JINHA

NEWS CENTER - The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) Men's Club World Championship in Brazil, from October 27 to November 1, 2015, and the FIVB's decision to award Iran hosting rights for the February 2016 FIVB beach volleyball tournament.

Since the 1979 Iranian revolution, Iranian women haven't been allowed to attend men's football matches. In 2012, that ban was extended to volleyball,one of the country's most popular sports in Iran. The women and girls has even arrested if they attempt to watch the matches. Ghoncheh Ghavami, a British-Iranian woman, was arrested after attempting to watch a men's volleyball match in Tehran last year. She has been released since then.

The director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch, Minky Worden said, "In the modern sports era, there is an understanding that gender equality is central to fair play. The Olympic Charter enshrines this principle, and so does the FIVB's own constitution.Our position is that so long as Iran is not playing by the rules, then the government has not earned the right to host a major international tournament. It is time for the International Volleyball Federation to act to end this blatant discrimination, which violates its own rules, and brings shame to the game."

Minky also said, " The ban should be stoped preventing the women and girls from attending volleyball matches and take further steps to promote gender equality."

(gd)