17 minutes agoMore and more women are abandoning Iran's mandatory hyjab
Periskopi(8 months ago)
(8 months ago)Iranian journalist Zeinab Rahimi has avoided wearing mandatory hyjab for more than two years, despite the risk of being arrested and imprisoned for such contempt. It is among an increasing number of women and girls who have given up wearing a headscarf [...]
It is among an increasing number of women and girls who have given up wearing headscarves in public, openly challenging the country's clergy.
I like to see women dressed as they want and displaying their hair”, Rahimi told Radio Farda of Free Europe (REL) Radio, describing the obvious change in the streets of Tehran, the Iranian capital, Pryscopic conveys.
We have not experienced this in our country for many years”, the 22-year-old added.
It's beautiful when you don't have to cover yourself, especially when you've always hated this” thing, she stressed.
Turning Point
The turning point was protests against the regime that rocked Iran in 2022, following the death of Mahsa Amin, the young girl who had been arrested for violations of the hygiene law.
Women were at the forefront of the protests, during which some removed and burned their hyjab. The demonstrations turned into the biggest threat to authorities for decades, while some protesters demanded the end of clerical rule.
After the protests, authorities initially tried to strengthen the implementation of the hygiene law, which has been binding since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
Last year, conservative lawmakers adopted a new law and contractors for implementing hijab, under which violators would face long prison sentences, high fines and travel bans.
Fearing the outbreak of new riots, however, Iran's Supreme Council of National Security suspended implementation of the <x0->Hyjabin Law and Delicit”.
A member of the Council of Adaptability, which advises the Supreme Leader, said this month that the new Hijab law is unmet.
On 3 October, Mohammad Reza Bahonar told reporters that “essentially no longer has law on mandatory hijab”.
His statement sparked outrage among conservatives, but also highlighted the reality on the ground in large cities, where authorities have significantly eased the implementation of the rules for the hijab a fundamental pillar of the Islamic republic.
Renewable Changes
Radio Farda spoke to 12 women in seven Iranian cities, which said the number of women removing the Islamic headscarf has increased on the streets, cafes and restaurants in recent years.
Rahimi, Iranian journalist, said women have begun removing hyjab gradually over time.
After the protests in 2022, women who did not wear the hyjab wore a headscarf in a bag or hang loose on their shoulders if the moral police approached, which applied the law on hyjab, she related.
“Today, women come out completely without headscarves”, Rahim said. “They don't wear it, they don't wear it on their shoulders, they don't carry it in their bags”.
However, Rahim said a considerable number of women still wear the headscarf for fear of punishment by authorities.
Failure to comply with the hygiene law is most evident in large cities. But even in smaller towns and villages, attitudes towards women's rights include freedom to choose what to wear are changing, and women are challenging the authorities.
A woman from the southwestern city of Yasuji, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that “the percentage of women leaving without hyjab in Jasugi is much smaller than in Tehran, but residents see these women as bold (4)x1>.
Many Iranian women believe these changes are irreversible.
This change cannot be reversed, nor controlled”, said Radio Farda Mojgan Ilanlu, a director from Tehran documenting the fight of Iranian women.
However, this does not mean that the Government has changed its attitude towards hix1>, she stressed.
Ilanlu added that authorities are “obliged to withdraw” in the face of “the determination of Iranian women who struggled with their own flesh and soul for their right to be dressed as they wish and who now try to protect this success”.
“Authorities know that, if they try to resist, it will cost you and it will deeply damage”, she said. / REL
