Statements in Meeting with Selected Women of the Country on the Blessed Birth of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her)

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

First, I welcome the ladies and congratulate them on the blessed birth of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her), and on Women's Week and Mother's Day. As mentioned, the conjunction of this significant social occasion with the birth of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) - especially this year, when our people remember that great lady twice at the beginning and end of the year and hold gatherings - is an opportunity to understand and gain guidance from her life.

Firstly, the spiritual status of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) ranks among the highest spiritual ranks of a few individuals in humanity. She is infallible; infallibility is a characteristic of a select few of God's chosen ones among humanity; and this great lady - Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) - is among them, considering the reality that this Muslim woman and martyr in the path of God was only about twenty years old - with varying narrations from eighteen to twenty-five years - a young woman with this high level of spirituality that places her alongside the saints and prophets, and is referred to by divine messengers as "the Lady of All Women of the Worlds." Alongside this spiritual status, the emergence of her outstanding traits and significant roles in the personal life of this great lady each serves as a lesson. Her piety, chastity, purity, her struggles, her role as a wife, her motherhood, her political understanding, her presence in the most important arenas of human life during that era - whether in her youth and childhood or after marriage - each serves as a lesson; not only a lesson for you ladies, but for all of humanity. Therefore, this conjunction is an opportunity for us; we must delve into the life of Fatimah al-Zahra, recognize it with a new perspective, understand it, and truly take it as a model.

Now, regarding the issue of women in the Islamic Republic and in our country and society. Firstly, I must express that whenever I encounter Muslim women, believing and educated women, on such occasions, I deeply thank God; truly, this is one of the greatest honors of the Islamic system that under its shadow, there are so many wise, educated, and outstanding women in our society; it is a great blessing and a source of pride. Today, only this respected lady spoke, but we have had numerous sessions where various women spoke; each time they expressed their views, a new window of fresh thought opened in the minds of people. The upbringing of so many noble, outstanding, and thoughtful individuals is one of the greatest honors of the Islamic system. Today, when we look, the names of our women are on the forefront of numerous books - scientific books, research books, historical books, literary books, political books, artistic books - among the best writings and works produced today under the Islamic system - whether articles or books - are the writings of our women, which is truly a source of pride. In our history, this is unprecedented; we have seen various periods, we have been familiar with the cultural atmosphere of the country; we have never had so many outstanding individuals in various fields - whether in religious matters or academic matters. Alongside this, the completely prominent emergence of the identity and independent personality of Iranian women in the arena of struggles, including during the Sacred Defense and its aftermath until today; all these wives of martyrs, wives of the disabled, mothers of martyrs, prominent survivors of those who gave their lives in the path of God, with their strong will, resolute determination, and patience, make every human being humble and submissive before them. I truly feel humbled whenever I encounter these outstanding women. I often interact with the mothers of martyrs, with the wives of martyrs, with the wives of the disabled: this self-sacrificing lady who dedicates her entire life to managing and improving the life of a disabled person for the sake of God; this is not a small matter, these things are easy to say. That mother who has given two, three, or four children in the path of God and still stands firm, advises us to stand firm; be steadfast! One truly feels humility in the face of such greatness. These are the realities of the women of our society that are very honorable and significant. Thanks be to God, this is the bright and shining aspect of the issue of women in the country.

However, the issue of women in today's world, including in our country, is one of the matters that, for various reasons, still requires pursuit, contemplation, work, and thought. Firstly, half of the population of countries are women; how can we healthily utilize this immense potential and talent for the benefit of any country, including our own? Secondly, the issue of gender, which is one of the most sensitive and delicate matters of creation, how can it serve the elevation of humanity, not the decline of humanity and moral degradation? Thirdly, due to the natural differences that exist between women and men, how can we - both in the social environment and in the family environment - institutionalize and make unavoidable behaviors that do not oppress women? These are very important issues. If we focus on these two or three issues, it will lead to a comprehensive effort and a series of studies, research, and practical work. The issue of oppression against women should not be thought to be exclusive to backward societies or societies that are, for example, considered savage; no, in today's so-called civilized societies, this oppression against women is, if not more than in other societies, certainly not less. These are important issues; they must be addressed, and attention must be paid to them.

There were good points in the statements of the lady; the main points that are in the minds of people were mentioned in her statements. She said that we have previously stated that a high-level center is needed in the country to discuss and work on this important issue. These issues are our fundamental issues; the issue of women and the issue of family, which, of course, cannot be separated from the issue of women. Let me also state that if someone wants to discuss the issue of women separately from the issue of family, they will encounter confusion in understanding and diagnosing the remedy; these two must be viewed together, even though they are two separate issues. Well, such a center is necessary, which has not yet been established; we have said this, we have raised it; we do not have such a research and working center that examines, follows, and implements a correct and comprehensive strategy regarding the issue of women - in relation to the topics mentioned and some other topics. This center must be established and, of course, has its requirements.

What I want to convey to you today are two or three points: one point is that if we want - whether in the center mentioned, or in any other point and institution - to think correctly about the issue of women and to act correctly and not make mistakes, we must completely empty our minds of the clichéd ideas produced by the West. The Westerners have misunderstood the issue of women, acted poorly, and presented their wrong and misleading understanding and fatal actions as the prevailing currency in the world. Against anyone who speaks against their views, their vast propaganda apparatus creates a commotion, not allowing anyone to speak. If you want to find the correct strategy regarding the issue of women and accompany this strategy with its essential implementations and requirements and move forward in the long term to achieve results, you must empty your minds of Western thoughts about women. I do not say to remain uninformed, no; I am not in favor of ignorance, I advocate awareness and familiarity, but we must completely reject the authority of those thoughts. The Western thoughts, the Western views, regarding the issue of women absolutely cannot be a source of happiness and guidance for human society. Firstly, their thoughts are based on materialistic and non-divine epistemology, which is itself a mistake. Any scientific and intellectual system that is based on material knowledge and material belief is naturally wrong. The view of the realities of creation must be recognized and understood with a divine epistemological perspective, with belief in the existence of God, with belief in God's power and divine presence and lordship. Therefore, the foundation and root of Western thoughts is wrong because it is materialistic. This is one. Secondly, in the Western approach to the issue of women - as one can clearly see in the history of the industrial revolution - a mercenary and materialistic economic perspective has been involved. That is, in Europe, where women had no property rights and their possessions belonged to their husbands, and they had no right to dispose of their own property, or since the advent of democracy in the West, women had no voting rights, suddenly the issue of the industrial revolution and the effective presence of women in factories with lower costs for capitalists emerged. At that time, they granted women property rights so that they could bring them to the factory, pay them less, and naturally, their entry into the labor market had its own requirements and consequences until today. Therefore, in addition to the fact that the view of women is a non-divine and materialistic view, the policies based on which the current situation in Europe and the Western world has emerged have been accompanied by a mercenary and materialistic economic perspective.

Another reason why we must avoid the Western perspective on the issue of women is this: in the Western view, women are a means for the satisfaction of lust; this is undeniable. If someone claims otherwise, some may make a fuss saying that it is not so; however, when one observes their lives, this perspective is fundamentally dominant. In social environments, the less coverage a woman has, the more desirable she is. This is not said about men; in formal gatherings, a man must be fully dressed, wearing a bow tie and a suit, and sometimes formal attire; however, women in these formal gatherings must appear differently; this has no other philosophy or wisdom than to satisfy the lustful gaze of men; this is how it is in the Western world today; and practically, the greatest injustice that is done to women in the Western world is of this kind.

I am not one to cut out clippings from newspapers, but yesterday or the day before, I saw something in a newspaper; I found it very important; I brought it here to read to you. A book by "Jimmy Carter," the former President of the United States, published under the title "A Call to Action," which addresses the issue of human rights violations and horrific abuses against women. Jimmy Carter states in this book: every year, one hundred thousand girls are sold as slaves in America. In a place where the owner of a brothel can buy a girl, usually from Latin America or Africa, for a price of one thousand dollars. He also refers to sexual assaults that occur in college campuses; where out of every twenty-five cases, only one is reported. Carter also states that only one percent of sexual assailants in the military are prosecuted. One is moved to tears! You see many such things in newspapers; I see them a lot too; I never cite them, but these are realities. Jimmy Carter is, after all, a well-known figure, and this is his book. What kind of situation is this in the world? What kind of honoring of women is this? A renowned Western author writes a novel to portray prostitution as an honorable profession! which has also been translated into Persian. In this book, it is mentioned how sex traffickers come from Latin American countries, take girls with promises and take them to these centers; this, of course, pertains to Europe, not America. Of course, this book and this novel attempt to portray prostitution as an honorable profession. This is the Western culture regarding women; this is their respect for women.

If we want our perspective on the issue of women to be healthy, logical, and accurate, the first condition is that we must completely empty our minds of the statements that the Westerners make about women - regarding employment, management, and gender equality - we must completely clear them. One of the greatest errors of Western thought regarding the issue of women is this title of "gender equality." Justice is a right; equality is sometimes a right, sometimes it is false; why should a person who is naturally constructed - whether physically or emotionally - for a specific area of human life be separated from that specific area and dragged into another area that has been prepared by God for a different construction? Why? What rational logic does this have, what compassion is there in this? Why should a task that is masculine be assigned to a woman? What honor is there for a woman to perform a task that is masculine? I regret that sometimes women themselves show sensitivity to this issue, asking what difference there is between us and men? Well, yes, in many matters, there is no difference. The Islamic view of women and men is a human view; in the matter of humanity, the journey of spiritual ranks, and the abundant intellectual and scientific potentials, there is no difference, but there are two forms: one form for one type of work and one profession, and one form for another type of work; of course, there are also common tasks. [Is] it a service that we come and take one of these two forms out of its exclusive area and bring it into the exclusive area of the other form? This is what the Westerners are doing. Many of these international conventions and their global agendas pertain to these issues. Based on this erroneous thought, they have ruined human life, ruined themselves, and now they want to ruin others too. You ladies, thanks be to God, are knowledgeable, capable, and outstanding; I respect you. Whenever women speak in sessions, I benefit from it. In this very place where we are sitting, there was a strategic ideas session regarding the issue of women and family; several women came and spoke, and without flattery, I truly benefited from the points they made; in my opinion, if you want to think about the fundamental issue of women and the problems that women face everywhere - including in our country - the first condition is that you must free your minds from the Western thoughts that are a clichéd, erroneous, and rigid thought - appearing new on the surface, but rigid in essence; appearing compassionate, but treacherous in essence - and think independently of Western thoughts.

The second requirement is that you refer to Islamic texts. Truly, derive the main principles and foundations from the Quran, from the Sunnah, from Hadith, from supplications, from Islamic texts, and from the words and actions of the Imams. Revelation is from God; God is the creator of you and me. I do not say that one should accept everything that is said in the name of religion; no, from the correct religion, which is derived through the correct method of interpretation and by the qualified and deserving individuals, should be utilized; truly, we should derive from the Book of God, from the Sunnah of the Prophet, from the methods of the infallible Imams, and from their words to determine what strategy we should adopt regarding women's issues and the main lines should be derived from there.

In my opinion, these are the two main tasks. There is a third task, which is that in identifying the main issues of women, we should truly address the main issues, not secondary issues. Addressing the issue of family, especially the issue of health, security, peace, and honoring women in the family environment, is one of the main issues. We have several main issues, one of which is this.

Look and see what factors deprive women of peace and spiritual tranquility in the family. Seek to eliminate these through laws, through promotional methods, and through various approaches. This is the essence of the matter. A woman in the home is a source of peace; a source of peace for men, and a source of peace for children; both daughters and sons. If a woman herself does not enjoy psychological and spiritual peace, she cannot provide this peace to the family. A woman who is humiliated, insulted, or pressured by work cannot be a housekeeper; she cannot manage the family; while a woman is the manager of the family. This is a fundamental issue. This is one of the most essential issues that, well, in our living environment - whether in our old environments or our new environments - has not received much attention and must be addressed.

The perception of women in the home is that of a second-class being who is obliged to serve others; this perception exists among many - now some express it verbally, some do not, but it is in their hearts - this is the exact opposite of what Islam has stated. I have repeatedly mentioned this famous hadith that "A woman is a flower and not a laborer"; in this hadith, it is said: do not think that a woman is a laborer in your home who must do the household chores; it is not like that. Well, see, this itself opens a chapter that leads to several chapters: the issue of respecting a woman's work in the home and the lack of obligation on her, the non-commodification of this work, meaning it is not to be exchanged for money; this is. These are things that are indeed present in Islam, in Islamic jurisprudence; as the lady mentioned, our jurisprudence is indeed advanced and distinguished. Some take certain aspects of it, some forget certain aspects, and some, in order to align with these Western propagandistic thoughts, twist certain things; we have seen this too.

Some, in order not to offend the Westerners, alter some of the obvious truths of Islamic rulings. The Quran states: "And if you obey most of those on earth, they will mislead you from the path of God; they follow nothing but conjecture, and they are only guessing"; we should not follow the prevailing thoughts in the world of ignorance and superstition; we must find the Islamic thought, pursue it, even if some people say bad things about it. This is also an issue; therefore, the main issue must be identified. In my opinion, the main issue, one of the main issues, is the issue of home and family: the security of women in the family environment; the opportunity for women in the family and homemaking to express their talents; [there should be nothing] that prevents her from studying, from reading, from understanding, from writing - for someone who is inclined towards these things - the ground for these works should be provided; this is the essence of the matter.

The issue of women's employment is not one of the main issues. Of course, we are not opposed to women's employment; I myself do not oppose their employment or their management, as long as it does not conflict with the main issues; if it conflicts, the latter takes precedence. One of the tasks that must be carried out in this third area that we mentioned is, of course, to look and see what jobs are suitable for this characteristic of women. Some jobs are not suitable for the nature of women, well, these should not be pursued. One of the tasks is that those studies that lead to those jobs should not be imposed on women. This discussion of universities and education and so on, where some make a fuss that there is discrimination in education, this discrimination is not bad everywhere. Discrimination is bad where it is against justice. Otherwise, suppose when you place one in a football team as a striker, one as a defender, and one as a goalkeeper, well, this is discrimination. If the one who should stand in defense is placed as a striker, well, the team will lose. The one who should be a striker, if placed as a goalkeeper, who does not know how to do this job, well, the team loses. This is discrimination, but this discrimination is a form of justice; one is placed here, one is placed there, one is appointed there. [So we must] see, considering those lofty goals, what education is suitable for women, and provide that education for them; not that we force them that because you participated in the entrance exam this way and got this score, you must study this subject, which is not compatible with her feminine nature, nor with her lofty goals, nor with the job that will be given to her based on this subject. These things must be considered in the context of women's employment. And to summarize, that a woman cannot take on all the jobs that a man takes on should not be seen as a disgrace or a deficiency; no, what is bad is that which is not compatible with divine nature. This is what I have to say, and of course, we have noted other things, but I believe this is sufficient.

The issue of women is an important issue; the best people who can pursue and solve this issue are the women themselves. And we do not lack educated, thoughtful, talented, eloquent, and creative women; today, thanks be to God, we have many. I mentioned; we have never had so many educated and wise women in our history; neither in religious environments nor in academic environments. We have not had so many female writers, so many female poets, so many female researchers, and female scholars in various fields; fortunately, today, thanks to the Islamic system, we have them. This is due to Islam, due to the Islamic Republic, due to the enlightened view of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) regarding the issue of women, which was mentioned. We have never had such a situation in our country. We must thank God and express our gratitude for His blessings and ask Him for an increase in these blessings and express our gratitude for this blessing; and the gratitude is precisely what I mentioned: looking towards divine guidance and diverting our gaze from material guidance, which today is managed and executed by the Westerners and Americans who are very brazen, very demanding, and very noisy, and if someone speaks against them, they launch a propaganda attack, [but] we should not pay attention; we must, God willing, move forward.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.