Azerbaijan: The Women's Movement

Author's note: I have a great respect for religions of all countries. The discussion regarding the removal of Muslim women's veils in this article is representative of the views expressed by Mirvarid Dilbazi and in no way represents my personal views of women who choose to wear the veil as a representation of her religious beliefs.

A friend of mine recently sent me an article which discussed the 1920's women's intelligentsia movement in Azerbaijan. The article is incredibly interesting.

The article was written by Mirvarid Dilbazi, an Azerbaijani poet who wrote about the changes that she witnessed during her time living in Azerbaijan. She discusses the 1920s-30s when writers, poets and other intellects' primary focus was on women's emancipation. Women's emancipation, at that time in Azerbaijan, focused on women's involvement in government, the wearing of the chador (veil) and women's literacy.

Writers poured their hearts into this topic, and as writers and performers became emboldened, the removal of the chador became a symbol of honor to women. One character in a theater production says "Let those who have defects on their faces veil themselves. I have no defect, so why should I cover my face? We don't have a tradition of hiding our faces under a veil. A woman's honor is completely related to her morality, not to what she wears." During the course of a theater performance, when the female protagonist removes her veil, women in the audience of Baku, too, removed their veils. As this movement gained momentum, the government began to echo the campaign and participated by "marketing" the removal of the veil. (It should be noted, as Dilbazi writes, that the Soviet government was anti-religion and the veil, which is representative of a religious tradition, was the motivation behind supporting the movement). Soon after, many women began refusing to wear the veil, despite demands of fathers, brothers and husbands. One woman was killed by her father for her refusal (her father was later arrested). The veil, as it was being used, wasn't about religion, but instead the idea that a women's honor is not based on what she wears.

The Azerbaijan which Dilbalzi discusses is compelling. The women depicted are fierce and the momentum of the movement seemed to be gathering strength, so I cannot help but think, what happened?

The Azerbaijan of today, at least the one I've been engrossed in, doesn't seem to represent the fierce women of the 1920s and 30s. Many women aren't knowledgeable of the rights afforded to them by their government. They marry young (extremely young). Although women now attend school and sometimes university, once married, many no longer work, not by choice, but instead because their husbands don't want them to. They have little or no information about about reproductive health and, perhaps worse, misinformation (something worth noting is that the birth control method of choice used by Azeri women is abortion). Additionally, decisions regarding their sexual health are also out of their control, if a husband doesn't want to use a condom, then no condom is used.

There is a great disparity between the women of the regions and the women of Baku, the capital city. Whereas Dilbalzi talks of a movement which started in Baku and made its way to the rest of the country, here if something happens in Baku, it seems rare that it finds its way to the regions. While you will see many women driving cars and working in Baku, Baku does not reflect the happenings in the rest of the country. The rest of the country is still developing (this isn't just reflected in the development of women, but also in the frequency of water and gas access).

My question is where are the women who so willing unveiled themselves during the years of Mirvarid Dilbalzi? Bold and passionate about women's emancipation? Despite laws which support women, there is a culture which does much to prohibit women's wants and actions. I think more than anything, I want women to have choice in their lives and enough information and education to know what those choices are. Every woman should be permitted to act on what she wants for her own life, that shouldn't be decided for her by a man, nor by anyone.