The Iranian authorities began to install cameras in public places to identify women who go without a veilthe authorities announced.
Women who do not cover their hair will receive “text messages warning about the consequences,” police said. The move is intended to help overcome “resistance against the hijab law,” she added.
With this he was alluding to the protests that were unleashed last year due to the death in police custody of Mahsa Aminia young Kurdish woman arrested for allegedly violating the hijab rule.
Since Amini’s death, an increasing number of women have removed their headscarves in Iran, particularly in the larger cities, although they risk arrest.
A police statement published by the state news agency of the Islamic Republic specified that the system uses “smart” cameras and other tools to identify and send “warning messages to hijab violators”.
Women have been legally required to cover their hair with a headscarf (hijab) since the Islamic Revolution instituted a strict interpretation of religious law in 1979.
Women who break the law face fines or arrest.
The weekend police statement described the headscarf as “one of the foundations of the Iranian nation’s civilization” and urged business owners to abide by the rules through “diligent inspections.”
The hijab, a “religious necessity”
On Saturday, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi reiterated that Iranian women must wear the hijab as a “religious necessity.”
However, Iran’s judicial chief, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, has warned that a widespread crackdown may not be the best way to encourage women to follow the rules.
“Cultural problems must be solved by cultural means. If we want to solve such problems by arresting and imprisoning, the costs will increase and we will not see the desired effectiveness,” he said.
Public attacks on unveiled women are frequent.
A video showing a man throwing yogurt at two unveiled women was widely shared last week. The women were arrested under the hijab law and the man was also detained.
Since December, thousands of protesters in Iran have been arrested and four have been executed. However, the more radical groups are demanding that more be done to enforce the law.
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BBC-NEWS-SRC: https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-internacional-65234731, IMPORTING DATE: 2023-04-10 17:50:07
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