Sexual native selection at university in Iran, An obstacle to progress of the girl students
My father was saying you must just study at our city’s university, if you want to study. It took several months until I proved at last his satisfaction to choose other cities, but on the results of the competitive examination, I was not selected. Asking around, I did understand that there is a new law: the girls must study just at their very own city’s university.
This says Nastaran, a 18 years old girl from Booshehr.
She wanted to study at an excellent university, find a job, and be independent but now all of these are just a far dream.
Owing to the fact that percentage of girls accepted at university increased and they outstripped the boys, the state and the parliament cause from time to time some problems to progress of educated women.
The proposition of sexual quota of university, which was in 2004 on the agenda of the parliament, was aborted through protest of activist women and by order of the president Khatami.
But the 7th parliament in governance era of the 9th state ran again the proposition and tried to prevent, as much possible, educated women from ascent. While the protest continued, the girls and their family were shocked again by the parliament. According to the new proposition called “obligation of university to acceptance of girls student at their residency”, Sazman Sanjesh(the government agency responsible for university entrance exams) and Islamic Azad university must adopt a policy that female candidates, far as possible be accepted near their residency. According to representatives, if this proposition be enacted, it will apply next year. Nevertheless according to authorities of Sazman Sanjesh it also was regarded this year without giving information to applicants.
“General policy of student selection is a legislation of the Higher Council of Cultural Revolution and Sazman Sanjesh set accordingly native selection on the table”, said Ali Karimi Firouzjaei, a commissioner of the parliament’s education and research commission. He stresses that the importance of the matter is double for women because from the viewpoint of the proposer a woman must study in her husband’s or father’s residency.
According to this point of view sees Asadollah Badamchian, a representative of Tehran, the proposition as a gift of 8th parliament to families. He claims that girl’s further education outside of their residence has a lot of problems for girls and this useful & effective plan will solve them.
But on the other side many young girls have another opinion. Female students that don’t study in their residence see studentship as a golden opportunity to value individuality and their talent.
Samira, a second year engineering student of the University of Tehran finds living in a hostel a unique experience that helps to be free from heavy dominance of patriarchal traditions and to be the decision-maker in her life. “If I was still in Kermanshah, it was impossible to progress so much, to read, to see, and to realize the world.” Says Samira.
Zohreh has gone from Tehran to Kerman. “Although Kerman hasn’t good facilities like Tehran but it gave me chance of independent life. Furthermore it was impossible to study engineering at the University of Tehran with such low score like mine, then I had to marry at the request of my parents,” Says Zohreh.
She believes that education is the only way for girls to come in to the society and to be free from the pressure of a traditional community: “enforcement the policy like nativization decreases strongly the variety choice for girls. If, for any reason, they can’t or don’t want to study at their own city, they must abandon entry to the society and being independent.”
Moreover, university’s facilities in Tehran and large cities are incomparable with other cities, so enforcement of this plan deprives the half of country population from studying at advanced universities, just because they are women!
The proposition of “obligation of universities to acceptance of girls student at their residency” is still not adopted and women activists specially girls student attempt hardly to prevent it.
The Women’s Committee of Tahkim-e Vahdat protested through publishing a brochure against native selection and sexual quota. In this brochure that distributed by students in past few days in some universities in Tehran, the citizens are requested to show their complaint against this unjust plan to the authorities: “if the proposition be adapted, provincial girl applicants don’t have the right to continue education in Tehran and other big cities. It deprives not only provincial girl applicants from continuing their education in Tehran, but also forbids girl applicants of Tehran from studying some popular subjects like medicine, engineering, and law in other large cities, as native selection in competitive examination of 2008 forbad many male and female candidates from studying their favourite subjects at excellent university. If it be adapted, sexual discrimination in educational system will be institutionalized. Sexual discrimination takes the opportunity from girls to improve their social identity. If it be adapted, it prohibits social and class mobility, dams different cultures to grow and to be in contact, and reduces rate of development.” The brochure stresses that: “enforcement of such limitations contradicts obviously with article 21 Iran’s constitution. According to the constitution, the state has a duty to improve women character and resurrect her material & spiritual rights through preparing suitable conditions.”
Marjan Hoseini (Shahrzad News)
Translated by Reza
This says Nastaran, a 18 years old girl from Booshehr.
She wanted to study at an excellent university, find a job, and be independent but now all of these are just a far dream.
Owing to the fact that percentage of girls accepted at university increased and they outstripped the boys, the state and the parliament cause from time to time some problems to progress of educated women.
The proposition of sexual quota of university, which was in 2004 on the agenda of the parliament, was aborted through protest of activist women and by order of the president Khatami.
But the 7th parliament in governance era of the 9th state ran again the proposition and tried to prevent, as much possible, educated women from ascent. While the protest continued, the girls and their family were shocked again by the parliament. According to the new proposition called “obligation of university to acceptance of girls student at their residency”, Sazman Sanjesh(the government agency responsible for university entrance exams) and Islamic Azad university must adopt a policy that female candidates, far as possible be accepted near their residency. According to representatives, if this proposition be enacted, it will apply next year. Nevertheless according to authorities of Sazman Sanjesh it also was regarded this year without giving information to applicants.
“General policy of student selection is a legislation of the Higher Council of Cultural Revolution and Sazman Sanjesh set accordingly native selection on the table”, said Ali Karimi Firouzjaei, a commissioner of the parliament’s education and research commission. He stresses that the importance of the matter is double for women because from the viewpoint of the proposer a woman must study in her husband’s or father’s residency.
According to this point of view sees Asadollah Badamchian, a representative of Tehran, the proposition as a gift of 8th parliament to families. He claims that girl’s further education outside of their residence has a lot of problems for girls and this useful & effective plan will solve them.
But on the other side many young girls have another opinion. Female students that don’t study in their residence see studentship as a golden opportunity to value individuality and their talent.
Samira, a second year engineering student of the University of Tehran finds living in a hostel a unique experience that helps to be free from heavy dominance of patriarchal traditions and to be the decision-maker in her life. “If I was still in Kermanshah, it was impossible to progress so much, to read, to see, and to realize the world.” Says Samira.
Zohreh has gone from Tehran to Kerman. “Although Kerman hasn’t good facilities like Tehran but it gave me chance of independent life. Furthermore it was impossible to study engineering at the University of Tehran with such low score like mine, then I had to marry at the request of my parents,” Says Zohreh.
She believes that education is the only way for girls to come in to the society and to be free from the pressure of a traditional community: “enforcement the policy like nativization decreases strongly the variety choice for girls. If, for any reason, they can’t or don’t want to study at their own city, they must abandon entry to the society and being independent.”
Moreover, university’s facilities in Tehran and large cities are incomparable with other cities, so enforcement of this plan deprives the half of country population from studying at advanced universities, just because they are women!
The proposition of “obligation of universities to acceptance of girls student at their residency” is still not adopted and women activists specially girls student attempt hardly to prevent it.
The Women’s Committee of Tahkim-e Vahdat protested through publishing a brochure against native selection and sexual quota. In this brochure that distributed by students in past few days in some universities in Tehran, the citizens are requested to show their complaint against this unjust plan to the authorities: “if the proposition be adapted, provincial girl applicants don’t have the right to continue education in Tehran and other big cities. It deprives not only provincial girl applicants from continuing their education in Tehran, but also forbids girl applicants of Tehran from studying some popular subjects like medicine, engineering, and law in other large cities, as native selection in competitive examination of 2008 forbad many male and female candidates from studying their favourite subjects at excellent university. If it be adapted, sexual discrimination in educational system will be institutionalized. Sexual discrimination takes the opportunity from girls to improve their social identity. If it be adapted, it prohibits social and class mobility, dams different cultures to grow and to be in contact, and reduces rate of development.” The brochure stresses that: “enforcement of such limitations contradicts obviously with article 21 Iran’s constitution. According to the constitution, the state has a duty to improve women character and resurrect her material & spiritual rights through preparing suitable conditions.”
Marjan Hoseini (Shahrzad News)
Translated by Reza
posted by Reza | 9:45 AM
|
0 Comments
