But the “mehrieh” (“affection”) system, in which future husbands agree to pay a certain number of gold coins to the bride in the event of divorce, has left thousands of men in Iran languishing in jail and many more destitute. A worker on Iran’s average wage would need 50 years to earn 800 gold coins. But then his wife’s family got involved, and suddenly Sadegh found himself in court where he was told to pay 110 coins immediately or go to jail. At last count, the judiciary said some 2,297 men were in jail for failing to pay their mehrieh after a divorce. Way to redress balanceStill, many women see mehrieh as a way of redressing the balance for divorced women, who are often shunned by society.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer March 19, 2017 05:58 UTC