Iran Passes Hijab Bill

Facts

• Iran's parliament passed a bill Wednesday that imposes heavier penalties on women for violating the Islamic dress code, including jail terms of up to 10 years.¹
• The measure also seeks to identify people who 'promote nudity [or] indecency' or 'mock' the rules. This applies to both online and offline spaces.²
• The 'Hijab and Chastity Bill' — which was passed by a parliamentary vote of 152 to 34 — will now be submitted for approval to the Guardian Council, which is a conservative-leaning entity comprised of both clerics and jurists.³
• The UN, which described the bill as 'gender apartheid,' alleged the country appeared to be 'governing through systemic discrimination with the intention of suppressing women and girls into total submission.'⁴
• The bill comes a year after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini — who was detained by morality police for not wearing the hijab — sparked nationwide demonstrations and killed over 500 protesters.⁴
• Many Iranian women have since defied the Islamic dress code, pushing Iran's executive and judiciary to propose a bill to 'protect society' and 'strengthen family life.' The ruling conservatives argue that relaxing the rules would rupture 'social norms.'⁵

Sources: ¹BBC News, ²Guardian, ³Cnbctv18.com, ⁴Independent and ⁵The new arab.

Narratives

• Anti-Iran narrative, as provided by Al Jazeera. The bill is inherently discriminatory and amounts to gender persecution. The Iranian government is using culture as a tool to weaponize public morals and violate women's fundamental rights, including freedom of opinion and expression.
• Pro-Iran narrative, as provided by Irna. Contrary to Western propaganda, Islam and the Shia sect respect and protect women. The wearing of a hijab should not be de-contextualized and misrepresented by the West, which attempts to undermine the important position of women in Islam and in Iran.

Predictions