Disbandment of Iran’s morality police proves no country can suppress its citizens, no matter how hard they try
Post Date – 12:22 AM, Tue – 12/06/22
Disbandment of Iran’s morality police proves no country can suppress its citizens, no matter how hard they try
Iran’s morality police have been disbanded following a massive uprising, a victory for the brave Iranian women who are leading anti-hijab protests across the country. It proves that no country, no matter how long and hard it tries, can suppress its citizens. Despite brutal repression, Iranian women have waged a sustained and vigorous campaign against the enforcement of Islamic dress codes. The ultra-conservative regime has finally capitulated and weakened the morality police responsible for enforcing the dress code. Protests in Iran have continued for more than two months since the death in September of a young woman, Mahsa Amini, in police custody. She was arrested for allegedly violating the dress code for women. More than 300 people were killed in police operations as demonstrators burned turbans and chanted anti-government slogans. Since Amini’s death, more and more women have stopped wearing the hijab. The hijab became mandatory four years after the 1979 revolution that toppled the U.S.-backed monarchy and established the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran’s efforts to enforce these rules became more organized in the mid-2000s after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president. The current regime, led by ultra-conservative Ibrahim Raisy, has called for the mobilization of all state institutions to enforce the hijab law. The dress code for women became the ideological pillar of the ruling civil service and was central to its identity. Iran is already a country of extreme social and political constraints. However, it is not the only country employing a morality police.
In Saudi Arabia, the Mutawa used to be particularly harsh on men and women who had sex with the opposite sex. But since 2016, the agency has been largely sidelined as some restrictions for women have been eased. Many Iranian women push boundaries in their daily lives, engaging in subtle acts of resistance. While the protesters have primarily targeted the morality police, their resistance extends far beyond a specific institution. They crave broader reforms to Islamic law. In the past, Iran has also seen large-scale protests in 2017 and 2019, mainly in working-class areas, due to economic difficulties caused by rising unemployment and inflation. Now, for the first time, protests have involved people of all walks of life and all ages, and have spread to dozens of towns and cities. From World Cup soccer players to movie celebrities, high-profile Iranians have spoken out in solidarity with the female protesters. The protests are now about challenging the entire system, as well as extremely sexist laws that mandate the wearing of the hijab and limit women’s rights to marriage, divorce, custody and inheritance. The unrest has become one of the biggest challenges facing Iran’s autocratic clerical system.
