A review on the women's right and divorce issue

The girls' age of Marriage
Before deleting Article 1041, in accordance with Exception 1041, the child could marry a girl under 9 years old under the agreement of her owner (enacted in 1982). So, it should be noted that puberty is 9 years based on the rules. However, we should note that puberty is a natural process that must happen outside and it is not a praying case so, a girl may come to maturity at age 13 and the other girls at age 9. Where the girls mature at age 9, it is regarded nines years, but where the girls may reach puberty at the age of 13 or even 14 years, so, this case must be considered. Of course, with subsequent amendments, amendment of Article 1041 was omitted and by approving the Expediency Council, the age of marriage improved to the age of 13-years and the marriage of girls less than 13 must be done with court permission.
The Divorce of Iranians living abroad
Assigning two persons of consultants of the Judiciary Head for the Divorce of Ãsr and Haraj and men who with harassment and malicious intent toward their wives, kept suspending abroad and did not divorce them , is one of the other issues that has been very beneficial in solving the problems concerning the women.
Criminal penalties for fraud in marriage
With the approval of Article 647 of the Islamic Penal Code in 1996, the imprisonment punishment from 6 months to 2 years for those who deceive others with fraudulent operations has been determined. On the other hand, they introduce themselves with characteristics that lacked them, so that if the other party was aware of those characteristics, no marriage would occur. It should be noted that legally, deception not deserves criminal punishment, but also termination and as result is followed with civil liability of the deceiver.
The law of increasing dowry in day rate
The nature of women's dowry interest has considered dowry as part of their natural rights and religious and ordinary law due to the fact that God has created the women with lovely nature and has endowed them with this right and has followed it in the position of the legislation. Dowry is a gift that man at the beginning of the marriage gives her to express his love to his wife. Today, psychologists believe that giving the gift by the man at the beginning of the life will be very effective in creating emotional energy to his life partner.
Legislator, as a result of the above cases and not staying behind of social structure and economic changes in society and to be able to adapt himself to the demands of society, with amendment of Article 1082 of the Civil Code, announced that by issuing this Law, paying alimony of Iranian women will be based on changes in prices that will be announced each year according to the inflation and economic fluctuation by Central Bank. As each community has 2 modes of stability and change and the duty of the legal rules is to correspond right stability with mobility evolution. Today, there are issues in open and large fields that perhaps did not exist a century ago. This amendment, however, caused the women's rights up to one hundred times. So, of the positive aspects of this amendment is that contrary to the general rules retroactive to the past it also includes the dowries before the approval of this law because the spirit dominating on this law has considered the time for paying the dowry and not the time of doing the contract. Whatever is known about the money as dowry is the money value and not the money itself and the women's interest in gold, coins or property in dowry has been for the sake of the same value.
Amending Article 1210 of the Civil Code
Before Amendment of the mentioned article, age of puberty and marriage for girls has been 9 years and for boys 15 years. Islamic Consultative Assembly believing that low age of marriage might follow physical, psychological, legal and social consequences. Therefore, in a resolution has approved age of 18 for marriage of girls and boys that this issue faced the Guardian Council opposition and finally, the referred resolution was raised in Expediency Council that is the final legal decision making organ of the country, and the marriage age for girls from 9 years promoted to 13 years and about the boys the same 15 years was kept. Of the positive results of this amendment will be that courts can take advantage of this legislation in their the judicial procedures and promoting the age for female criminal responsibility to 13 years of women because, prior to this amendment, the age of criminal responsibility for girls have been 9 years. However, under Iranian law, the child lacks criminal responsibility and in the definition of the child has been said: the child is one who has not reached puberty yet. Thus, according to previous rules, 9 years old girl has been regarded as adult and with criminal responsibility. Of course, this is incompatible with international conventions on children's rights because, according to international conventions, persons under 18 years old are considered as child and with no criminal liability.
Amendment of the mothers' custody after divorce
Prior to the recent amendments, boy custody was up to 2 years and girls up to 7 years with the mother but, recent legal changes, increased the boy custody up to7 years and the boys like the girls are kept under the mother's custody up to seven years. Of course, the legal procedure of Iranian courts on the issue of custody, above all is related to the child interest than the law observance because; based on the law and considering custody of children more than all focusing on the child's secure and health than law obedience.
Further important point about child custody is that the girl after 9 years and the boy after 15th will be optional to choose one of their parents and live with them that mostly prefer to live with their mothers. If one of the parties refuses the decision made by the law concerning child custody, they will be sentenced to prison till they perform their task.
Modification of article 1117 of Civil Code
This article was unilaterally gave the right to man to demand the court to prevent his wife from jobs incompatible with family interests. By amendment of this Article, this right was mutually given to woman to prevent his wife from working with the family interests.
Reference to judging before the divorce
By the amendment related to the divorce, the courts are required that before issuing the sentence deliver the subject to the court. If by the efforts and attempts by the family or the court no result obtained, the court will pronounce divorce. With the enactment of this Act, the Ministry of Education was obliged to compile textbooks for mothers and children's health. The Ministry of Health and Medical Education of the state was also bound to create a course in the name of family planning in all fields. IRIB also became responsible to provide educational programs for promoting public awareness.
Amendment Act for the men remarriage
One of the reasons for family collapse in Iran was the men remarriage that according to previous laws this authority had been given to the men. Now, with legal reforms, this authority has been seriously limited, in the sense that no man without court authorization or his firs wife agreement can not remarry. The Court also under difficult circumstances such as cases where first wife is suffering infected, contagious or incurable disease shall issue the required permits. Otherwise, without first wife permission, the court does not allow the man to remarry and the first wife under any circumstances will not allow him to do that. It is because the constant women's demand of men and her nature is in a way that under no circumstances they are ready to see someone else beside their husband and divide the love of heir spouse with someone else. Therefore, in practice, the second marriage for men has been officially blocked permanently.
Writing stipulations in the contract at the time of marriage
As it was mentioned above, in accordance with article 1133 of the Civil Code, men have been free to divorce women and whenever will, they could, after paying their legal right divorce them. While there was no such right equally to women and the court could accept or reject the request. However, after the Islamic Revolution to fill this legal gap and to protect the women's rights, principals in the marriage contract was written that are known as marriage contracts. It means that the man signing the agreement at the beginning of the marriage and delegates his wife that in case of mistreatment, addiction, choosing another wife and the like, she can go to the court and in case of the demand proof, requests for divorce.
Marriage commitment along with these amendments to fill the legal vacuum caused by the absence of woman's authorities has been very effective and could have supply many her rights. These rights and other financial rights has caused that now, in Iran, the men do not pioneer for divorce and more than 70 percent of divorces demanded by the women. Divorce by men would follow heavy financial burden of paying dowry, alimony, and wages, half of the assets acquired after marriage and other legal rights for them.
The Woman's sharing in half of the man's assets
The man, by signing the provisions in the contract, undertakes to share his wife in all properties and assets that will gain after marriage, and if he attempts to divorce his wife, he must pay half of his assets detected by court to her. However, according to the social structure of our society and because many women lacking the economic base, it has been a good economical support for them and is regarded as economic source for them after divorce.
Amendment concerning the marriage of virgin girls
If a virgin girl in marrying the interested person faces her father's opposition, she would can after a thorough introduction of the man and setting the marry minutes out of court, refers to the court and ask the court to record their marriage despite of the father's disagreement.
The Expectations of legal and the intellectual centers of policy makers and families, especially the Expediency Council that has played a important role in the current reform of the family is that according to the Supreme Leader statements they should use the natural elasticity provisions that is the every moment requirement of our time and resolve social and familial problems that is the need of our era.