Release of 8,000 Vehicles Seized for Violating Mandatory Hijab

On Saturday, July 2, the Public Relations Center of the Law Enforcement Force announced that, on the occasion of Eid al-Ghadir, 8,000 vehicles seized for not complying with the mandatory hijab have been released. According to this report, SMS notifications will be sent to the owners of these vehicles. The announcement comes at a time when the issue of hijab and women's dress has been a central topic during recent election campaigns, including in televised debates among candidates. In the third debate of the presidential candidates held on July 8, except for Saeed Jalili, the conservative candidate, other candidates criticized the enforcement of hijab. Masoud Pezeshkian, the reformist candidate, criticized the treatment of women and girls on the streets, stating, 'When protests occur, they create cases. We have not been able to solve violence against women. But now we say we are respecting! Respect must be in practice.' He emphasized, 'When women's rights are ignored in society, our voices must be loud.' He argued that the issue of dress and hijab cannot be resolved through orders and laws. Pezeshkian referenced the history of 'unveiling,' saying, 'Just as they could not remove the hijab by force, we cannot impose it by force either.' Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the Speaker of Parliament and a conservative candidate, also mentioned that the issue of hijab and chastity laws cannot be addressed 'without respect, with tension, and with violence.' The Speaker criticized the incidents occurring during police interactions with girls and women, stating, 'Such actions must definitely be stopped.' Mostafa Pour Mohammadi, referring to the protests of 2022 and the issue of hijab enforcement, asked, 'Why did we stretch it so much that it tore? Should we continue?' He added, 'Many religious people regret the half-hearted hijab before the fall of 2022.' Although according to the Supreme Court's ruling, the seizure of personal vehicles for not complying with the mandatory hijab is illegal, thousands of vehicles in Iran receive SMS notifications of seizure daily for this reason. Officials of the Islamic Republic and hardline conservatives believe that increasing fines for not adhering to the mandatory hijab will have a deterrent effect. Jalil Mohibi, a member of the Parliament's Research Center and a designer of the chastity and hijab law, stated in an interview that, 'The fines were around one to three million, but when it becomes 24 million tomans and all fines are combined, this will be more deterrent.' Following the protests after the death of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini in police custody in September 2022 and the unprecedented presence of women without hijabs in the streets, the police have intensified their actions against women and men supporting freedom of dress, and reports and images of increased violence against detainees are frequently published.