Vice President for Women and Family Affairs Shahindokht Molaverdi came down on the state TV last week for their promotion of luxurious lifestyle among young couples.
“The national media (TV) has the ability to greatly influence the tendencies toward lavish marriages and lifestyles,” Shahindokht Molaverdi in her Telegram channel.
“However, we continue to see portrayals of unconventional lifestyles that encourage extravagance among young people in certain television shows and commercials.”
Stressing that self-indulgence should not be encouraged, Molaverdi called for cooperation among all bodies, “as the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting cannot shoulder the burden alone.”
In Article 2 of his 14-article Population Policy, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei calls for removing the obstacles to marriage, facilitating marriage, promoting the formation and foundation of family, encouraging youth to marry at a younger age, supporting young couples, and helping them to afford the cost of living.
“These policies were communicated to the three branches of the government (executive, administrative, and judiciary), as well as the Expediency Council, and therefore, it is not solely a task of the government” and needs national cohesion, she stressed.
In June, the labor minister’s advisor on women and family affairs, Vahideh Negin, and the cultural advisor to the minister of culture and Islamic guidance, Dr. Parvin Dadandish, had also censured the performance of mass media for its “conservative approach when dealing with issues concerning women”.
Falling Marriage Rates
The rate of marriage has been declining as divorce rates soar and tragic tales of children of broken marriages spread far and side. Be it rooted in economic woes or aversion to accepting responsibility on the part of the youth, the falling rate of marriage in Iran is taking a heavier toll on women due to various factors associated with the age of marriage, such as childbearing. Noting that the reduced tendency toward settling down and marriage is a global phenomenon and not specific to the Iran, the vice president singled out the rapid technological and telecom advancement for the sorry state of affairs.
Significant increase in mobile phones, Internet use, and high-speed connections has changed the way people communicate and access information. Workplaces, homes, and relationships have been impacted by widespread technological advancement and largely reduced traditional values and good things in life to nothingness.
According to a recent study by the United Nations, since 1980 the average age of marriage has increased by 6 years globally. The main reason cited for this increase is that people spend more time for higher education, better living standards and building careers.
Authorities have repeatedly stressed the necessity of developing programs for encouraging and supporting healthy marriages as economic hardship isn’t the only culprit and cultural issues are also at play. There are 11 million singles in Iran, many of whom have crossed the median age of marriage.
