Zahra Shojaei

Studies conducted by the Women Participation Center indicate the provinces of Ardebil, Tehran, Khorasan, Zanjan, Sistan-Baluchestan, Fars, Qazvin, Qom, Kermanshah, Gilan, Mazandaran, Markazi and Hamedan have recorded a successful performance in implementing the Plan to Promote Women's Cultural/Social Participation (also referred to as the 30228 Plan) during the first half of the current year (started March 20).
Head of the center, Zahra Shojaei, told ISNA that the number of provinces with a successful record in executing women-related plans had increased during the last year.
"Some 0.25 percent of the administrations' and ministries' budget has been set aside for advancing women's programs since 2003. The budget can be raised up to 2 percent this year depending on the performance of each executive body," she said. "The budget considered for women projects of the administrations varies depending on their undertakings, target groups, record of performance over the past two years and the organizational structure."
Referring to the positive function of some provinces in expending women's budget, Shojaei regretted that some other provinces violated their legal duties and failed to spend the funds set aside for women on programs related to them.
In another development, Shojaei said that life expectancy among Iranian women had been estimated at 81.5 years by the end of the fourth plan (2010).
"According to the Document for Promoting Women's Participation, the rate of women's economic activities has been predicted at 25 percent and the employment rate at 91.2 percent. Based on the document, women's unemployment should be reduced to 8.8 percent during this period," she stated.
Talking about the qualitative objectives highlighted in the document, Shojaei referred to fulfillment of social justice and promotion of living standards for women, promotion of their health and social security status, creation of proper conditions for increasing women's share of economic activities, as well as encouraging their contribution to scientific, political and social arenas.

Nearly 26,700 Iranian women have illegally married foreign nationals in the past four years, Interior Ministry's director general for foreign nationals and immigrants said.
"According to Article 1060 of the Civil Law, the government's permission is required for marrying foreign nationals," Ahmad Hosseini told ISNA, adding that Iranian consulates abroad have issued about 3,000 permits for Iranian women wishing to marry foreigners since 1996.
He noted that "the majority of these people do not register their marriages in Iran, after obtaining permissions. This is while according to Article 645 of the Islamic Penal Code, all Iranian nationals are obliged to register their marriages in the country."
He pointed out that close to 2,000 marriages between Iranian women and foreign nationals had been registered in the country during March 1996-March 2004.
Referring to a cabinet ratification in 1999 based on which foreign nationals living in Iran should be identified, he said, "One of the methods for identifying foreigners is to gather information about the religiously authorized marriages between Iranian women and non-Iranian men, which occur without obtaining due permissions.
"Permanent Committee of Foreign Nationals is seeking legal means to register religious but illegal marriages," he added.

Hazrat Fatemeh Masumeh (SA), the blessed and gracious divine lady from prophet's household, was born in Medina in Dhu al-Qa'dah in 752. Hazrat Masumeh was a learned scholar and a very pious lady and was greatly revered by the holy Imams. She was buried in the holy city of Qom and her shrine is visited by millions of pilgrims every year.
Hazrat Masumah was brought up in a noble family. She was the daughter of Imam Musa Al-Kazim (AS), sister of Imam Reza (AS) and the aunt of Imam Muhammad Taqi al-Jawad (AS). She was taught all the Islamic sciences by Imam Musa al-Kazim and Imam Reza and transmitted Ahadith (traditions) from them. She became famous as Aalimah (the learned lady) and Muhaddithah (the learned lady who transmitted Ahadith).
The traditions quoted by Hazrat Masumeh (SA) are among the most authentic ones present in various books.
Like her holy grandmother Hazrat Fatemeh Zahra (SA), she was always busy in performing prayers and kept fast most of the days. She was greatly respected and revered by her father and her elder brother.
She was very kind and gracious. Thousands of miracles have been witnessed and recounted in her shrine. She fulfills the rightful wishes of the believers and miraculously heals incurable patients.
In 779, a year after the forced migration of Imam Reza (AS) from Medina to Marv in Khorasan by the reigning Abbasid caliph Mamun, Hazrat Masumah accompanied by her brothers left Medina for Khorasan to meet her elder brother Imam Reza. When they reached Saveh in central Iran, they were attacked by the Abbasid army and her brothers were mercilessly martyred. A lady servant on the orders of the Abbasid commander poisoned Hazrat Masumah (SA) during her stay in Saveh.
Hazrat Masumah became severely ill, but migrated to Qom where she was warmly received by the Shiites. She attained martyrdom in 780.

About 50 percent of rural women are involved in agriculture.

Advisor to Agriculture Jihad Minister on women affairs said about 12 million rural women need a thorough reconsideration of their jobs, IRNA reported.
Speaking at a meeting of the Committee for Women and Youth in Hormuzgan province, Farzaneh Mafi cited studies based on which about 50 percent of rural women are involved in agriculture, with their total efficiency estimated at 8 percent.
"Given the high employment rate in the agro sector, we plan to increase women's productivity rate to 30 percent," she mentioned.
Mafi noted that the educational level of rural girls had improved during the past 25 years, indicating a 23 percent growth in comparison with the past. "Thousands of them have managed to obtain bachelor's and master's degrees over the past decade," she commented.
Mafi regretted that many of the educated rural women were either jobless or worked in non-related sectors due to improper policymaking.

Cheating husbands in China's flashy commercial hub Shanghai beware, female detectives will soon be watching you.
China's first all-female detective agency based in the southwestern city of Chengdu is expanding to Shanghai and was preparing to open as early as December in the nation's divorce capital, xinhuanet.com reported.
Already more than 1,000 women in Shanghai have called the Women's Rights Protection Investigation center seeking information about their services, Zhang Lanhua, director of the center in Chengdu, said.
"We've received a lot of applications from women throughout the country, asking to work for the Shanghai branch," said Zhang, adding that they were still making preparations and scouting for a location.
The agency's planned move capitalizes on a hoped-for change in laws that could see the eastern city lift a 10-year-old ban on the burgeoning private detective trade--granting sleuths the right to operate legally.
Already a hit in Chengdu, the agency here will provide similar services--counseling victims of domestic violence and failed marriages and helping women collect evidence against their philandering spouses.
Zhang said she expects to staff the new agency with more than 10 experienced detectives.
Given that Shanghai's divorce rate of four per 1,000 couples is 2.5 times higher than the national average, according to Xinhua, Zhang's detectives should have their hands full.
Media reports have said the Public Security Bureau is preparing new guidelines for an industry that has grown rapidly despite its unclear legal status.
More than 1,000 small private-eye outfits have sprouted around China in the past two years and Shanghai has about 30 firms, industry sources estimate.

The Second Nationwide Exhibition of Women Capabilities is slated for Dec. 14 at the permanent international fairground of Arak, in Markazi province, ISNA reported.
The exhibition aims at supporting young women and those in poor financial conditions.
Some 40 pavilions will be allocated to these women free of charge.
The exhibit also features religious minority women, drivers of heavy vehicles as well as a 12-year-old girl with electronic skills.

Here are some ways to prevent hearing loss.
Turn it down. You probably can't do much about traffic noise, jackhammers and many other sources of excessive sound. But you can turn down the volume on your stereo. Some sound systems can produce noise equal to the loudest rock concerts.
If you have to shout, get out. If you have to raise your voice to be heard by someone standing a foot or two away from you, that's a clear warning that the noise level may be dangerous, and you should get away from it as soon as possible or wear ear protection.
Keep plugs handy. Stuffing cotton or pieces of shredded paper napkin into your ears does virtually nothing to minimize damage to your hearing. Instead, get in the habit of carrying earplugs with you.
Take time-outs. The longer you expose yourself to loud sounds without a break, the more likely you are to cause permanent damage to your hearing, even if you're wearing earplugs. So give your ears a 5- or 10-minute break from noise every 30 minutes.
Spread out the noise. Placing several loud appliances or power tools near each other will compound your noise problem.
Swab the deck, not your ears. Attempting to clean wax out of your ears with a cotton swab, matchstick or anything else does more harm than good. Earwax is actually good for you. It repels water and helps keep dust away from your sensitive eardrum. Sticking small objects in your ear pushes the wax farther into your ear and can cause infection.
Muzzle your medication. Taking six to eight aspirins a day can cause ringing in your ears and temporary hearing loss. Antibiotics can also damage your hearing.
Puffing hurts your ears. Smoking reduces blood flow to the ears and may interfere with the natural healing of small blood vessels that occurs after exposure to loud noise.
Slash the java. Like nicotine, caffeine cuts blood flow to the ears, increasing your chances of hearing loss. Drink no more than two eight-ounce cups of coffee or tea a day.
Balance your diet. The same fatty and cholesterol-laden foods that are bad for your heart also endanger your ears.
Exercise. Walk, run, swim, or do any other aerobic exercise for 20 minutes a day, three times a week. It will stimulate blood circulation, lower your blood pressure and help keep your ears in peak condition.

Early marriage affects about 51 million girls in developing countries, not only putting women at risk of contracting HIV, but also promoting poverty, the International Center for Research on Women said, allafrica.com reported.
The center's president, Geeta Rao Gupta, said the practice, which is "common" in India, South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, has "negative and lasting" consequences for women's health, education and overall economic development.
It "perpetuates poverty", because girls stop going to school when they get married and subsequently miss out on "economic opportunities".
Rao Gupta was quoted by the Chicago Tribune as saying, "What we are trying to do is encourage economic growth and equity in society, and both things are negatively affected by child marriage."

Weather conditions caused by global warming can pose greater physical danger to women than men, a Canadian attending a UN conference on climate change said, AP reported.
"For instance, often women don't know how to swim, so in a flood situation that can lead to a higher instance of death or injury," Angie Daze, a program manager with a Canadian group called Reducing Vulnerability to Climate Change, said.
Plans for international cooperation to fight global warming beyond the end of the Kyoto Protocol dominated the United Nations conference on climate change.
The top European Union negotiator said support was building for a proposal to hold a pair of international seminars next year to discuss additional measures to reduce climate change after 2012, when the landmark agreement ends.
Meanwhile, scientists and environmentalists at the conference continued to warn participants of the dangers of climate change, which many believe poses a serious threat to life on Earth.
Other speakers on the sidelines of the Dec. 6-17 conference said women in poor countries are particularly vulnerable to the effects of global warming, which has been blamed for causing more violent storms and rising sea levels, among other problems.
"Women are highly dependent on the environment for their family responsibilities" in developing countries, said one environmental worker based in Bangladesh. "Any type of environmental degradation impacts them more severely than men."

A rural woman weaving a carpet in Zanjan. (IRNA Photo)