religion
New headscarf law in Iran: Harsh penalties for violations
In Iran, draconian punishments are to apply in the future for violations of the headscarf requirement. photo
© Rouzbeh Fouladi/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Iran’s metropolises have changed after the 2022 protests. Everyday life has returned, but many women resist the obligation to wear a headscarf. Now Parliament is introducing a controversial law.
Fines, imprisonment and social penalties: in In the future, Iran will impose draconian penalties for violations of the headscarf requirement. According to the state agency IRNA, members of parliament voted to introduce the controversial law on a trial basis for a period of three years.
In its most recent version, the reform provides for harsh penalties for violating Islamic dress codes. These include fines for multiple violations. In extreme cases, up to 15 years in prison and the equivalent of more than 5,000 euros can be imposed. Foreigners could be expelled from the country.
Particularly harsh penalties for celebrities
Celebrities should be punished particularly harshly for violations. The draft also provides for professional bans of up to 15 years. The judiciary should also be able to confiscate a tenth of the assets. During the most recent wave of protests in the fall, numerous filmmakers expressed solidarity with the women’s movement.
Iran’s authorities also want to take action against online protests and are making it a criminal offense to publish photos without a headscarf online. There is a risk of fines and, in extreme cases, even imprisonment. The legal package also basically provides for re-education courses and exit bans as punishments. The judiciary also threatens to close shopping malls, restaurants or museums if violations occur. Insults against veiled women can result in up to six months in prison and 74 lashes.
“That’s not important to me”
In Iran’s capital Tehran, some women reacted indifferently to the penal reform. “That’s not important to me,” said one young woman. You can no longer tell them what they have to wear. An older woman with a headscarf was also skeptical about the new law. “Young people should wear the hijab when they want to, not through government coercion.”
The law cites short-sleeved shirts or ripped jeans for women as examples of “poor clothing” and pants with a short inseam or tank tops for men. The law entrusts ministries and security services with detailed instructions to enforce Islamic dress codes. Citizens and police officers should be able to easily report violations.
Bypassed parliament with a political trick
The government had already pushed forward the proposed law a month ago. Using a political trick, a commission approved the penal reform without a vote in the plenary session of Parliament. As a final step, the reform will now be presented to the Guardian Council, a control body made up of ultra-conservative clergy.
The penal reform is a response from the clerical and political leadership to the women-led protests against the Islamic Republic in the fall of 2022. Saturday marked the first anniversary of the death of the young Iranian Kurdish woman Jina Mahsa Amini, who sparked the nationwide uprisings last year. Parliament had recently repeatedly postponed the vote.
Many women oppose the obligation to wear a headscarf
While everyday life has returned to normal in the country, numerous women in major cities are resisting the requirement to wear a headscarf – also as a sign of silent protest. Hardliners had therefore been calling for tougher action against the numerous violations for months.
Iran’s Supreme Religious Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all strategic matters, was also consulted on the new headscarf law. Wearing a hijab is a religious obligation, emphasized the 84-year-old. At the same time, women with ill-fitting headscarves are not opponents of religion and revolution, the head of state recently said.
The headscarf requirement has been the law for more than 40 years in the country, which now has a population of almost 90 million. Duty is considered one of the ideological pillars of the Islamic Republic.
Parliament website Report at IRNA