WILAYAH NEWS VOICE OF THE GLOBAL AWAKENING
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## Women and the Political Role
### The Political Role of Women
Islam regards the **pledge of allegiance (bayʿah) by women** as a necessary and vital matter in political and social affairs.
If we look at the Western world and those European countries that all claim to defend women’s rights—claims that are largely false—we find that women, until the early decades of the twentieth century, had **no right to express opinions or vote**, and they even lacked the right to property. In fact, they were not considered the owners of their inherited wealth; rather, their husbands were regarded as the owners.
Islam, however, recognizes women’s **pledge of allegiance, property ownership, and participation in the fundamental political and social arenas**. The Qur’an states:
“If believing women come to you pledging allegiance to you that they will not associate anything with God…” (Qur’an 60:12).
Women also came to pledge allegiance to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family). The Messenger of Islam did not say that men would represent women in making this pledge—choosing on their behalf whom to support and whose authority to accept. Rather, he affirmed that **women themselves should pledge allegiance**, and that they have the right to participate in accepting this government and this political and social order.
Thus, in this respect, Western societies are **about thirteen centuries behind Islam**, even though they boast loudly about defending women’s rights.
Fatimah al‑Zahra (peace be upon her) herself was an exemplary model in this regard—both during her childhood and later in Medina after the Prophet’s migration. In all public affairs, during a time when her father stood at the center of all political and social developments, she maintained a **broad and influential presence**, embodying the role of women within the Islamic system.
Of course, Fatimah al‑Zahra represented the highest level in these matters. Yet other women in early Islam also possessed considerable knowledge, wisdom, and learning. Some were present on the **battlefields**, and those who had the physical strength even demonstrated courage and heroism in combat and sacrifice. However, Islam did not make this obligatory for women; rather, it lifted such obligations from them because they do not necessarily correspond to their physical nature or emotional disposition.
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### The Role of Women in Social Transformations and Revolutions
Regarding the role of women in **social transformations and revolutions**, in the great movement of Islamic awakening, if women do not participate in the social movement of a people, that movement will not progress or succeed. On the other hand, if women participate seriously, consciously, and insightfully in any movement, that movement advances **with doubled strength**.
In the great movement of Islamic awakening, therefore, the role of women is **indispensable**, and it must continue. Women are the ones who prepare their husbands and sons and encourage them to participate in the most dangerous arenas and battlefronts.
During the struggle against the tyrannical regime in Iran, and even after the victory of the revolution until today, we witnessed the **greatness of women’s role** clearly and tangibly. If the women of our country had not been present during the eight‑year war imposed upon us—both on the battlefronts and within the nation’s broader arenas—we would not have succeeded in this difficult and painful test.
It was the women who supported us: the **mothers of martyrs, their wives, and the wives of the wounded, prisoners, and veterans**. Through their patience, mothers created an atmosphere—even within limited circles—that inspired young men to go to the front lines with eagerness and determination. This spirit spread throughout the country until the general atmosphere of our nation became one of **jihad, sacrifice, selflessness, and willingness to give one’s life**—and thus we achieved victory.
Today the situation is similar across the Islamic world—in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Libya, Yemen, and elsewhere. If women strengthen their presence in the **front lines** and maintain it, successive victories will undoubtedly follow.
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### Women’s Role in the Revolution According to Imam Khomeini
After the victory of the revolution, women received recognition and respect. The pioneer and leader of this recognition was **Imam Khomeini**, who held the Iranian Muslim woman in the highest regard.
This perspective attracted women to support the Islamic Revolution. It can even be said that **without women’s participation**, the revolution might not have achieved victory in the way it did—or perhaps might not have succeeded at all. Their presence removed many of the obstacles that stood in the path of the revolution.
Women maintained this role throughout the years of war and in all other revolutionary matters from the beginning until the present.
Imam Khomeini clearly understood the **importance of women’s participation in demonstrations and public presence**, even though some prominent scholars initially opposed this idea. The strong support and determination of Imam Khomeini formed the reliable foundation that enabled people to stand firm against such objections.
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### The First Popular Movement Was Led by Women
Women played a **distinct and irreplaceable role** both at the beginning of the Islamic revival and during the revolutionary period itself—the year and a half of mass revolutionary mobilization. If women had not participated in the massive demonstrations and movements, these activities would not have had such a powerful effect.
In some places—for example in **Mashhad**—the demonstrations actually began with women. The first popular movement was initiated by women, who confronted the police, after which men joined and the demonstrations expanded.
Women also played crucial roles in the formation of the new system and in the subsequent period, particularly during the **years of war**, which were years of hardship and severe testing, as the Qur’an describes:
“Until the earth, vast as it is, became constricted for them…” (Qur’an 9:118).
Those were extremely difficult times. Some people experienced the war only through television and radio, while others experienced it physically and spiritually on the battlefield. Reports describing enthusiasm, passion for jihad, longing for martyrdom, and fearlessness toward death were indeed true—but the overall atmosphere of the war was also filled with **pain and sorrow**.
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### The Role of Mothers and Wives of Martyrs and the Wounded
During those difficult years, the role of women was **extraordinary**—especially the mothers of martyrs, the wives of martyrs, and women who were directly connected with the war effort through support activities and, in rare cases, even through military operations.
I personally witnessed the extraordinary support activities carried out by women in **Ahvaz**. Women were active even within certain military sections. The well‑known memoir *Da* (written by Sayyidah Hosseini) illustrates this reality clearly.
Consider the role of mothers who lost one, two, three, or even four sons as martyrs. This is not a trivial matter that can be mentioned lightly. If a child merely catches a cold and coughs a few times, how worried we become. What then if a son goes to war and is killed, and then another, and another?
Yet these mothers—despite their deep maternal emotions—continued to encourage others so strongly that **hundreds of other mothers** felt inspired to send their sons to the front. If those mothers had instead expressed loud protest, grief, and anger toward the war or toward Imam Khomeini, the war effort would likely have collapsed in its early years.
This was the role of the **patient mothers and wives of martyrs**. Young women lost their husbands at the beginning of married life. They first accepted that their young husbands might go to a place from which they might never return; then they endured their martyrdom; and afterward they held their heads high with pride. These are roles that have **no equivalent and no substitute**.
There are also the continuing sacrifices of the wives of disabled veterans—women who married men physically injured by war, sometimes dealing with the psychological consequences of trauma and illness. Choosing freely and responsibly to live with such hardship is itself a **great act of sacrifice**.
I have said many times that during my visits to the families of martyrs, I often find the **mothers of martyrs stronger and more resilient than their fathers**. The tenderness of a mother’s love for her child—whom she raised and nurtured—is beyond comparison. Yet these mothers accepted their sons’ martyrdom and often even refrained from public mourning so that the enemies of the Islamic Republic would not rejoice.
Such women should not simply be called “women”; they should be called **makers of the men of their age**. These are the women of Iran—who emerged from this trial with dignity and honor.
