Iran Bars Women to Run for Presidency

A constitutional body in Iran declared women could not participate in the presidential race scheduled for June 14.

About 30 women have initially registered as candidates for the upcoming presidential elections.

According to a clerical member of the Guardian Council, Mahammad Yazdi, the constitution bars the participation of women.

Several women have also registered and have not been recognized as official candidates in past presidential elections.

Iranian women are cleared to run for parliament and have served as lawmakers.

There have been many standing arguments about the ambiguity of the law on women’s bid for presidency. Critics say the latest interpretation of the constitution has put an end to the confusion.

In a report by Mehr news agency, Yazdi said the “law does not approve” of a woman running for president and a woman in the ballot is prohibited.

A total of 686 people have already registered to replace incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who is restricted to run for a third term under the constitution.

Source: bbc.co.uk, yahoo.com