and asked them about the processof legislation with regard to the Draft Bill, about their personal opinion of the Draft Bill and their opinion with regard to the in-fluence of international law, more specifically:CEDAW, on the national legislation.I want to express my gratitude to all of my interview partners for accepting to be inter-viewed,for answering my questions and discussing with me the different aspects of the processof legislationin the Islamic Republic of Iran.I have benefited greatlyfrom these discussions.
58 The letter dates from 12 November 2007and is to be foundin: http://www.aftabnews. ir/vdccepq2b1qee.htrnl(accessed on 19 December 2008).Itwassent in the name of sev-eral women's groups: Magma'-e zanän-ee~lä~ralabbeing supporters ofthe former presi-dent Khatemi;Gam'iyat-ezanän-e mosalmiin-enawändil(Intellectual Muslim Women's Association,also supporters of Khatemi); Angoman-e rüzniimeh-negiirän-e zan-e lrän (group of women journalists); Komisyün-ezanän-e gabheh-ye mosärakat-e Irän-e eslämi (Women Organisation of Islamic Iran Participation Front,a party headed by the support-ers ofthe former President Khatemi) and Gäme'eh-yezanän-eenqeläb-e esliimi ,founded in 1994, being originally supporters of Khomeini at the beginning of the Islamic revolu-tion,now fighting for Reform and Democracy in an Islamic Framewerk. This letter deals critically with all articles of the Draft Bill. See also the report from 4 September 2007:
"Bar-rasiy-elayeheh-ye hernäyat-e bänevädeh az rnanzar-ehoqüqt, gäme(eh~enäsi", ra-vänsenäsl: kam lutff beh zanänbeh näm-e läyeheh-ye hemäyataz bänevädeh?"; in:
hup:llmeydaan.org/wwShow .aspx?wwid=495(accessed on 5 February 2009) in which the position of jurists, sociologists and psychologists are given.
59 http://meydaan.org/wwShow.aspx?wwid=520 (accessed on 22 December 2008).
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for women to apply to the court of the city they live in,in case the husband is in another city~Art. 15), and the establishment of counselling centres for families (Art. 17-21).0With regard to Article 23 and the first wife'sperm ission, she ar-gued that there had been no legal regulation of polygamy before this Draft Bill, because Article 16 of the 1975 FPA had been suspended by Khomeini and quashed by the judgment of the Council of Guardians in 1985, which decided that punishment of a man not having the permission of his first wife was not lawful. In practice many men had marriedwithout permission or even without official registration. According to the Draft Bill thiswas now made illegal. The court furthermore has to invite the first wife and hear her." Äliyäis convinced that the first wife's permission is implicitly meant in Article 23,but she argues that the text should be made explicit in order to reassure families and public opinion.
With regard to the judicial system, Äliyäexpressed her trust in the courts and stressed the courts' competence.f The courts have to deal with justice on the level of finances (Cadälat-e mälf) and on a subjective level ('adälat-e cä[efi), which, she admits, is difficult for the judges. This subjective justice, Äliyä states,as implied in Qur'än, Sura 4(~l....ill):Verse363, is difficult for men to bring about, so that it becomes evident that God hirnself restricted polygamy. Here Äliyäswitches to an argument from Islamicfiqh.64The question of the inde-pendence of the judiciary and the courts is seen more critically byothers. The judges are thought not to have an objective understanding of women's position in the legal system,65which, after all,is astrang criticism of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic.
60 For these positive arguments, see also the Interview withHasan Hamidiyän,DeputyHead of Justice Administration of Tehran Province and Director of the Family Judicial Com-plex,on 12 October2008.
61 This, however, is just her interpretation. In Article 23 onlythecourt's permissionis men-tioned, nothingis statedabout the conditions underwhich the court hasto decideuponthe second marriage.
62 Others argue the same,e.g., Zaynab Rangbar in myinterview with her on 15 October 2008.Being a judge herself (or rather a counsellorbecause women cannotbejudgeson theirown) she argues that the court canact with justice withregard tothefinances,and, on the other hand, has to act on the basis ofakind of extrinsic justice ('adä /at-e?,äher).
For this the man'sbehaviour in the family as weil asin society is examined.
63 Sura 4(.I....llI),Verse 3:
~~
J:.
.WI-;Ii:.,..li.~i~ij';QIJi~ ~{ r4 ~!j .i);';~r../,{
~l;..sJt:,;{::...S:i;~jfi~ljii),w~rr4 ~~t
t;~~64 http://meydaan.orglwwShow.aspx ?wwid=520 (accessed on 22 December2008).
65 http://meydaan.orglwwShow.aspx?wwid=520 (accessed on 22 December 2008),andhttp:
/Iwww.aftabnews.ir/vdccepq2blqee.html(accessed on 19 December2008).
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Whereas these arguments concern the statutory law (CC) and the judiciary, Zay-nab Rangbar,66judge and head ofthe department ofpublic education ofthe judi-ciary (Ra'is-e ämiaeihii-ye mardomi-ye mo'ävanat-e ämiizeshii-ye quvveh-ye qazd'iyeh] refers to the FPA of 1975 in which the first wife's permission is al-ready explicit as weil as theordre publicof the Islamic Republic of Iran. She summarizes the discussions in the judiciary stating that at the moment the pro-test against the Draft Bill came up it was decided by the judiciary to give in, be-cause the Draft Bill was thought to be a Draft Bill for he protection ofthe fam-ily.As it was not accepted by the families, and especially by women, the two articles had to be dropped. Rangbar stated that ina situation like this, and with such heavy protest, public welfare(ma~la~at)was at stake and taken as a reason for skipping the articles.
With regard to internationallaw,Shirin Ebadi argued in herarticle," that Iran's legislation is not in accordance with human rights standards. Eläheh Külä'I, pro-fessor at the Faculty of Law and Political Science of the University of Tehran,68 described CEDAW as the frame of human rights discussion and argued that Muslims have a different understanding of human identity (huviyat-e ensän) from western cultures.She connected the proce ssof democratisation to the de-velopment of the status of women, seeing, however, sufficient potential in Ira-nian women for development (towards more democracy?). According to her opinion, the sensibility against CEDAW is based on the fear that with this con-vention the "Islamic identity" would be given up. ShahmdohtMawläverdi, a ju-rist trained in international law,69pointed in her article especially to the impor-tant meaning of public national welfare(maslahat-e melliy for the Iranian state, not on the level of national legislation,but with regard to the international repu -tation of the Islamic Republic.She referred to Khomeini,who gave the govern-ment of the Islamic Republic the right to susrend the religious duty of pilgrim-age in case the public welfare is indanger." Maslahat is for her a strategy to solve the problems of the Islamic Republic of Iran." Like Külä'I, she is con-vinced that cultural differences cannot be an obstacle for admitting at least inter-national standards of human rights.The equality of gender(gensfyat) belongs to
66 Interview on 15 Ocrober 2008.
67 ShirinEbadi / Henriette SindingAasen.Rightsof Women ...•supra. footnote 4.
68 ElähehKülä1, Cäleshä-ye faräyand -eta'mln-ehoqüq-e zanän dar keSvarhä-ye eslärni va öeämandäz-e egrä'i-yepaymännämeh-yeSfdädar !rän. UNICEF Office.Tehran, Novem-ber 2007.
69 Sahindo!J1 Mawtäverdt,"Gofternän-e maslahatgerä va Konvensiyün-e raf'-e kolliyeh-ye askäl-e lab'ii.'alayhe zanän",in: Rayhäneh6.1383, pp.203-217.
70 Ibidem, pp. 203-204.
71 Ibidem,p.205.
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these standards." because it belongs to the nature of human beings.Islam and Human Rights have many points in commonandthere is no singleinterpretation to the Islamic texts,just as there are different possible understandings of the Human Rights."Mawläverdisees Iranin danger ofisolation on an international levelbecause the state has not yet ratified CEDAW.74
Whereas Khomeini's concept of maslahat implied the Iranian government' s right to restriet even basic religious rules in case this wasdeemednecessary for the welfare ofthestate," Rangbar'sstatementquoted abovereflects a concept of maslahat as an ordre publicthat can be influenced by public discourse.Civil society arguments thus changed the legislation because the public welfare and thus the social peace had to be preserved.
All three articles on CEDA W and Human Rights in Iran byEbadi, Külä'i and Mawläverdi argue on the basis of international humanrights and maintain that there are rulings in the Qur'än and the Muslim traditionwhich can be seen as parallel to thewestern understandingofhumandignity.None ofthem dealswith the difficult verses of the Qur'än which seem to contradict human rights stan-dards" and cause hermeneutical problems." The perspective and basis of the argumentunderlying allthe artic1es is thus the hierarchy of laws (with interna-tionallaw on the top) and the role ofthe international community in actingas an instanceof control over the nationallegislation.
WhereasKülä'I'sarticle is from 2007andthus frorn the high point oftheprotest against the Draft Bill, the other articlesare older. However, Külä'I, who also participated actively in the Women's Movement and gave interviews, didnot mention the Draft Bill in her article. The other two authors, Mawläverdi and
72 Ibidern, p.213.
73 Ibidem pp.213-2 15.
74
tu«,
2157S Said AmirArjomand,"Authority in Shiism and constitutionaldevelopments inthe Islamic RepublicofIran",in:Wemer Ende /RainerBrunner (Eds.),The Twlever Shia in Modem Times,Leiden2001,pp.305-336 (on p. 314).
76 Cp. Sura4(.WI),Verse34:
:,,~ij :,,~~ij ~Iyf ::r.i;zrL;)~~~ili;piL;,U I~~;':,i jG,.~1i :;.;;"") C:7w.:..i1J:;.}:;..:.,):;.
hi
:;'jp.!~)G.l v'-~'):.iJ,*
L;~:"l1j~( <-~ ~lS'ili~l;"':'~.·I~i"';U':::::~r~I'
.J';' .. • '; u;--J""! r-- ;
For the difficult interpretationofSura 4(.WI),Verse 34, "Men areabovewomen.;.", see, forexample, KeciaAli,Sexual Ethics and Islam,Oxford 2006,pp.112- 134.
77 See Ann Elizabeth.Mayer ,"Die Konventionüberdie Beseitigung jeder Form von Dis-kriminierung der Frau und der politische Charakter'religiöser'Vorbehalte", in:Mechthild Rumpf / UreGerhard /MechthildJansen(Eds.), Facettenislamischer Welten,Bielefeld 2003, pp.103-122 .
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Ebadi, took an active part in the Women's Movement, too,but in their published statements and interviews they did not hint at international law either. When asked in interviews, Mawläverdi and Ebadi78supported the idea of Iran signing CEDA W79,arguing that it would mean an improvement for the nationallegisla-tion with regard to women's rights.Ebadi, however, conceded that the signature of an international convention did not automatically mean an improvement in the legislative activity of Iran,as seen, e.g.,with regard to CRC (which Iran has signed). She confinned that, in political contexts, she used religious, i.e.
"maz habi", arguments.t''
Asked why Iran did not sign CEDA W,Zaynab Rangbar. a representative of the judiciary,pointed to differing gender concepts in the west and Iran.According to the latter, the biological difference causes differences in the social and family life which is reflected in the legal regulations of the Islamic Law.81 Since the rejection of CEDA W by the Council of Guardians in 2003, CEDA W is stranded in the Assessment Counciland - according to the opinionof Asraf Gerämizäde-gän,a lawyer and member of the legal committee of the Office of Women's Affairs of the Ministry of the Interior (Komite-ye hoqüqi-ye daftar-e omür-e bä-nuvän-e Vezärat-ekesvarr;it will not be discussed in the near future.82Whereas Rangbar83explained the reasons for the non-ratificationof CEDA W in terms of gender roles, and Säne't4saw the main points of divergence from international human rights standards in the Iranian law of inheritance and divorce, the opinion was often expressed that ratification of CEDAW would have a positive influ-ence on the legislation process in Iran towards more gender equality."
Legal arguments are used by lawyers and persons trained in law as weil as by participants of the Women's Movement, but, perhaps not surprisingly, not by scholars of fiqh. Legal arguments are used by jurists who are part of the civil
78 I didnot conduct an interview withKülä'I,
79 Interviews with Mawläverdi, 29 Ocrober 2008;and with Ebadi, 1 November 2008.
80 Ebadi,interview on 1 November 2008
81 Rangbar.interview on 15 October 2008.This Islamie-justifiedeoneeptof gender relations is eommon in Iran.Seealso the interviews with Alusvand on 11 November 2008. Sha-IleenSardar AU, Gender and Human Rights in Islam and InternationalLaw.Equal Before Allah, UnequalBefore Man? The Hague,2000, p.61, eallsthis kind of right "protective"
rights and makes a clear distinetion between this and gender equality.
82 Gerämlzädegän, interview on 10 November 2008.
83 Rangbar. interviewon 15 October 2008.
84 ÄyatollähSäne'I,interview on 12 November 2008.
85 Ebadi, interview on 1 November 2008; Mawläverdi, interview on 29 Ocrober 2008;
Gerärnlzädegän, interview on 10 November 2008.All three warnen are jurists trained in law (notfiqll).
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society such as Ebadi and Mawläverdi, but also by jurists and persons whoare connected to the state such as Rangbar andÄliyä,
11.Thefiqh Arguments
An unnarned member of the judicial commission of the parliarnent stated that the omitted Article 23 was "absolutely Islamic" ('ayn-e I:Jwästeh-ye Esläm)and that the parliarnent originally wanted "to solve some of the actual women's problems and the problems of society with the application of the opinion of Is-lam". He criticised the elimination of the article and argued that the parliarnent should have made the aim of the article clearer. Furthermore, SalmänZäker,a member of the judicial and legal commission of the parliarnent(Komfsiyün-e qaiä1 va hoqüqi-ye Mag/es) stated: "Many women have no problem with the polygamous marriage of their husband, polygamy is based on (Islarnic) law (sar') and with the first wife's permission it is nothing wrong. When eliminating this Article 23 the Parliarnent has blocked the way for the solution of women's problems", whereas Farideh Gayrat, a lawyer, answered that the actual problem for women in Iran is their difficulty to get a divorce. No woman in the world would accept a second marriage of her husband. B6
Äyatolläh-e 'ozmä~äne(i,B7who, according to the Middle Eastem newspaper AI-Sarq al-Awsai, is the "wornen's Muftf,BBand who resides in Qom, found clear words: the polygamous marriage of a man without consent of his first wife is forbidden and a sin (J:zaräm va-gonäh) and from the viewpoint of law it is a crime (gorm). Itis against justice(l:Jeläf-e cadälat)B9and he expresses his hope that this injustice (?,olm)will not become law.90He is not generally opposed to polygamy, but he wants to limit the injuries women may sutTer from it,whereas Vasmaqi argues that polygamy is disapproved (makrüh).91 According to the open letter ofNovember 2007, Article 23 is to be considered a step backwards ('aqabmändeh) in the exegesis (of the holy texts).The state is accused of
con-86 hup://www.irwomen.info/spip.php?article6288 (accessed on 17 January 2008).
87 Cp. http://www.saanei.orglpage.php?pg=showzanan&id=128&lang=fa: hoqüq-e zaniin;
ezdev äg-e mugaddad(accessed on 17 January2009).
88 hup://www.asharqalawsat.comldetails.asp?section=4&issue=10336&article=411 000 of 17 March 2007, No. 10336 (accessed on 17 January 2009).
89 See also Sadtqeli Yasmaqi, Zan, fiq, Esläm, Tehran 1387/2008, 44; Fätirna Äliyä:
http://meydaan.orglwwShow.aspx?wwid=520 (accessed on 22 December 2008).
90 Husband and wife should live peacefully together and the rights the husband has towards his wife are the same the wife has towards her husband.If one has a right which is forbid-den (J;aräm) for the other, this is against justice, see www.saaneLorglpage.php?pg=show zanan&id=128&lang=fa (accessed on 22 January 2009).
91 Sadiqeb Vasmaqr.Zan, fiq, Esläm, supra. footnote 86. pp.45-46.
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sidering polygamyfrorn a conservative point ofview(didgäh-e sonnatl),92and ofseeing polygamy (in theDraftBill)asafixed religiousrule (lJolan-e dä'emi-ye dini) and nota rule which can be interpreted according to the conditions of the time (movaqqatl), whereas in the Qur'än the conditionof justice is given (Sura4[~WI]:Verse3,Sura 4[~WI]:Verse 129).93Itisfrom this pointofview that it isarguedin the letter, that the principle(~l)in the law is monogamy,po -lygamy is only allowed(mobäIJ).94It shouldnot be seen as a fixed rule(J:olan-e dä'eml)in thesense of an unchangeableinterpretation of theQur'än."
Polygamy,itis furthermore argued, might have been a habit in tribai timesin the beginning of the Islam,but is not fit for theconditions of today'ssociety." An-other argument focuses on the first wife's permission being a legal condition . Äyatolläh Mohaqqeq-e Dämäd ,97pointing to Khomeini's (d. 1989) prohibition of suchacondition and Kho'Ts(d. 1992) acceptance of it,argues for accepting thiscondition .This is because it is a condition of the contract(shart-edemn-e 'aqd-enekälJ) andas such it is asart-e'orfi,i.e., a customarycondition usually stipulated in the marr iage-contract and widely accepted in society. In conse-quence,hestates,'orf - herein the understanding of a condition usuallyused by the people(sar(-e 'orfi) - can be changed intofiqh-e
sn
This is an important statementwith regard to the process of developmentofI slamic Lawasaccepted by the Shiite clergy."Several chapters of Sadiqeh Vasmaqi'sbookZan,fiqh,Esläm,which was pub-Iished inDecember2008 and much awaitedby the Women's Movement, con-cernthe problem ofpolygam yand the first wife's permission for a further rnar-riage as a stipulation in the marriage contract/"Vasmaqi argues, using the
clas-92 Cp.hllp:/Iwww.aft abn ews .ir/ vdccepq2b1q ee.html. supra,footnote 56.
93 Ibidem .
94 Sadlqeh Vasm aqicomes toadifferent evaluation and callesitmakrüh,seeSadtqel: Vas-maqi, Zan,fiq,Esläm, supra, footnote86, p.44.
9l Cp.hllp:/Iwww.aftabnews.ir/vdccepq2b l qee.html.supra,footnote56.
96 See Sanei www.saanei.or glp age .php?pg=showzanan&id=128&lang=fa, hoqüq-e zanän;
ezdeväg-e rnugaddad (acces sed on 17 January)2009;Sadiqeh VasmaqT,Zan, fiqh, Esläm, supra,footnote 86,p.49.
97 Interviewwith Mohaqqeq-eDärnäd on16 October200 8.
98 Iwas not, howe ver, able to obtain Mohaqqeq-e Dämäd's officiallypublished article or fatwäon the topic. Iusedtheinfonn ation he gavemeintheinterview.
99 Sadtqen VasmaqT, ZUn,fiqh, Esläm ,supra,footnote 86, pp.43-92:Thechapterson polyg-amy and the stipulation ofthe first wife 's pennission in the contract and an empirical study on polygamous families.Theseeight chapters were published earlier in 2008 as a booklet underthe title Sadtqeb.Vasmaqf,Candharnsart va Esläm,Tehran 2008, and dis-tributed free of charge bytheMagmü'e-yeentesärät-e angoman-e zanän-epazühesgar-e tänlJ·
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sical Islamic Law categorisation, that polygamy is disapproved (makrüh), be-cause according to the Qur'änjustice might not be possible. After dealing with social and psychological arguments against polygamy as the impossibility of men to manage a polygamous family in today's Iranian society,she returns to judicial arguments and discusses the role of stipulations in contracts, arguing, with reference10SaYQ Murtazä Ansäri (d. 1864) that conditions are to be kept.
Making illegal (talJrfm) rulings that are acceptable (mobälJat) is allowed (ga'ez).100 Somejurists thought this condition in the contract is not void (bätel), but that the wife should have the right to divorce.'?' She argues, however.l'"that the condition of "not-takinganother wife"has to be fulfilled,103because it is an inherent part of the contract
(gon
az rokn-eraqd).I04Thus,she concludes,legal measures have to be taken to anchor thiscondition in legislationand ignorance has to be punished.l'"The hermeneutical discussion in Iran does not go so far as it does, for instance, in Tunisia, where polygarny was completely forbidden in the middle of the twentieth century on the basis of a new interpretation of Sura 4 (~WI):Verse 3.106In the text of the Draft Bill, it is stated,that certain laws have been found incompatible with the sar'fa and nothing is said about different interpretations.
State representatives point to the permission of polygamy.Different interpreta-tions are used as an argument, mainly in the open letter to the parliament and by jurists and lawyers like Mawläverdi and Vasmaqi but also by the Shiite clergy.
In the letter,the state'sinterpretation ofIslamicLawis called "backward",the Draft is seen to be against the sarr•107
The Shiitefuqahä' like Mohaqqeq-e Dämäd,Säne'Iand Vasmaql,being professors offiqh,on the otherhand, go into more detail and tryto argue on the basis ofnew hermeneutical approaches.
\00 Sadiqeb.Vasmaqf,Zan,fiqh, Esläm, supra,footnote86, p. 77.
tOI Ibidem, onp.81.
102 Ibidem, on p.83.
103 Ibidem on pp.86-87.
104 Ibidem on p.88.
lOS Ibidem,on p. 89.
106 Alusvand, interview on 11 November 2008, based herargumentonthe different gender roles which imply not equalitybut differentroles in societyand thus also differentlegal regulations for the sexes. See also Rangbar.interview on15 October2008,with a similar gender concept.She also did not accept the Tunisianapproach,whereas more modem ori-ented women like Maryarn Mohaqqeq, daughter of the Äyatolläh Mohaqqeq-e Dämäd, (interview on 1 December 2008) see in the Tunisianapproach a point of orientation.
107 This is a contradiction:on the one hand,the ruleis called a backwardinterpretation,on the other hand,it is seen to be against shar'.However,the letter requiresan analysisfor itself, because itsarguments are not weil structured but givethe impressionthey hadbeen collected quite by chance from different actors.
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Fiqh arguments are used by allsides taking part in the discourse; the Shiite clergy,the stateand civilsociety.ltis evident thateveryside is anxious to show that the argument it uses is compatible with Islam.
III.Social, psychologicalandcultu ra l Arguments.
Besides legal andfiqh arguments,arguments which concern society and the in-dividualsasweilas thewhole ofIranian culture are put forward.
1. Society
Themainargument is that the changingconditions of society have to be taken into consideration, that women' s position in society has changed, that more women are educated and have more and more important positions in society.
HasanHamldiyän from thejudiciary gavethese changing conditionsas a reason for thenewfamily law represented by the Draft BilI.108This argument is often used in connection with the argument that institutions which were accepted at the Prophet'stime cannot be accepted in Iranian society ofthe twenty-first cen-tury.109It is argued that fathers in polygamous marriages cannot perform their familydutiescorrectly and thus cannot be just; 110that the rights of the first wife havepreference and the children have to be taken intoconsideratio n;that polyg-amycauses trouble and chaosin families; that divorce and single-parent families are the consequences;111and that polygamyactually concerns only 5% of men in the Iraniansociety, who canafford to have a secondwife,and ignoresthe inter-estsof50%ofIranian society,i.e,women.'!"
108 Interview on 12Oetober 2008.
109 Sadiqeb.Vasm aqf,Zan,fiqh,Eslärn,supra,footnote 86, p. 22, p.41, p.47, p. 48,p.56.
110 Ibidem,pp.56-58.Thisis withoutanyreferences.
111 Ibidem, pp.47,pp.56-60;seehttp://www.aftabnews.ir/vdeeep q2blqee.html (aeeessedon 19December2008).
112 Cp.http://www.aftabnews .ir/vdeeepq2blqee.html.supra, footnote 56.During the eventsit wasrevealed that morethan 60 membersoftheParliamenthavemore than one wife,see http://meydaan.orglshowA rtiele.aspx?arid=660 dated 24 Mordäd 1387/14 August 2008 (aeeessed on 12January2009).There is no eritiealhistoricalorempirieal researchon the traditiona l role of polygamy,themainsocialstratain which polygamyis praetised or the eeonomieor socialcireumstancesof polygamy in Iranianhistoryand present society. Po-lygam yissimplyseeninmany diseuss ionsas a eulturalreliet not fitting into the modem Iranian society, but mostly the definitionof "modemity" is not given. See, however, http://sociologyofiran.eomlindex.php?option=eom_eontent&task=view&id=770&Itemid=
65(aeeessed on 17 January 2009).Aeeording to an empirieal study quoted in this report, the number of polygamous men rose between 1977 and 1987. In 67%of eases where women kill theirhusband it is beeauseofanother sexualrelationthe man had (or another wife)or at leastbeeausethiswas suspeetedby the women. Womenare fourtimes more likely to eommitsuieidethanmen.
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