Iranian authorities are implementing stricter measures to enforce the compulsory dress code for women, with the installation of cameras in public places and thoroughfares to identify and penalize those who do not wear veils. The police announced this move on Saturday, stating that violators would receive warning text messages about the consequences of defying the hijab law. The aim of this measure is to prevent resistance against the dress code, as it is believed to tarnish the country’s spiritual image and spread insecurity, according to a statement carried by state media.
The number of Iranian women defying the dress code has been increasing since the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died in custody of the morality police last September. Despite the risk of arrest, women are frequently seen without veils in malls, restaurants, shops, and streets across the country, with videos of unveiled women resisting the morality police circulating on social media.
The recent police statement also called on business owners to diligently monitor and enforce societal norms regarding dress code. In Iran, under Islamic sharia law imposed after the 1979 revolution, women are obligated to cover their hair and wear loose-fitting clothes to conceal their figures. Violators can face public rebuke, fines, or arrest.
The veil is considered one of the civilizational foundations of the Iranian nation and one of the practical principles of the Islamic Republic, according to an Interior Ministry statement on March 30. The statement emphasized that there would be no retreat on this issue and encouraged citizens to confront women who are unveiled. Such directives have emboldened hardliners in the past, leading to attacks on women who do not comply with the dress code. In a recent viral video, a man was seen throwing yoghurt at two unveiled women in a shop.
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