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Journalism of Courage
Iran’s hard-line interior minister has sparked a controversy in the traditionally conservative country, saying he supports the idea of temporary marriage to stem what some say is an increase in extramarital sex, state media reported on Saturday.
“Temporary marriage is God’s rule. We must aggressively encourage that,” state-run television quoted Interior Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi as saying.
The phrase “temporary marriage” refers to a Shiite tradition—which is albeit, not very common in Shiite-dominated Iran—under which a man and a woman sign a contract, called a sigheh, that allows them to be “married” for any length of time. This can even be less than 24 hours.
The interior minister, who made his comments on Thursday, was the first Iranian official to support the disputed practice in more than a decade. Former Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani raised the issue in the early 1990s, but met with strong opposition from the country’s hard-line clerics.
“We have to find a solution to meet the sexual desire of the youth who have no possibility of marriage,” Pourmohammadi was quoted as saying in local papers. Half of Iran’s population of 70 million is under 30 years.
Reza Sarabi (23), a taxi driver, expressed the frustration many young Iranian men feel. “I don’t have the money to set up a matrimonial life. I don’t want
prostitutes. What should I do ?” he said.
Critics of the practice believe it will exacerbate prostitution and undermine the country’s values. “It will damage the foundation of the family,” said lawyer Nemat Ahmadi.
