Mrs. Zahra Behrouz Azar, the Vice President for Women and Family Affairs, attended the international conference "Harnessing Religious and Media Discourse and Its Impact on Protection and Promoting Women's Rights in the Member States of the Islamic Cooperation" in Cairo, Egypt, on February 1 and 2, 2026. She delivered a speech highlighting the media's crucial role in shaping public opinion. She said, "In today's media world, the main issue is representation. Media in Islamic countries, instead of being passive, must be in charge of providing an accurate narrative of Muslim women based on human dignity."
She emphasized two fundamental missions of the committed media, including confronting instrumental views that diminish the human identity of women, and correcting misconceptions that show the social, scientific, and professional roles of Muslim women as opposed to their religious values. The aim is to depict a Muslim woman as a person who plays a key role at the highest levels of scientific authority and social activism while preserving cultural authenticity.
Referring to human dignity in the Holy Quran and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the Vice President emphasized that religious discourse views people through the lens of divine identity. This perspective does not consider factors like gender, power, or social status. Straying from this divine principle has led to inequality, discrimination, and symbolic violence against women.
Mrs. Behrouz Azar stated that "New generations have grown up with different challenges, uncertainties, and also various accesses to knowledge sources. If we cannot bridge the gap between the authenticity of the past and the needs of the future, the split between religious discourse and social realities will grow wider. In this context, the media plays a critical key role in rebuilding this connection."
While outlining the legal framework of the Islamic Republic of Iran, she emphasized that Articles 20 and 21 of the Constitution concern equal protection of the law for women and men, as well as the government's responsibility to ensure women's rights in all respects. These principles are an important foundation for promoting women's status across social, scientific, and professional fields.
While describing unilateral and illegal coercive measures as a serious obstacle to the realization of nations' rights, she noted that external interventions, whether political or security-related, have not only failed to improve human and women's rights but have also distorted realities, hindered dialogue, and weakened the foundations of development and justice.
This conference was held in cooperation with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and under the auspices of the President of Egypt, with the presence of the Prime Minister of Egypt and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif.