Creating laws to protect children from sexual abuse continues to be a difficult process in Iran. Abuse cases are rarely publicized in the country, although Iran is a signatory of the UN convention on child rights.
Image: Tasnim
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In a recent case in Iran, a victim anonymously posted a story on Twitter of abuse he experienced at the hands of a teacher 17 years prior. He was able to find support on social media from people who had similar experiences of abuse.
He was inspired to finally share his story only after he saw a case of sexual abuse publicized in a news report from the southern Iranian city of Shoushtar. A gardener with "psychiatric problems" reportedly molested children and took pictures of his victims. A journalist published the pictures in the report.
In 2016, Koran reciter Said Tousi was accused of child molestation and the charges were dropped Image: ILNA
However, many cases of abuse are not made public in Iran. In some cases, prominent figures who were accused, have been able to use their influence to escape justice.
In 2016, a prominent Koran reciter, Said Tousi, was accused by 16 different youth of sexual abuse. The accusers were ready to take the case before a judge and provide witness testimony. Allegedly, Tousi had connections with Iran's spiritual leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. Tousi's case made it to the top of Iran's chief justice and it was dropped in February.
A representative of the chief justice issued a statement saying that "child abuse and sexual abuse of children is not common in our country. Compared to Western countries, we have very few cases of abuse because of our cultural and religious characteristics. "
Mahmoud Sadeghi, an Iranian parliamentarian, recently tweeted that the Tousi case emboldened rapists and child abusers.
"If the Tousi case had not been discontinued on the orders of the highest judiciary, rapists would not dare behave so boldly," Sadeghi tweeted a few days ago.
Iran's homeless: Forced to live in cardboard cartons and vacant graves
Iran has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of homeless people in the past few years. Rights activists blame President Rouhani, who promised social justice during his election campaign, for the problem.
Image: IRNA
Beyond capacity
On one cold night in December, some 750 homeless people in Tehran went to a homeless shelter - called Khavaran - to stay warm. Until then, the shelter hadn't housed more than 400 people on a single night.
Image: IRNA
Warm shelter
Khavaran Hall is designed to house 600 people. This capacity is stretched to 1,100 on a winter night. The facility also accomodates seasonal workers who shower, eat one warm meal per day and sleep there. The causes of homelessness in Iran are unemployment, drug addiction, discrimination and poverty.
Image: Irna
Cardboard homes
Homeless people in Iran often use improvised shelters called "cartonkhab," originating from the use of cardboard cartons for shelter. In December 2016, a 28-year-old man from the city of Nahavand was found dead in a building under construction. He had been ejected from his home because of drug-related problems. His was only one of many such deaths in "cartonkhabs" throughout the Iranian cities.
Image: shabestan.ir
Child 'cartonkhabs'
This photo was published in social media in August last year. The Iranian social activists and media republished it and asked politicians to do something about child "cartonkhabs." Subsequently, the health department officials visited two areas in Tehran where they discovered 12 women and six children among the homeless. These women and children were then taken to a shelter.
Image: tnews
A grave situation
Only one week after the beginning of the government's homeless recovery plan, shocking news about the "gurkhabha" - homeless people who take shelter in vacant graves - broke on the media. The "Shahrvand" newspaper published a report about 50 women, men and children who spent the night sitting in open graves in the city of Nasirabad.
Image: Isna
Rouhani held responsible
The authorities forcefully removed "gurkhabha" from the graveyard. The conservative opposition has used this issue to criticize Iranian President Hassan Rouhani for not fulfilling his election promises. Rouhani had stated that he would alleviate poverty and work against social injustice.
Image: shahrvanddaily.ir
Pregnancy issues
Three percent of the homeless women last winter were pregnant, according to government statistics. Most drug-addicted homeless women don't go to the health facilities due to the fear of legal action. Reports say some women even sell their children through gang connections.
Image: Tasnimnews
Sterilization is not the solution
Masumeh Abad, a member of the Tehran City Hall, recently said the number of children being sold under these conditions is quite small. She also stated that a sterilization plan won't solve the general homelessness problem. Majid Rezazade, the director of the Center for Rehabilitation and Prevention of Drug Addiction, said these women should be treated so that they can return to a normal life.
Image: Isna
Working for the homeless
The non-governmental organizations in Iran have been working for the homeless people for decades. The "Tolue Bineshanha" (Sunrise of the Invisible) is one such organization that has been active since 2006 - providing food and social services to thousands of homeless Iranians.
Image: MEHR
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No legal protection for children?
The legal system in Iran also contributes to protecting perpetrators against persecution and explains the "small number" of cases.
"According to Islamic law, adolescents over the age of 15 are no longer children and are legal adults," Mohammad Mohebi, an Islamic legal expert, told DW, adding that the age of legal responsibility is nine years old for girls and 15 for boys.
"Sharia law is the primary source for legal decisions," said Mohebi. "But child abuse is not defined in Sharia law and Islamic scholars have a hard time with defining abuse. This is also the reason behind opposition to parliament's recent bill on the protection of children's rights in Iran."
Iranian law provides little rights to victims of sexual abuse who want to take their cases to court. In cases like the child rapist in Shoushtar, victims must prove that the sex acts were non-consensual and against their explicit will.
In proving their cases under current Iranian law, sexual abuse victims could even be charged with "forbidden behavior" and receive fines or a maximum of one year in jail – which is also the maximum penalty that the rapist would face.
