Iranian women face harsh penalties, including termination from their jobs, being assigned to wash corpses in the morgue, and being forced to carry out janitorial tasks simply for failing to adhere to the compulsory dress code.
The clerical regime in Iran imposes degrading punishments and harsh penalties on women who refuse to wear the compulsory veil. The authorities themselves admit that the mandatory Hijab is vital for maintaining their grip on power. Any concession on this issue weakens the authority of the religious leaders and puts pressure on them to compromise in other areas as well.
In a recent case, the 104th Branch of Criminal Court 2 in Varamin sentenced a woman to wash the corpses of the deceased in Tehran’s Morgue for a month as an additional punishment for driving without observing the mandatory Hijab. In addition to this, she was ordered to pay a fine of 31 million rials instead of serving a two-month prison sentence. This information was reported in the state-run Hammihan Daily on July 13, 2023.
On July 10, a woman was sentenced to two months in jail by Branch 1088 of Tehran’s Criminal Court for not wearing the compulsory veil in public. Additionally, she received a two-year travel ban. She was required to attend weekly sessions with a psychologist for six months to address her labeled “anti-social personality” until she obtained a certificate verifying her mental health.
In another incident, a female intern who failed to cover her hair while driving was relieved of her duties and forced to perform janitorial work instead of serving jail time, as reported on July 12.
There have been reports of a woman being sentenced by one of the criminal court branches to complete 270 hours of cleaning services for the Interior Ministry due to non-compliance with the compulsory veil requirement.
According to the official IRNA news agency on July 15, the Revolutionary and Public Prosecutor of Qazvin has initiated legal proceedings against 173 women since the enactment of the Hijab and Chastity Law. The identities of 50 individuals have been identified thus far, with efforts underway to identify the remaining individuals.
The clerical regime uses facial recognition technology to identify women who do not observe the veiling requirement for women.
Furthermore, on July 15, the Reuters news agency released footage showing a woman in Tehran’s Gisha district crying out for help after allegedly being confronted by the state morality police.
