Sending 'Hijab Text Messages': An Attempt to Covertly Enforce the 'Chastity and Hijab' Law

Despite the suspension of the so-called 'Chastity and Hijab' law following reports of interference from the Secretariat of the 'Supreme National Security Council,' citizen accounts indicate a resumption of sending 'warning text messages about hijab violations' in vehicles. The newspaper Etemad, whose owner is the 'Head of the Government's Information Council,' reported that receiving these messages was 'shocking and concerning' for many individuals and their families. The content of the messages creates a 'tense psychological atmosphere' for recipients, especially in cases where individuals do not consider themselves to be in violation. The text of these messages threatens drivers with vehicle confiscation and demands they introduce themselves to the police system within 48 hours. According to the report, the 'shocking' reception of these messages occurs while police cameras frequently malfunction, and most 'hijab violation' warning messages are transmitted with incorrect locations and times. Following citizen protests, the police have asked those who received 'incorrect messages' to visit the 'Police Plus Ten' system or 'Security Police' centers with necessary documents. However, some citizens have reported difficulties accessing this system. The report states that 'when entering the security code, repeated warnings about the code's invalidity are displayed,' resulting in protesters being forced to 'visit police centers in person' after repeated attempts to register their complaints. Sending hijab text messages is one of the controversial aspects of the so-called Chastity and Hijab law and has been a subject of criticism from opponents of this law; however, the resumption of electronic monitoring aimed at psychological pressure on citizens indicates covert enforcement prior to 'official notification.' While sending warning text messages about hijab violations in vehicles and imposing mandatory hijab laws using police tools has sparked widespread reactions among citizens, the initiation of a limited 'advertising sit-in' in front of the Islamic Consultative Assembly for the implementation of the newly approved law has generated 'humorous' reactions regarding the supporters of this law. Ahmad Bigdeli, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, told the Khabar Online website that 'in the past three days, the number of protesters in front of the Assembly was so small that I estimate it to be around 20 to 30 people. Today, when I came to the Assembly, there were only about 10 more in this cold weather.' This member of the Assembly noted the condition of the protesters, stating: 'They only had one hijab set up and their situation resembled that of homeless people; they came hoping someone would talk to them.' Bigdeli acknowledged that the pressures from mandatory hijab supporters are ineffective, stating, 'While today people are struggling with livelihood issues and economic imbalances, some are trying to create political pressure with these movements.' The so-called 'Chastity and Hijab' law, which consists of 74 articles and is organized into five chapters, was finalized recently after numerous back-and-forths among the Assembly, 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 spaces' will face accusations such as 'promoting or advertising nudity, immorality, hijab violation, or improper clothing' and will be sentenced to at least a fine of 330 million tomans. This punishment includes 'a ban on leaving the country for up to two years' and 'a ban on activity in virtual spaces from six months to two years,' and 'in subsequent instances,' the monetary penalty will increase by 'one degree' to 500 million tomans. Based on the published table of penalties from grade one to grade eight of the Islamic Penal Code, repeating the appearance without mandatory hijab more than four times leads to a grade four monetary penalty (up to 330 million tomans), and 'one degree of intensification' means an increase in the monetary penalty to grade three (up to 500 million tomans). Women in favor of optional covering will be fined between five to 165 million tomans for their first four appearances without mandatory hijab in public. On the other hand, according to Article 71 of this law, the government is obligated to allocate an annual budget for the provision of 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 is also considered a crime if, according to its authors, it 'promotes nudity' and 'hijab violation and improper clothing,' and will face monetary and supplementary punishments. According to this law, the presence of opponents of mandatory hijab in real or virtual spaces will lead to penalties for business owners, group leaders, and platforms for audio or video dissemination in virtual spaces. International human rights organizations, including various mechanisms of the United Nations, have repeatedly commented on this law in recent months and called for its immediate repeal.