The Unseen Morality Patrols Have Started

The newspaper Aftab Yazd has dedicated its front page to the launch of 'unseen morality patrols' and stated: 'The morality patrol has become unseen.' The newspaper Etemad also headlined its Tuesday issue with 'Unseen Eyes on the Streets,' reporting that 'seven thousand unseen morality officers will inform the police about harassment of women, hijab violations in vehicles, and noise pollution.' According to this newspaper, 'On Saturday, coinciding with the renewed presence of morality patrols in the streets, highways, and shopping centers of the capital, media reports and online reactions began regarding the presence of morality officers in the city, but two days later, the news of the addition of unseen morality security forces sparked a different wave of reactions.' Zahra Choupankareh in her report for Etemad referred to citizens' reactions on social media, noting that 'with the renewed operation of the morality patrol in Tehran, social media users shared their memories and criticisms using the hashtag #MoralityPatrol, and with the news of the start of the unseen morality officers, reactions began again with the sharing of photos of officers standing in line.' Etemad also cited statements from three months ago by the Deputy of Transportation and Traffic of Tehran Municipality regarding the movement of three to 3.5 million vehicles in the capital, stating that 'with the addition of 7,000 unseen morality officers, there is approximately one unseen police officer for every 500 vehicles.' The newspaper quoted critics of this police initiative as saying: 'More than the practicality of these officers' oversight of social norms, creating a sense of suspicion among citizens is the main objective,' adding that 'despite traffic cameras, traffic police, and the presence of morality patrols in the city, it is unclear what role the addition of seven thousand unseen forces will play in controlling norms on the streets of the capital.' According to Etemad, 'on social media, users remind each other that the Minister of Interior of the Rouhani administration is the successor to the Commander-in-Chief of the police,' and 'just a few hours after the news of the start of the unseen officers was published, the name Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli was repeated on social media as one of the officials who might have answers regarding the why and how of this initiative.' The newspaper Vaghaye Ettefaghieh also published a report titled 'Tehran Under the Eyes of 7,000 Unseen Police,' referring to statements by Hossein Sajedi Nia, the commander of Greater Tehran Police, about 'the launch of a new morality security plan with the presence of unseen patrols.' It noted that 'last year, a group of members of the Islamic Consultative Assembly proposed a plan according to which women drivers with improper hijab would be fined, female employees would be reprimanded for not observing hijab, and building managers would be obliged to remove satellite dishes.' This newspaper reminded that such plans and actions would 'increase the possibility of a rift between the regime and the people and reduce bad hijab from an abnormal and non-valuable matter to traffic violations, diminishing the value of hijab and expanding the perception of violating hijab with monetary penalties.' Furthermore, the Research Center of the Parliament had announced a year ago during the 'Protection of the Sanctuary of Chastity and Hijab' initiative that such plans 'reduce hijab from a cultural-identity matter to behavior contrary to not wearing a seatbelt in a vehicle.' Bahman Keshavarz, a lawyer and legal expert, in a note titled 'Legal Dimensions of Unseen Police' in the newspaper Shargh, referred to the statements of the commander of Tehran Police regarding the police's interaction with citizens based on reports from unseen patrol officers, stating: 'Undoubtedly, reports of this kind, which may be subject to criminal charges, should be directed not to the security police but to judicial authorities, and summons and invitations should be made in accordance with legal conditions by judicial authorities. Otherwise, the action taken will lack legal basis.' This legal expert also noted that any summons of citizens 'requires the security police to refer to the judicial authority and request a summons order,' emphasizing that in this case, the judicial authority, which is usually an investigator, 'must summon the individual after establishing sufficient grounds for the accusation, and this summons, if made without sufficient grounds, will be considered a violation of judicial authority.' Mohammad Sotoodeh, in the humor column 'Fog Light' of the newspaper Jahane San'at, criticized the silence of the President regarding the start of the unseen morality security patrols, addressing Hassan Rouhani: 'We are not well. We are not well; it has gone beyond writing humor, Mr. President, I don't have the patience to be funny... I remember when you were trying to get our votes, you said: citizen rights? Remember what beautiful words you said? You said: no one should undermine the security of the people? Are we going to be monitored unseen? From tomorrow, everyone must look at each other as unseen officers!' The columnist of Jahane San'at told Hassan Rouhani: 'Now you must show some reaction. Mr. President, if you say nothing, we will be very upset with you; you must defend our rights. Say something... Do something... Mr. President, silence is a sign of consent; you should not be silent now. We counted on your words. You must speak. Don't let relatives, friends, acquaintances, and strangers all become unseen patrols. You are not a colonel; you are a legal expert. Do you understand what I mean? You are a legal expert! Do something for our rights... If you do nothing, does that mean you are a colonel? Don't be a colonel; be a legal expert... We voted for a legal expert.' The newspaper Kayhan, in its Tuesday issue, accused Baqer Namazi of having 'influence and networking within NGOs that have profoundly impacted social demands,' including 'efforts to create widespread changes in laws such as retribution, hijab, children's and women's rights in line with liberal laws in the name of the people.' Baqer Namazi, an 80-year-old dual-national Iranian-American, has been detained in Tehran since February 22 and is also imprisoned. He was arrested while pursuing the fate of his son, Siamak Namazi, a former director of strategic planning at Crescent Oil Company, who has been detained since October. The newspaper Hemayat, affiliated with the prison organization, published the reaction of the head of the judiciary to the annual report of the U.S. State Department on human rights violations, quoting Sadegh Larijani as saying: 'The judiciary of the Islamic Republic of Iran is carrying out its work with authority and has prevented the infiltration of enemies and seditionists. According to this newspaper, Sadegh Larijani stated that in this annual report from the U.S. State Department, 'there is a claim regarding the issuance of death sentences for murder,' but 'in the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, there is no death penalty for murder; rather, it is retribution, which is a type of right.' He also stated that 'the claim of enmity with God also leads to a death sentence, while their reference is to the legal and jurisprudential discussion of Moharebeh, which has its own specific conditions.' The newspaper Hemayat quoted the head of the judiciary of the Islamic Republic as saying: 'The claim regarding deaths in Iranian prisons is another irrelevant statement. The deaths of prisoners, especially older individuals and some individuals suffering from drug addiction, is a nearly possible issue in all prisons, and proving that some deaths may be due to torture is another matter that is merely a claim and cannot be accepted without evidence.' Meanwhile, the newspaper Farhikhtegan reported on the issuance of a 'summons for a 5-year-old child' by a judge in Lorestan province, quoting Tavakkol Shakerimi, the head of the Diyeh Fund in Lorestan province, as saying: 'Such a ruling has been issued, and I strongly request lawmakers to change the law if such a ruling is legal, as it seems there is a fundamental need for reform.' Farahnaz Sadeghi Nobari in her report for Farhikhtegan introduced this 5-year-old child as 'Amir Mohammad' and the child of a couple living in Lorestan province, stating that Amir Mohammad was sentenced to pay 'diyeh' for 'accidentally harming his playmate,' but since this 5-year-old child and his family could not afford to pay the diyeh, the judge in this case issued a summons for Amir Mohammad based on the new Islamic Penal Code and considering the circumstances of the case. Tavakkol Shakerimi, the head of the Diyeh Fund in Lorestan province, detailed the incident, saying that in late Farvardin, 'a young couple came to me crying and asked me to help them raise the diyeh for this case so that this 5-year-old child would not go to the correction and rehabilitation center. I immediately arranged a meeting with the head of the judiciary of the province, and in this meeting, the head of the judiciary announced that he would stop this ruling and would not allow this child to enter the correction and rehabilitation center.' Hossein Ahmadi Niaz, a lawyer, in a note in the newspaper Arman titled 'Adult Behavior with Children,' wrote: 'Our behavior with children has not been based on patience and tolerance. We always involve adults in children's games and have turned their joyful play into war and disputes in the courts.' This lawyer emphasized that 'the suffering of children from violence has very destructive effects,' writing: 'A young man who committed murder at the age of 17 against a six-year-old girl named Setayesh is more a product of this suffering from violence, or a child who is sentenced to pay diyeh during play is in what difficult psychological conditions.' This lawyer also stressed the need to reform the Islamic Penal Code, reminding that according to 'Iranian criminal law, children, minors, are exempt from criminal responsibility,' but now 'under Articles 92 and 462 of the new Islamic Penal Code, the perpetrator is responsible for paying diyeh,' and the issuance of a summons for a 5-year-old child was based on these articles. The newspaper Shargh has a report about the allocation of budget to a foundation managed by Gholamali Haddad Adel, a current member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the father-in-law of the Supreme Leader's daughter. Mahsa Jazini, a reporter for Shargh, noted that in the budget bill for 2016, 'about seven billion tomans from the current budget of the country has been allocated to the Saadi Foundation, which belongs to Gholamali Haddad Adel,' asking this member of parliament, 'In exchange for receiving this amount, to which higher authority does the Saadi Foundation respond for its expenses, and which authority oversees its performance?' Gholamali Haddad Adel confirmed receiving such an amount and told Shargh: 'Seven billion is nothing; even if we spend 70 billion for the promotion of the Persian language in the world, it is still not enough.' This member of the ninth parliament said about the foundation under his management: 'Those who mentioned the Saadi Foundation and criticized it thought that the Saadi Foundation was an institution for recognizing Saadi and conducting Saadi studies; they did not know that the Saadi Foundation's duty is to teach and promote the Persian language in the world. If they had known this, they would not have made that criticism.' This member of the ninth parliament also stated: 'I am responsible for accountability, and I will inform you of every penny spent and provide an account.'