Iran installs cameras to identify hijab mandate violators

The Iranian government is installing cameras in public places to detect and identify unveiled women, as defiance to the compulsory dress code continues to grow within the country.

In a statement by Iranian police on Saturday, broadcast through media outlets, women who violate the hijab mandate in public places will receive “warning text messages as to the consequences”. It stated that the measure is aimed at “preventing resistance against the hijab law”.

Insisting that such resistance to the law tarnishes the country’s spiritual image and spreads insecurity, the police statement said that authorities will “not tolerate any kind of individual or collective behaviour and action in violation of the [hijab] law”.

It also called on owners of businesses to “seriously monitor the observance of societal norms with their diligent inspections”.

Since the death of the 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, under police custody in September after being arrested for allegedly wearing the veil wrongly, protests against the government and the hijab law erupted throughout the country.

Despite the harsh crack down on demonstrations and anti-government sentiment by authorities, there remain many women in Iran who attempt to flout the mandate by not wearing the veil in public. The installation of cameras to identify violators comes amid reports of other potential measures such as a proposition to fine violators $6,000.

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