Elevation of Women’s Place in the Islamic Punishment Code (1392/2013)

Study of women’s place in the Islamic Punishment Code (1392/2103) is one of the most important issues in the field of women’s rights. Because of numerous objections posed by feminists against Islamic Law as well as laws of the Islamic Republic in the field of women’s rights, special importance should be attached to this subject. Studying this Code and comparing it with the previous ones, one may say that the present Code has elevated women’s place and tried to create a position for female offenders similar to, or in some case better than, that of male offenders. Taking a differential penal policy concerning victimized women, this Code has considered special penal and non-penal supports for them. In the Chapter of Retaliation and Blood-Money, some developments have been mentioned.  In the Blood-Money Section, it has been mentioned that the difference of woman’s blood-money should be paid from Physical Damage Fund and, in the Retaliation Section, it has been said that the male criminal may be forced to pay blood-money for the female slain and the woman’s blood-money difference may be paid from Public treasury to help heirs of the female slain retaliate the male murderer.