Martyr Ibrahim Raisi’s Refreshing Advocacy for Women’s Indispensable Role in Society

Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) is a global revolutionary figure with a genuine Islamic vision and luminous humanitarian ideals that epitomize the essence of the Imam Khomeini’s Islamic Revolution. He succeeded in forging friendly relations with all countries in the region, in addition to supporting women’s true identity and status as defined by Islam and how God created humans, and not according to liberal standards which are contrary to femininity.

It is worth noting that I personally met him a few days before Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, during the Khorshid Media Festival, which honored approximately 100 female media activists from approximately 40 countries, honoring the martyred Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was killed by the “Israeli” occupation.

At that time, the martyred Iranian president spoke at length about the tragedy of the Palestinian people, emphasizing the need for independent media to cooperate in exposing American and “Israeli” crimes under the pretext of freedom and human rights.

Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) instructed us to be the voice of the voiceless, saying, “All those who know what is happening in the world have a heavy duty to convey the correct narrative to the world.”

Martyr Sayyed Ibrahim Raisi also stated that Iran stands in the defense of human rights, while Westerners stand accused and must answer for their violations, urging coordinated events and conferences among all free and independent media outlets to support just causes.

Martyr Sayyed Raisi accused the West of exploiting women as tools, while the Islamic Republic of Iran values ​​and respects women and encourages them to play an active role in building society alongside men, both within the home and in society as a whole.

Martyr Raisi recalled the 20-year-long American occupation of Afghanistan, which left behind nothing but war, destruction, and bloodshed: “They destroyed their homes and killed men and women. Today, there are more than 35,000 disabled children in Afghanistan […] right in front of the eyes of the world, in addition to distorting the facts and promoting false narratives in their media.”

It goes without saying that the emergence of Islam 1,400 years ago was a great and welcome harbinger of a good and honorable life for women in an era of severe oppression against them.

The Qur’anic call established the sanctity of women, considering that the pure Islamic Sharia—through its presentation of the most important and highest constructive and developmental duty by which Muslims worship God, namely the duty of enjoining good and forbidding evil—charged women, as well as men, with the obligation of building society to the best of their ability, in terms of good and benefit for the people.

Besides, Islam obligated both men and women to repel against the harm, danger, destruction, corruption, and murder imposed by the tyrants of the era, such as the American empire’s corruption and global arrogance, especially by acquiring the required knowledge and sciences to be able to build an Islamic civilization which will rival the Satanic superpowers.

“The believing men and believing women are protectors of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong” demonstrates how the Holy Qur’an emphasized the necessity of this obligation, which is considered a form of general oversight encompassing all fields (Verse 71 of Surat At-Tawbah).

This is what Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) has been keen to emphasize repeatedly, believing that women’s effective presence in the field of social and political fields is a religious obligation incumbent upon all women, young and old.

During the Khorshid Media Festival, Martyr Sayyed Ibrahim Raisi said, “Just as God has endowed men with many talents, He has also endowed women with many talents so that they can play their role in developing the family, which is the fundamental institution of society.”

When Martyr Sayyed Raisi considered enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong an obligation for women as well as men, it is therefore imperative for both genders to learn the basics of this political and social duty, especially various types of knowledge and sciences associated with it, in adherence to the command of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family): “Seeking knowledge is an obligation upon every Muslim man and woman.”

Undeniably, an unenlightened and uneducated woman cannot raise an enlightened and aware individual, whether male or female!

With this level of clarity and realism, Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) addressed women, not only in Iran but also around the world. He did not accept their presence to be marginal in the crucial demands of their nation and society. Rather, he obligated them morally, professionally, humanely, and religiously—in addition to their familial role as daughters, wives, sisters, and mothers—to fulfill their authentic humanitarian role in protecting and building humanity in various fields.

When Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) called on us to expose Western lies, he wanted us to be like his great-grandmother, Sayyeda Khadija (peace be upon her), who built Islam; like his grandmother, Sayyeda Fatima (peace be upon her), who defended Islam; like his aunt, Sayyeda Zainab (peace be upon her), who preserved Islam and refuted the lies of the Umayyad enemy; and like his other aunt, Sayyeda Fatima Masoumeh (peace be upon her), who defended the truth until the very last moment of her life, enduring the hardship of forced displacement from Medina to the holy city of Qom. 

These great heroines contributed to building a sound societal force, preserving moral and ethical security, and protecting the faith, despite being severely harmed, sacrificing themselves as martyrs, and being forcibly displaced from their homelands. These honorable and divine women were not exempt from any duty, whether it was knowledge, jihad, allegiance, or worship, or shouldering the burdens of society or protecting its politics, economy, security, freedom, dignity, and other issues.

Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) was keen to clarify that equality between men and women is pure injustice. Islam calls for justice/equity, not equality, because equality means treating women, delicate and compassionate creatures, the same way men are treated, which leads to their psychological, physical, spiritual, and familial destruction. It takes away from what makes women unique to try to make them more like men, rather than embracing what makes them women.

Martyr Sayyed Raisi pointed out to the importance of human integration between women and men, based on their physical, spiritual, emotional, and psychological capabilities, denying any human distinction between men and women and emphasizing their harmonious role in the great process of human construction and development.

His Eminence (ra) opposed false ideas that distorted religious truths, thus oppressing women and depriving them of the necessary role entrusted to them, as emphasized by Islamic law; this is exactly like calling for the “liberation of women” under the pretext of defending their rights, despite the results of such campaigns being the opposite of such slogans.

Both of these cases are oppression of women, a distortion of their human distinction, and are in line with the interests of Western arrogance, brutality, and materialistic barbarism and not of the genuine Qur’anic Mohammadan Islam.

At the Khorshid Conference, Martyr Sayyed Raisi called on the women of the Resistance Axis, particularly those who believe in the path of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), and who are stationed at the intellectual frontiers of Islam, to refute all falsehoods and lies against Islam, which is accused of being backwards and repressive.

Besides, he called us to expose how Islam has honored women in unprecedented ways that exceeds all expectations, as this the genuine Qur’anic Mohammadan Islam has sparked a comprehensive revolution that encompasses all aspects of economic, social, political, and cultural life, and has given individuals superiority in rank only through piety and righteous deeds, and not through race or gender, such as the good deed most important and necessary for our confusing and dangerous era: the Jihad for clarification of the truth (Jihad-e-Tabyeen), as well as service to humanity, especially the oppressed and deprived. 

Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra) was a dedicated and conscientious defender of the Islamic vision of women, emphasizing that it is abnormal and strange by Islamic standards for a problem called “oppression of women” to arise, given that the mother of early Islamic literature, the Holy Qur’an, accords women the same status and position as men in shaping humanity.

Verse 1 of Surat An-Nisa states: “O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul.” With this decisive and clear Qur’anic approach, all of humanity, both men and women, is addressed.

Further as stated in verse 195 of Surah Al Imran: “Indeed, I will not allow to be lost the work of any worker among you, whether male or female,” and verse 12 of Surah Al Hadid stipulates: “The Day you see the believing men and believing women, their light proceeding before them.”

Also verse 35 of Surah Al Ahzab stated: “Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting men and fasting women, the men who guard their chastity and the women who do so, and the men who remember Allah often and the women who remember—Allah has prepared for them forgiveness and a great reward.”

Regarding the West’s blatant desecration of the Quran, Martyr Raisi said, during the Khorshid Media Festival, “They are insulting the Holy Qur’an in the name of ‘freedom of expression,’ even though this action violates human rights.”

Today, as we have learnt from Martyr Sayyed Raisi, it is not necessary to be preoccupied with responding to the suspicions and problems raised by malicious Western writers about Muslim women. Rather, what is more important than all of this is to crystallize and implement the Islamic vision—both theoretical and practical—of developing women, enhancing their talents, and motivating them to advance their educational, cultural, political, and media levels, as Martyr Sayyed Raisi recommended in West Asia and the world as a whole.

We must move from responding to suspicions and slander (a reactive response) to actual action and benefit from the experiences of virtuous, creative, distinguished, and exceptional women in various areas of life (a proactive response).

Any observer of the status of Iranian women under Islamic rule can see the extent of advancement, progress, and leadership they have achieved.

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Sayyed Ali Khamenei, says: “Iranian Muslim women have opened a new chapter in history before the eyes of women around the world. They have proven that a woman can be a woman—chaste, veiled, and honorable—and simultaneously play her role at the center and origin of events, in addition to achieving many major feats and accomplishments.”

The above is a humble and concise insight into the issue of women in the authentic Islamic thought of Martyr Sayyed Raisi (ra). We ask God Almighty that we have fulfilled the pledge towards him and the rest of our martyrs – especially Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah (ra) – properly.