According to statistics attacks on female students increase

Iran Press News: Amir Kabir university newsletter reports: Attacks on female students has tangibly increased. This treatment is not only limited to female students who are politically active; this is a direct attempt by the Islamic regime’s authorities to further increase restrictions and clamp down on women’s rights.

“Confronting female students regarding their manner of dress and their social interaction with male students” was the problem that the dean of the Moddaress University’s teachers training college directly and proudly explained.
Below is a report prepared by the women’s commission of the office of fostering unity (Tahkim Vahdat)* on the types of problems that female students have had to endure over the past year.

It is necessary to mention that due to pressures on the girls, the names of the female students – except for the students with stars – has been withheld. In many cases, efforts of the women’s commission to prevent confrontations with these female students fail due to the existing taboos and the girls’ fear for their families, as well as social and regime pressures.

Summoned to the disciplinary committees

- On Tuesday, July 4th, 2006 the regime-run news agency ILNA reported, 160 female students of the Orumiyeh University were summoned to the disciplinary committee due to the lack of observance of Islamic ethics.

- In October/November this year 4 former members and one current member of the Amir Kabir University student Association were summoned to the disciplinary committee.

- In October/November this year a female students of the College of administration and economics was summoned to the disciplinary committee due to the lack of observance of Islamic dress.

- In September/October 21 female student activists of the University of Tehran were summoned to the disciplinary committee and were interrogate: 7 were from the faculty of social sciences, 10 from the law school, 2 were from the faculty of psychology, 1 from the faculty of fine arts and 1 from the school of literature.

Verdicts handed down by the disciplinary committees

Below are the verdicts handed down to 13 female students of Tehran University and confirmed in the appeals and review phase as well:

- Suspension for 2 scholastic terms for one of the students of the faculty of social sciences due to “the lack of observance of Islamic dress”, “fomenting an atmosphere of unrest and conflict”.

- One term suspended scholastic suspension for 3 female students; a written warning with a demerit in the university file for one of the students of the faculty of psychology who is charged with “fomenting an atmosphere of unrest and conflict”.

- Written warnings, without demerits in their university files, for 7 students of the law school.

- Written warnings, without demerits in the university file, for 1 student from the faculty of social sciences.

- Written warnings, without demerits in the university files, for 1 student from the school of fine arts.

Students arrested

- Two female student from the faculty of political science of Tehran University were arrested during the Friday, December 8th protest, in front of the campus gates and were transferred to an unknown location.

- A female student from Zanján University and the editor of the student publication entitled Gheezel Ozoun, were arrested due to the a special publication of a letter protesting against the Islamic regime’s violation of human rights and the sentencing of Abbass Lessani, a political activist from Ardebil [who was arrested and charged simply because he had published the calendar in Turkish and being fined $33,000 was imprisoned].

- The student association of Zanján university published a statement divulging the names and particulars of 13 members of the university’s central assembly who were repeatedly arrested between 1998 and 2005 by the intelligence and security forces and have been put on trial and imprisoned by the revolutionary courts. Two of the 13 were women.

- During the June 28th women’s right sit-in, 3 of the female students were arrested; they were released after several days. Also 2 of the girls from the faculty of social sciences and another from the faculty of economic of Allameh Tabatabaei University were summoned to the public prosecutor’s office for attending this sit-in.

Appearance in court

- One of the female students from Yazd university was charged with “disturbing the public order and agitation of public opinion through publishing statements encouraging the boycott of the elections”. She was summoned to branch 3 of Yazd’s revolutionary court for prosecution.

- One of the female student activists from the faculty of social sciences of the Allameh Tabatabaei University was summoned to the revolutionary court via a student publication.

Students with stars **

- Ali Neekou-Nessbati, member of the central assembly of the office of fostering unity (Takim Vahdat) during a news conference announced the names of the students with stars who were refused registration; 2 of these students were women. The ministry of science has simply refused to allow these students to register despite the fact that they passed the entrance exam of the universities.

- Ms. Zahra Janipour, who is a graduate of the school of environmental studies of the Abou-Ali Sina higher education complex of Malayer (Province of Lorestan) was also one of the political activists of the university’s student Association as well. She participated in the 2002 student protests demanding the release of political prisoner, Hashem Aghajari; She also participated in the June 2003 protests for which she spent 13 days under arrest and following that the Malayer summary court sentenced her to 91 days in prison and cash fines. This verdict, during the appeals phase became 5 years of deprivation of social rights. Though Zahra Janipour passed the final exams at the faculty of environmental studies of Birjand University with high marks and was accepted to the graduate school of environmental studies of Tehran University, the ministry of science categorically refused to allow her to register.

- Ms. Hananeh Bani-Taraf graduate of the school of Arabic language and literature of the Allameh Tabatabaei university who was accepted by the graduate school of the Modaress training college was also prohibited from registering; in her case it was due to her father’s cultural activities in the Arab community of the south western province of Khuzestan that she was prohibited from registering in the graduate program.

* The Office of Fostering Unity, known in Farsi as Tahkim Vahdat, is the largest student organization in Iran which has mainly been a university students' organization. It was formed to support the rule of Ruhollah Khomeini. Tahkim Vahdat became one of the most vocal critics of hardliners in Iran and promoted a pro-reformist stance, supporting Khatami. Since the failure of the so-called reformists many of its governing members remain "nationalist religionists” have established their own movement; with some members promoting the separation of religion and state, they remain faithful to Islam as their religion.

** Stars are being given to students for punishment. "Students with stars" describes students who have been expelled or suspended from a university. The term became prevalent after several students said university officials had refused to register them for the new academic year, telling them that they have two or three stars. Student protestors and activists say more than 250 students have been affected thus far. The “admission committee” in charge of picking out the students who get the stars is made up agents of the ministry of intelligence and security of the Islamic regime.