On the increasing and systematic repression of women in Iran

B100188/2024

Motion for a European Parliament resolution on the increasing and systematic repression of women in Iran

(2024/2951(RSP))

The European Parliament,

having regard to its previous resolutions on Iran,

having regard to Rule 150(5) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the student Ahoo Daryaei was harassed by university security forces for allegedly violating hijab rules, during which her clothing was partially torn; whereas, in protest of this degrading treatment, she removed the rest of her clothing and was subsequently arrested;

whereas the Iranian authorities declared her "mentally unfit" and transferred her to a psychiatric hospital, a tactic frequently used by the Iranian regime to silence outspoken women; whereas human rights organisations have expressed concerns about her treatment, including reports of possible torture and forced medication;

whereas the judiciary claims that Daryaei has been released but such statements must be viewed critically;

whereas the pathologisation of resistance is part of a systematic effort by the Iranian authorities to stifle women's autonomy and punish those who oppose discriminatory laws such as compulsory veiling and gender segregation;

whereas the Iranian authorities are planning to set up "hijab removal treatment clinics" to subject women who defy compulsory hijab laws to "scientific and psychological treatment"; whereas such clinics function as instruments of repression and forced conformity; whereas this initiative fits into a wider pattern of arrests, disappearances and forced psychiatric detention of women who violate the hijab laws;

Strongly condemns the Iranian regime's systematic repression of women, including the pathologisation of politically defiant women through forced psychiatric detention and stigmatisation;

Calls for full transparency in the case of Ahoo Daryaei, including an independent investigation into her detention and treatment; urges the Iranian authorities to guarantee her safety and freedom;

Calls for the immediate and unconditional release of all women's rights defenders and victims of arbitrary detention, including Narges Mohammadi, Sepideh Gholian and Golrokh Iraee;

Urges the Iranian authorities to repeal all laws that discriminate against women and girls, including the mandatory hijab law, and to immediately end the practice of harassment, detention and violence against those who oppose these laws;

Stresses the urgent need for the EU and its Member States to increase support for Iranian civil society, in particular women's rights defenders, through financial and technical assistance, emergency visas and asylum for those at risk of persecution;

Reiterates its calls for investigations under universal jurisdiction into crimes committed by the Iranian authorities, including arbitrary detention, torture and systematic gender-based repression; urges the Council to impose targeted sanctions on individuals responsible for these abuses, including the Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei;

Calls on the Iranian authorities to grant full and unfettered access to the UN Fact-Finding Mission and the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran;

Calls on the EEAS to prioritise human rights in its relations with Iran and to establish a strategic task force to address the human rights crisis in the country;

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the HR/VP, the Member States and the Government and Parliament of Iran.