Sepideh Rashno, Opponent of Mandatory Hijab, Summoned to Serve Prison Sentence

Sepideh Rashno, a writer and translator opposing mandatory hijab, has stated that she has been summoned to serve a three-year and seven-month prison sentence for her protests against the mandatory hijab. According to a summons from Branch One of the Criminal Execution Court of the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office in District 33 of Tehran, located in Evin Prison, Ms. Rashno has been notified that she must appear within five days to serve her sentence. On Wednesday, January 9, she posted a message on Telegram saying, 'I didn't think my first task today would be checking the execution order; especially for an event that happened two years ago. This is the execution order for three years and seven months from the first case (the BRT bus incident).' Ms. Rashno was arrested in the summer of 2022 after a video of her protesting against a hijab-wearing woman on a bus went viral on social media. After her temporary release, despite significant pressure, she continued her civil protests against the mandatory hijab and announced last February that she had to report to prison to serve her lengthy sentence. In her Telegram message, she also mentioned that the ruling in her second case (regarding the notification of her university suspension) has been converted from six months of imprisonment to a monetary fine, but the suspension ruling is still being enforced. According to her, a request for retrial has been submitted for the third time. The PEN Association has called on writers worldwide to speak out for Sepideh Rashno and imprisoned writers. Ms. Rashno claims that her second case was solely for informing about her university suspension and posting a photo of herself in an Instagram message: 'The case states that I published an indecent photo. My own photo!' The enforcement of her lengthy prison sentence for protesting against the mandatory hijab comes at a time when the announcement of the so-called 'Chastity and Hijab' law has been postponed following criticisms from the government and the need for review. Abbas Ghodrati, as the spokesperson for the parliamentary board, said on Wednesday that the 'Chastity and Hijab' law was approved in parliament and confirmed by the Guardian Council, but the government has announced it wants to make amendments: 'The Supreme National Security Council says to delay the announcement of this law until the government announces its amendments.' As previously stated by Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the Speaker of Parliament, the so-called 'Chastity and Hijab' law was supposed to be announced on December 14, but it was not announced on that day, and some media close to Qalibaf claimed that its announcement was halted until the government's 'amendment bill' was ready. This law has faced widespread criticism from activists and human rights organizations.