From Teheran to Beijing
The 4th World Conference on Women, 1995, Beijing, China: Preparations of UNICEF Iran Team
By Niloufar Pourzand
I was a National Officer for Gender and Education in the UNICEF Iran Country Office at the time of preparations for the fourth World Conference on Women, which was to take place in 1995 in Beijing. At the time of the conference, I had taken a year off to advance my studies and could not accompany the Iranian delegation representing the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). However, one of my most outstanding memories is about leading a senior inter-ministerial delegation to visit China ahead of the Conference.
Misrak Elias and Sree Gururaja, who were leading UNICEF’s gender related work in Headquarters, supported us together with Dr. Jane Haile, who was leading in the MENA Regional Office at the time. Sree Gururaja was able to travel to Iran on a short support mission, which was very much appreciated our partners and us. In spite of the intensity with which we worked in those post-Revolution years, UNICEF Iran was able to launch the first ever training workshops on gender analysis and Trainings of Trainers with Government and CSO organizations. We supported renowned women’s rights activists with various publications on women’s rights versus Islamic jurisprudence. We also supported the Ministry of Education with work on girls’ education in marginalized communities, and quite a bit of other such work. It was not easy, but we tried our very best with passion and commitment. Now back to my Beijing Conference memory!
Together with my UNICEF colleague and friend Laylee Moshiri, I organized and accompanied a team of senior female Iranian officials expected to attend the conference. They included the President’s Advisor in Women’s Affairs and the Women’s Affairs Focal Points in other ministries. We were guests of the All China Women’s Federation (ACWF), who was going to play a key role in organizing the Conference. As expected, the ACWF was very well organized and had even found us a Farsi-speaking Chinese translator who accompanied us at all times. The members of the ACWF were very “culturally sensitive”, made sure that our delegation had access to “halal” food, and was placed in a restaurant room separate from others to feel comfortable. This was at times too much and even the IRI members of delegation expressed once or twice that they would have preferred to sit with everyone else. There were many interesting moments, which Laylee and I tried to “navigate” between our own values and perspectives and those of our Chinese hosts and the Iranian Government officials.
We had a very good meeting with colleagues from the UNICEF China Country Office – at that time led by Farid Rahman – who informed us about what they knew of the Conference and their work on gender issues. We spent most of our time, however, with the ACWF who gave us more details on the Conference and took us on several field visits – showing us the incredible work that the ACWF was organizing in urban and rural areas. It was indeed very interesting and inspiring. Since we were accompanying senior IRI officials, the Iranian embassy invited us and the Ambassador’s wife treated us to an “all women” dinner. The ACWF also organized some sightseeing for the delegation, which delighted our co-travellers.
This “study-tour” provided an incredibly rich opportunity to familiarize the IRI delegation with the preparations, the venue and the hosts of the conference ahead of their actual participation. This was happening shortly after the Islamic Revolution, and Iran’s official delegation had its own ideological perspective and agenda, as did other delegations. Iranian Civil Society Organizations and women’s rights activists, some of whom we had also supported, had a very different perspective. I heard that this played itself out quite strongly and openly at the Conference. The diverse perspectives on gender equality and women’s rights continue up to the present with their various iterations – something beyond the scope of this short write-up.
While writing about this today in the time of the pandemic, I realize how so much has changed in terms of our mobility, the organization of “study-tours”, travel and having such “mega” conferences. They seem not viable now and for some time to come – if ever again. I hope that the lessons of that “study-tour” and the conference might continue to play a role in advancing the rights of girls and women in Iran and elsewhere.
By Niloufar Pourzand
Misrak Elias and Sree Gururaja, who were leading UNICEF’s gender related work in Headquarters, supported us together with Dr. Jane Haile, who was leading in the MENA Regional Office at the time. Sree Gururaja was able to travel to Iran on a short support mission, which was very much appreciated our partners and us. In spite of the intensity with which we worked in those post-Revolution years, UNICEF Iran was able to launch the first ever training workshops on gender analysis and Trainings of Trainers with Government and CSO organizations. We supported renowned women’s rights activists with various publications on women’s rights versus Islamic jurisprudence. We also supported the Ministry of Education with work on girls’ education in marginalized communities, and quite a bit of other such work. It was not easy, but we tried our very best with passion and commitment. Now back to my Beijing Conference memory!
Together with my UNICEF colleague and friend Laylee Moshiri, I organized and accompanied a team of senior female Iranian officials expected to attend the conference. They included the President’s Advisor in Women’s Affairs and the Women’s Affairs Focal Points in other ministries. We were guests of the All China Women’s Federation (ACWF), who was going to play a key role in organizing the Conference. As expected, the ACWF was very well organized and had even found us a Farsi-speaking Chinese translator who accompanied us at all times. The members of the ACWF were very “culturally sensitive”, made sure that our delegation had access to “halal” food, and was placed in a restaurant room separate from others to feel comfortable. This was at times too much and even the IRI members of delegation expressed once or twice that they would have preferred to sit with everyone else. There were many interesting moments, which Laylee and I tried to “navigate” between our own values and perspectives and those of our Chinese hosts and the Iranian Government officials.
We had a very good meeting with colleagues from the UNICEF China Country Office – at that time led by Farid Rahman – who informed us about what they knew of the Conference and their work on gender issues. We spent most of our time, however, with the ACWF who gave us more details on the Conference and took us on several field visits – showing us the incredible work that the ACWF was organizing in urban and rural areas. It was indeed very interesting and inspiring. Since we were accompanying senior IRI officials, the Iranian embassy invited us and the Ambassador’s wife treated us to an “all women” dinner. The ACWF also organized some sightseeing for the delegation, which delighted our co-travellers.
This “study-tour” provided an incredibly rich opportunity to familiarize the IRI delegation with the preparations, the venue and the hosts of the conference ahead of their actual participation. This was happening shortly after the Islamic Revolution, and Iran’s official delegation had its own ideological perspective and agenda, as did other delegations. Iranian Civil Society Organizations and women’s rights activists, some of whom we had also supported, had a very different perspective. I heard that this played itself out quite strongly and openly at the Conference. The diverse perspectives on gender equality and women’s rights continue up to the present with their various iterations – something beyond the scope of this short write-up.
While writing about this today in the time of the pandemic, I realize how so much has changed in terms of our mobility, the organization of “study-tours”, travel and having such “mega” conferences. They seem not viable now and for some time to come – if ever again. I hope that the lessons of that “study-tour” and the conference might continue to play a role in advancing the rights of girls and women in Iran and elsewhere.
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