April 25, 2023
Tehran, Iran – Two renowned
actresses in Iran have been charged for not wearing headscarves, as authorities
intensify efforts to crack down on people violating the country’s mandatory
hijab laws.
Iranian state media
reported on Tuesday that Tehran police have referred Katayoun Riahi and Pantea
Bahram to the judiciary, accused of “the crime of removing their hijab in
public and publishing its images in the virtual space”.
The well-known actresses
could potentially face fines or prison terms if prosecuted.
Last week, photos of
53-year-old Bahram posing without a headscarf at a film screening went viral.
The 61-year-old Riahi,
another veteran actress, was previously arrested in November on suspicion of
“collusion against national security and propaganda against the establishment”
after she became the first of her peers to post an image of herself online
without a headscarf in support of nationwide protests that erupted in
September.
The months-long protests
began after Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman, died following her arrest by the
country’s so-called “morality police” for allegedly not adhering to the
country’s hijab laws, which were adopted shortly after the 1979 Islamic
Revolution.
During the protests,
several other high-profile actresses, including Taraneh Alidoosti, took off
their headscarves in solidarity and were subsequently arrested, prompting
support from abroad.
A growing number of women
across Iran have abandoned their mandatory hijabs since the protests, with
streets and public places in Tehran and elsewhere increasingly seeing women
without headscarves.
The authorities had largely
refrained from cracking down on the women in public in recent months, and the
green and white vans of the morality police have also been taken off the
streets, but a notable shift has taken place this month.
Police chief Ahmadreza
Radan, appointed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in January amid
speculations about his predecessor’s shortcomings during the protests, has
promised to “seriously” deal with people violating hijab rules that are central
to the Iranian government’s ideology.
A number of women have
since posted images of themselves online without headscarves, with some even
doing away with the loose-fitting gowns that the country’s laws also require.
Authorities have announced
the closure of dozens of businesses since Radan’s promise to use “smart”
cameras to identify violators in public and crack down on businesses that
served women not wearing the hijab.
On Tuesday, the
state-linked Tasnim news website reported that the sprawling Opal Shopping
Centre in western Tehran, where the sight of young women without headscarves
has become commonplace, could soon be shut down entirely if its board members
continue to ignore warnings.
Tasnim also said that
restaurants owned by a number of celebrities, including actors and footballers,
have received warnings and could face closures.
It reported that at least
three pharmacies in Tehran have been shut down and more have received warnings
while “guild units” affiliated with an unnamed ministry have also been warned.
However, authorities
appeared to be adopting a less physically confrontational approach, and have
instead boosted efforts to promote hijab as an Islamic and family virtue.
“Hijab is the legacy of
mothers,” read countless banners across Tehran that include images of young
daughters – and their mothers – with the type of hijab that is accepted by the
authorities.
No comments:
Post a Comment