Iran is acquiring a new tool to repress women. The police announced, Saturday, April 8, the installation of cameras in public places and on traffic routes in order to identify unveiled women defying the dress rules imposed by the power.
After identification, the offenders will receive "SMS warning about the consequences," police said in a statement carried by the judicial news agency Mizan and other state media.
"Preventing resistance against the hijab law"
The move aims to "prevent resistance against the hijab law," the statement said, adding that such resistance tarnishes the country's spiritual image and spreads insecurity.
More and more Iranian women have been abandoning their veils since the death in September of a 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman, Mahsa Amini, in police custody after she was arrested by the morality police, who accused her of having put on her hijab incorrectly.
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The ensuing revolt was violently suppressed by the security forces. According to the latest tally by the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR), at least 537 people, including children, have been killed in the country by Iranian security forces.
>> Watch: Iran, six months after Mahsa Amini's death: 'Anger has changed shape'
An intense repression that does not prevent many women from going out without veils in shopping malls, restaurants, shops and streets of the country. Videos showing unveiled women resisting the morality police have flooded social media.
Citizens urged to attack unveiled women
In its statement on Saturday, police called on business owners to "seriously monitor compliance with societal standards through diligent inspections."
Islamic Sharia law in force since Iran's 1979 revolution requires women to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothing to conceal their figure. Violators are subject to public reprimands, fines or arrest.
In a statement issued on March 30, the Interior Ministry described the veil as "one of the civilizational foundations of the Iranian nation" and "one of the practical principles of the Islamic Republic." He ruled out any backsliding on the issue and urged citizens to attack unveiled women.
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Last week, a video widely circulated on social media showed a man throwing yogurt at two unveiled women in a store.
With Reuters
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