Iran Cracking Down On Women For Not Covering Hair

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has condemned Iran’s intensified enforcement of head-covering regulations, which has led to the detention of numerous women and girls and the closure of hundreds of businesses.

This crackdown follows a surge in public disobedience of the rules sparked by protests in late 2022.

In a briefing on Friday in Geneva, Türk reported that Iran’s morality police had significantly tightened checks in recent weeks.

This comes after many women started to openly defy the head-covering laws, igniting a protest movement triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini in detention last year.

Amini had been arrested by the morality police for allegedly not properly wearing her hijab.

Türk criticized a proposed draft law in Iran that would impose severe penalties for non-compliance with the head-covering mandate, including jail terms of up to ten years and corporal punishment like flogging.

He urged Tehran to eliminate sex-based discrimination and violence.

In a further rebuke, Türk highlighted the case of 33-year-old Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi, who faces the death penalty.

Salehi, known for his music that criticizes political oppression in Iran, became a prominent figure in the 2022 demonstrations.

The UN official underscored the gravity of the situation, noting that nine men had already been executed for their participation in the protests following Amini’s death.