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| Mehsa Mehdili |
According to Mahsa Mehdili, some men in Iran attempt to fulfill the mission of "honor guardianship" imposed by the government and society through violence.
In an interview with Voice of America, the political analyst evaluates the honor killing that occurred in the Talysh region of Iranian Azerbaijan. She says that women have always been targeted in Iranian society.
Mahsa Mehdili says, "There is a slogan that we’ve all heard in Iran, written on walls, advertised on TV, and embedded in the subconscious of society: 'A man of honor will have veiled women!' What does this mean? It means the man is given a mission and a task: if you want to protect your masculinity, you must control the women in your family. You must monitor every step they take. If even a single hair is visible, then whether you are honorable or dishonorable depends on whether you could control her."
She explains that the mission assigned to men is a motivating factor for some men to resort to violence:
"Men are not judged as moral or immoral for their actions. However, they are judged as honorable or dishonorable based on the actions of the women in their family. This is a pressure mechanism placed on men. In fact, they are almost forced into it, as they are expected to 'clean' or 'maintain' their honor. We see this motivation in Romina's father. These motivations come from both society and the government. The most important factor shaping this is the Iranian government."
Mahsa Mehdili also points out that there are no effective laws in Iran to protect children and women from domestic violence.
"Another issue is when a child, fleeing domestic violence, seeks refuge with someone 14-15 years older and wishes to marry them. This is portrayed as a normal situation. The marriage is seen as a way of salvation, which is presented as a normal thing. In legal terms, this is child abuse," the political expert notes.
She adds, "Looking at this case, we see that Romina's father told her mother to teach the child to ingest poison and kill herself. Think about the psychology of that woman, constantly under pressure to encourage her child to commit suicide. But this mother had no place to go, nor any system to seek refuge from this violence and abuse."
Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Məhsa Mehdili: İranda hakimiyyət kişilərin üzərinə namus gözətçiliyi missiyasını yükləyir