The Iranian parliament has approved a new law that would permit abortions during the first four months if the fetus shows signs of mental or physical handicaps. This law still has to be approved by the religious Guardian Council, but the fact that it has made it this far at all is a sign of just how far Iran has come.

According to the BBC:

Previously, abortion was only allowed if the mother's life was proven to be in danger. ... Both parents must agree and they need three doctors, as well as the coroner's office, to confirm the foetus is damaged or the mother's life at risk.

Under this new bill, even if a woman is pregnant as a result of rape she still doesn't have the right to an abortion. Under the existing law, an illegal abortionist and the mother in question can be sentenced to between three to 10 years in jail.

But according to the local media that hasn't stopped tens of thousands of Iranian women undertaking expensive and sometimes dangerous backstreet abortions.

The point of four months was chosen because many Muslim clerics believe that the soul enters the fetus at this stage. Clearly the abortion laws in Iran won't be that liberal, but they are an interesting development and may be part of a growing social trend.

The Christian Science Monitor explains the growing liberalization in Iran:

[T]he unpopular right wing appears to have shifted tactics. With presidential elections looming in June, hard-liners will take advantage of discontent over the failure of reformist President Mohammed Khatami to deliver fully on promises of freedom, openness, and the rule of law. But they appear to have made another calculation as well - that social flexibility is a price they must pay for their political survival.

"The conservatives are getting clever - people are free in the street, holding hands and wearing less hijab [hair covering]," says the young man. "[They] want to show that voting for reformists is not going to solve your problems." ... The Khatami era has meant that "freedom has been translated into the streets,"with far fewer roadblocks, where the Basiji [hard-line militia volunteers] these days are "so polite," he says, compared to a decade ago when "they were violent."

But he understands the limits: A decade ago, he was caught during a raid at a family party where alcohol was served. He received 75 lashes in punishment.

So, religious conservatives are adjusting their tactics to accept the presence of liberal youth, but the youth are also adjusting to accept the power of religious conservatives? It sounds like a precarious balance — one that can't be easily maintained for long. The religious conservatives, in particular, aren't compromising their ideal vision and will seek to impose it through force the first moment they think it will work.

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