A senior official with the Social Security Organization of Iran unveiled a new directive to extend paid maternity leave from the present four months to up to one year.
SSOI director general for technical affairs said as per a new endorsement by the organization’s Medical Council, employed women with insurance coverage would be entitled to an additional pre-labor paid maternity leave, should the physician prescribe bed rest due to pregnancy complications.
Maryam Al-Sadat Amouzegar told ISNA, “Earlier, the leave period could not be extended more than four months under any circumstances. Henceforth, pregnant women in need of special medical care can go on longer leaves prior to delivery.“
The official added that the prolonged maternity leave would include pay and insurance record.
The new endorsement would dispel job concerns of employed women who face pregnancy complications, she stressed.
Amouzegar elaborated, “The pregnant insurer would be entitled to the privilege only provided she is not present at the workplace and receives no salary from the employer during the prescribed leave and her conditions are approved by SSOI’s Medical Council.“
The official pledged that Social Security Organization of Iran would pay an allowance equal to two-thirds of the insurer’s last wage multiplied by the days of leave.
About mothers who give birth to twins, triplets or more, Amouzegar stated that the number of newborns would be the yardstick for the duration of their mother’s maternity leave.
Pregnant employees are entitled to a four-month maternity leave, provided they have paid at least 60 days in insurance premium to the SSOI.

Samila Amir-Ebrahimi, Iranian painter, sculptor and chalcographer was born in 1960 to a family fond of art. She developed a liking for painting from an early age and learnt to paint under Master Behjat.
She spent almost all her teenage years practicing art, but graduated from Tehran University in political sciences. She held her first painting exhibition in Aftab Gallery in 1971 and headed for Paris a year later to complete her painting skills. She learnt chalcography in a school of art and industry there and returned to Tehran in 1973, the same year she became an employee of the High Council of Art and Culture.
Amir-Ebrahimi went to the United States two years later to attend another course of art in Oakland. After graduating, she returned home and started teaching at Tehran University’s Faculty of Fine Arts. She has taught different courses in various institutions, and has also tutored art classes.
Amir-Ebrahimi has held more than 20 exhibitions of her artistic works including painting, sculpturing, chalcography and hand printing by 2000.

More university graduates are entering the already saturated job market.

Women’s unemployment rate is forecast to decrease from the present 17.8 percent to 9.3 percent by the end of the fourth development plan (2005-2010), director of the Labor and Social Affairs Ministry’s Office for Women Employment, Elaheh Alafar, said.
She was further quoted by ILNA as saying that an increase in population growth rate during the 1980s, women’s lack of access to proper job opportunities, and the rising number of female university graduates induced a significant change in the structure of the labor market.
She referred to reinforcement of women’s participation in domestic affairs as another target envisioned by the fourth development plan.
“Facts and figures testify that the increasing number of university graduates has increased unemployment rate in urban areas. Therefore, in addition to efforts to generate jobs for rural women, more endeavors should be directed toward creating jobs for women living in urban areas,“ he stated.
The official termed employment as a complicated issue boosting which depends on a host of factors.
Alafar insisted that realization of targets set for women by the fourth development plan required united endeavors of the officialdom.

An exclusive Women’s Technology Park will for the first time be established in Tehran, an advisor to education minister, Maryam Qods, said.
She added that the project, which is sponsored by the Education Ministry is expected to provide women with access to latest educational technologies and promote their technical capabilities, IRNA reported.
“The research phase of the project was carried out during January-August 2005, and the scheme will become operational in October in Tehran,“ Qods added.
Noting that women comprise 50 percent of the country’s educators, she insisted that the ministry’s top priority was to modify the official attitude toward women.
Qods explained, “Given that most rural areas are located in remote areas distant from academic centers and considering the deprivation and cultural problems governing many rural areas, a number of girls do not have access to proper education.“
Meanwhile, an advisor to Hamedan governor general for women’s affairs referred to creation of 80 workshops to provide women heading households with jobs. The workshops have also offered training in information and communication technology to some 420 housewives over the past year.
Behjat Rahmani said some 3.13 billion rials in provincial funds had been spent on women’s affairs last year (ended March 20) and elaborated, “About 2.13 billion rials of the total amount was allocated to the Education Department which has so far failed to present a report on how it has expended the budget.“
As per the executive bylaw of the 2005-06 Budget Law, Rahmani mentioned, provincial management and planning departments are obliged to set aside equal to 0.25 percent of their total provincial credits to women’s affairs. In return, administrations and organizations benefiting from those credits are bound to present reports on how they disburse the funds.

First exclusive women taxi agency with two female cabdrivers opened in the western city of Shahr-e Kurd, said advisor to Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari Governor General on women’s affairs.
Parichehr Soltani told ISNA that 10 million rials had been allocated to the agency, which would soon recruit more women cabdrivers.
Meanwhile, the first women’s park was inaugurated in the western city of Boroujen, she said, adding from a total budget of 10 billion rials required for the project, only 500 million rials had so far been disbursed by the municipality and the city council.
“These are the first steps toward removing cultural taboos regarding women and their social involvement,“ she noted.
Insisting that workplace and leisure activities for women will have to be in line with cultural and religious values, she continued that women cannot go cycling or skating in public places, and the new park has been designed to change that situation.
“High unemployment rate, absence of suitable cultural centers, addiction of husbands and domestic violence are the main concerns of local women,“ Soltani said.
He added that assigning six women’s experts to provincial towns; launching a comprehensive women’s databank; and establishing sociocultural institutes for women are among future plans for the province.

A young tea picker in a plantation in Byumba province, Rwanda. (AFP Photo)

Interstitial cystitis also known as Hunner’s ulcer is an inflammation of the bladder characterized by pain when the bladder is filling and relief when it is emptying. It is sometimes mistaken for the onset of bladder cancer.
Interstitial cystitis affects more women than men, the majority of them over 40 years of age. Many of these patients report that they had bladder problems in childhood.
Although the exact cause of interstitial cystitis is unknown, many doctors believe the condition is associated with an autoimmune or allergic response. Associated diseases include severe allergies, irritable bowel syndrome, or inflammatory bowel disease.
Patients diagnosed with interstitial cystitis also report an increase in the frequency and urgency of urination, especially at night. The bladder wall becomes inflamed, ulcerated, and scarred, which causes the frequent, painful urination. Additionally, there may be blood in urine, leaking and occasionally fever and chills.
To diagnose interstitial cystitis, a doctor will perform a urinalysis and urine culture to rule out any other infectious causes. The doctor will examine the patient’s medical history to rule out such causes as exposure to radiation. The doctor may also perform a test called urinary cytology to rule out any malignancy of the bladder. A biopsy may be needed to exclude any other causes.
What is the treatment?
While there is no cure of interstitial cystitis, symptoms can be treated through distension of the bladder and either cauterization of the ulcers or washing out the bladder weekly until the inflammation clears. Both procedures are performed with the patient under anesthesia. A doctor may also prescribe corticosteroids to control inflammation.
Other treatments may include transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS) and acupuncture. Surgical therapy for interstitial cystitis is usually only considered as a last resort and may require a procedure called cystourethrectomy with urinary diversion.
Interstitial cystitis should be seriously considered as the cause of, or a contributor to, chronic pelvic pain. Recent research suggests it might be present in approximately one-third of patients with this type of pain. While there is no cure, interstitial cystitis is usually easily treated and the symptoms can often be controlled.