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Tehran (AFP) – Iranian police have resumed warning car owners not to abide by the mandatory dress code for women on board, especially wearing the hijab, after suspending it amid protests following the death of Mahsa Amini.
Since September 16, Iran has witnessed protest movements following the death of Amini, 22, after she was arrested by the morality police in Tehran for failing to adhere to the country’s strict dress code.
Hundreds were killed, including dozens of members of the security forces, during the protests, which included chanting against the authorities, and women who participated in the removal of the mandatory headscarf.
A police official said the latter “has begun implementing the new phase of the Nazer-1 program in various parts of the country,” Fars news agency reported on Sunday.
The official, whose name was not mentioned, did not specify further details on the matter.
“Fares” indicated that the program is related to the issue of “removing the veil in cars”.
And starting in 2020, car owners in Iran started receiving SMS messages on their phones if the police recorded them in the vehicle, violating the dress code in the Islamic Republic.
This message referred to the registration of this violation and warned of “judicial and legal measures” in the event of a repeat offence.
However, the police have stopped hinting at the possibility of taking legal action, according to recent messages Iranians have received and posted on social media.
The new message says only: “It has been observed that the veil is not worn in the car. It is necessary to respect the social rules and to make sure that this does not happen again”.
In the aftermath of the eruption of the protests, the number of white and green minibuses belonging to the morality police decreased significantly on the streets of Tehran. In some parts of the capital, women can also be seen wandering the streets without headscarves.
The moral police are responsible for ensuring the application of Islamic laws in Iran. Its members are on the streets and have the power to enter public places to check if these laws are being enforced.
In December, Iranian media quoted Attorney General Mohammad Jaafar Montazeri as saying that police patrols had stopped.
However, activists outside of Iran have downplayed the significance of this announcement, especially in the absence of any official announcement regarding the law change.
© 2023 AFP
