Tehran Police Chief: Those Who 'Accidentally' Violate Islamic Norms Will No Longer Be Arrested

The Chief of Tehran Police has stated that from now on, individuals who 'accidentally' do not observe Islamic norms will not be taken to detention centers but will instead attend educational classes. Hossein Rahimi made this announcement at the closing ceremony of the 'Tehran, Safe City' photo festival, adding that this decision was made based on the 'guidance of the Commander of NAJA' (Law Enforcement Force of the Islamic Republic of Iran). He said, 'According to the directives of the Commander of NAJA, those who do not observe Islamic norms and have made mistakes in this area will no longer go to detention centers, no cases will be filed against them, and they will not be sent to court; instead, educational sessions will be held to correct their behavior.' According to Mr. Rahimi, '121 educational sessions have been held in this area this year, and more than 7,900 people have been educated in these classes.' He added, 'We will not compromise with those who disrupt public security in society, but we aim to correct citizens' behavior through a social approach regarding any mistakes that occur.' The Tehran Police Chief stated that currently, 'thousands of people are receiving public education in the police daily,' saying, 'Instead of arresting offenders who commit minor violations and crimes, we educate them.' Rahimi also reported that over '282,000 family members, students, government employees, and shopkeepers' participated in these classes during the first nine months of the year 1396 (2017) for what he termed 'behavior correction.' However, this police commander did not mention the content of these so-called 'educational' classes for those who do not observe Islamic norms and did not provide details about the 'education' of those he described as having committed 'minor violations.' Meanwhile, Hossein Rahimi did not refer to the reasons behind the halt of this new decision regarding the non-arrest of 'bad hijab' individuals by the police. The Chief of Tehran Police had announced in Mordad of this year that the police's approach in implementing the 'Guidance Patrol' plan would not be 'coercive and violent,' and the basis of this force's work in dealing with 'anomalies' is 'positive.' Iranian officials have launched a plan called 'Guidance Patrol' years ago to combat what they call the spread of 'bad hijab and various Western clothing' in Iran, one of its duties being to confront what they consider 'unconventional' clothing. However, according to statements from some judicial and law enforcement officials, this controversial plan, which has many opponents, has not been very effective. Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, is among the judicial officials who stated in Shahrivar 1395 (September 2016) that it is not possible to assign 'agents' to every family and individual in the country, asserting that 'coercive' measures regarding hijab in Iran have been ineffective. In Mordad of the same year, Hossein Sajedi-Nia, the then-commander of Tehran's law enforcement, stated that 'the current situation of hijab and chastity is not befitting of an Islamic society, and by monitoring the hijab situation over the past 15 years, we conclude that the situation has gradually worsened.' Ahmad Sahatghol, the cultural director of the Islamic Propagation Organization in Iran, stated on Khordad 3 that '10 provinces in Iran have crossed the red line of hijab,' and this issue is a 'warning bell' for the community of clerics and religious scholars in the Islamic Republic.