TEHRAN (AFP) — Iranian police have unveiled a list of “vices” — including makeup, un-Islamic dress and decadent movies — being targeted in an ongoing moral crackdown, a conservative newspaper reported on Monday.
The list was published in the Jomhuri Eslami newspaper as part of a police drive launched in April which has seen the arrest of “thugs”, raids on underground parties, seizures of satellite dishes, and street checks of improperly dressed individuals.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last week urged police to keep up its crackdown on social vices, saying they must “fulfill their duties regardless of some opposition and propaganda.”
Some moderates have questioned the need for the moral crackdown but conservatives have applauded police for a drive they say is popular with the public and necessary to improve security in society.
“The list of illegal behaviour against the security and morality of society which will be pursued by police… has been announced,” the Jomhuri Eslami said.
The list, which does not make any reference to gender, highlights the fight against extortionists and drug dealers as well as what it terms “inappropriate” clothing which is short, tight or seethrough.
Thousands of women have been warned for wearing tight, short coats and skimpy headscarves and for flouting the Islamic dress code, which requires every post-pubescent woman to cover their hair and body contours.
“Wearing boots with short pants, wearing hats or scarves which do not fully cover hair and neck instead of the proper head veil and putting on unusual make-up that contradicts public chastity (is forbidden),” the list said.
“Wearing Western-style clothes and insignias of deviant groups (usually a reference to referring to Satanists or rappers),” was on the list alongside “production and distribution of decadent movies as well as private home-made videos.”
Iran has in recent months stepped up executions of criminals rounded up in the drive, in a clear warning to those deemed a menace to society.
Elahe Amani one of the iranian women’s right activist in the U.S. said:
Ali Khamenei last week urged police to keep up their crackdown on social vices, He and other conservatives encouraged police not to cease their crackdown and harassment of women and “fulfill their duties regardless of some opposition and propaganda.”. The extremists argue that invading the most personal aspect of civilian/ women and girls life is necessary to ” improve security in society “.
The reality is that the realm for women to divert from the imposed Islamic dress code.is very limited but the government can not even tolerate it and frame it as social vices that is a treat to “Security in Society”.
When people in the position of power in Tehran talk about “Security in Society” they actually are referring to the insecurity of their own government. One should remind the religious extremist in position of power that the sources of insecurity from within is the lack of democracy and human rights in Iran not women wearing boots with short pants insecurity is the economic injustice, unemployment, prostitution, addiction and violence against women, it is the lack of basic freedoms such as freedom of press, religion, expression etc.
It seems that the harassment and violation of women’s human rights is always an issue that can bring together factions and power centers in Iran. This week, ” Zanestan” ( the Land of Women ), the rich Iranian feminist Internet journal has been banned ( the domain was made unavailable by government ) in yet another attempt to silence the voices of women. The last issue of ‘Zanestan” was a special issue on Delaram Ali, the brave Iranian social worker and an active member of the ” Campaign of One Million Signature to Change Discriminatory Laws in Iran” who was sentenced to detention and lashing. The sentence of Delaram Ali, outraged the global human rights community and many women/human rights organizations put pressure on the government of Iran and demanded that this sentence must be halted. Later, the sentence was halted pending re-investigation of her case but “Zanestan” was banned.
