Ejei's Insistence on Implementing the 'Chastity and Hijab' Law; Critics: Prevent Its 'Notification'

The head of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, reacted to the wave of opposition against the so-called 'Chastity and Hijab' law on Monday, December 3, stating that 'a law has been enacted in this regard, which must be notified and implemented' and emphasized that 'in any case, whenever a law is enacted, it must be implemented.' According to reports, Ejei, in a joint meeting with the Islamic Consultative Assembly, deemed the lack of hijab as 'intolerable' and considered it a 'national issue,' asserting that the continuation of 'this situation is by no means acceptable with any logic.' In response to opponents of the 'Chastity and Hijab' law, he said, 'If there are shortcomings, it doesn't matter; representatives can amend it,' adding, 'If there is ambiguity, the parliament can interpret it.' Ejei's insistence on implementing the 'Chastity and Hijab' law comes amid reports claiming that critics of this law in the cabinet of Masoud Pezeshkian are attempting to prevent the official notification of this law to the government in the coming days. Meanwhile, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, announced on Saturday, December 2, in a press conference that the law enforcing mandatory hijab, known as 'Chastity and Hijab,' will be notified to the government on December 14. In another reaction, Sekineh Pad, the official in charge of 'Social Rights and Freedoms' in the government of Ebrahim Raisi, who had previously stated that Pezeshkian had asked her to remain in her position, also described this law as lacking 'social capacity' and warned that 'the implementation of this law could lead to social disobedience and social fractures.' According to the government news agency ILNA, she called on the heads of the three branches to make a 'wise decision' regarding the hijab law in a joint meeting. This legal expert claimed that this law was drafted after the widespread protests of 2022 and at a time when 'the social capital of the country had decreased' and that given the 'lack of social persuasion and appropriate groundwork, the implementation of this law could lead to social disobedience and fractures.' Pad also expressed her concern about provisions of this law that 'may' harm people's privacy, adding that 'implementing it without considering social conditions and without expert opinions could have negative consequences.' The opposition of the Pezeshkian government to the implementation of this law comes as the newspaper Etemad reported that 'the hijab law, the issue of filtering, and the matter of Zarif's presence in the government' have become the main tools of 'hardliners' to weaken Masoud Pezeshkian's government. However, Masoumeh Ebtekar, the former Deputy for Women's Affairs in the government of Hassan Rouhani, expressed hope in an interview with the Ham-Mihan newspaper that the notification of this law would be prevented. She stated, 'I believe that before notifying this law, Mr. Pezeshkian will talk to Mr. Qalibaf and will do everything he can to prevent its implementation.' According to Ebtekar, in recent months, despite the Pezeshkian government's efforts to return the hijab bill, 'since the generalities had been approved and sent to the Guardian Council, this was not possible, and unfortunately, it was approved with amendments in the Guardian Council.' This former government official reported that 'even Ms. Behrouzazar and other officials of the current government believe that this bill should not be notified and is not executable' and added, 'In such circumstances, it has been suggested that the three branches make a joint decision to delay its implementation to avoid negative consequences.' A political activist wrote in an article by Abbas Abdi in the Etemad newspaper that the hijab bill was approved confidentially and without transparency in the 85th Commission, indicating concern about public reaction. This journalist close to the Pezeshkian government added that 'extensive changes in the initial bill have distanced it from its original nature. Furthermore, many experts and even the president consider this law unenforceable and unstable.' Abdi added that a law whose implementation requires 'people to become informants against themselves' is truly anti-law. In another part of this article, it is stated that 'the approvers are unfamiliar with any of the principles of legislation. They have reached a point where security agency cameras are also employed to control and manage women's attire.' In another critical article by Ali Mojtahedzadeh in the Etemad newspaper, it is stated that under the new law, the punishment for re-arresting a citizen for 'nudity' can reach 10 to 15 years in prison, while crimes such as kidnapping, trafficking 20 kilograms of opium, and trading heavy weapons or explosives carry lesser penalties. He added that the fines set for lack of hijab (ranging from 8 to 168 million tomans) are while 'the minimum wage in Iran is about 7 million tomans, and more than 30% of the population lives below the poverty line,' warning that the implementation of this law could push more citizens below the poverty line. The so-called 'Chastity and Hijab' law, which is organized in 74 articles and 5 chapters, has been finalized after numerous exchanges between the parliament, the Guardian Council, and the Expediency Discernment Council of the Islamic Republic. According to this law, women who appear without mandatory hijab more than four times 'in real or virtual space' will face charges such as 'promoting or advertising nudity, immorality, uncovering hijab, or improper attire' and will be sentenced to at least a fine of 330 million tomans. This punishment, 'at the discretion of the judicial authority,' includes 'prohibition from leaving the country for up to two years' and 'prohibition from activity in the virtual space from six months to two years' and 'in subsequent instances,' the monetary penalty will increase to 500 million tomans. Based on the published media table of fines from first to eighth degree of the Islamic Penal Code, repeated appearances without the mandatory hijab as required by the Islamic Republic will result in a fourth-degree monetary penalty (up to 330 million tomans), and 'one degree of intensification' means increasing the monetary penalty to third degree (up to 500 million tomans). Women in favor of optional covering will be fined between 5 to 165 million tomans for their first four appearances without mandatory hijab 'in public view.' On the other hand, based on Article 71 of this law, the government is obliged to allocate an annual budget for providing cameras for this plan to the command of the Islamic Republic's Law Enforcement Force. In part of this law, designing or advertising items such as clothing, body, and toys, if claimed by its authors to 'promote nudity' and 'uncovering hijab and improper attire,' is considered a crime and will face monetary and supplementary punishments. According to this law, the presence of opponents of mandatory hijab in real or virtual space will also lead to penalties for owners of virtual and non-virtual businesses, organizers of groups and tours, and platforms for publishing audio or video in virtual space. Meanwhile, the closure of business units in recent months has been one of the tools of the Islamic Republic to impose 'mandatory hijab' in society. Furthermore, according to Article 66 of this law, if a 13-year-old child mocks the mandatory hijab in their social media account two times or more, at the discretion of the judge, they will be sentenced to imprisonment from 3 months to 1 year in a 'rehabilitation center,' a fine of 330 to 500 million tomans, or other educational and corrective measures. Following the death of Mahsa Amini in custody of the morality police in September 2022, which led to the largest nationwide protests against the Islamic Republic, women and girls in Iran have increasingly insisted on the right to choose their attire, frequently appearing without mandatory hijab in public and virtual spaces. The Iranian government's efforts to enforce mandatory hijab over the past two years have also been fruitless. On the other hand, the suppression of women under the pretext of mandatory hijab by the Islamic Republic has drawn widespread international criticism. In the latest instance of these criticisms, representatives of the European Parliament on December 8 approved a resolution calling for the repeal of 'discriminatory laws' of the Iranian government against Iranian women and girls. They criticized the 'Chastity and Hijab' law, emphasizing that the suppression of women by the Iranian government could lead to 'gender apartheid' and urged the Iranian authorities to dissolve the 'morality police' and other 'repressive institutions.' May Sato, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, also reported on November 2 that the human rights situation of women and girls in Iran has worsened. The UN fact-finding committee also warned on the second anniversary of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini's death in custody of the morality police that the Islamic Republic has intensified its efforts to suppress the fundamental rights of women and girls and 'destroy the remnants of women's activism.' Widespread criticism from experts and social media users regarding the mandatory hijab law has been noted, with Mariam and Pegah Bani Hashimi, Nasrin Sotoudeh, and Sedigheh Voseqi calling the hijab law a 'ridiculous display.' Experts warn that the legalization of imposing hijab will increase social tensions, while critics of the so-called 'Hijab and Chastity' law describe it as shameful and disappointing. Opponents of mandatory hijab face fines of at least 330 million tomans, while a Tehran University official states that hijab has been 'abandoned.' The US states that human rights defenders for women should operate without fear, and the European Parliament calls for the repeal of discriminatory laws against women and girls in Iran.