Iranian president Hassan Rouhani campaigned for re-election last year on a reform platform, and in the wake of his successful campaign, the police in the Iranian capital of Tehran have notified women that failures to adhere to the country’s brutal religious dress-code will be treated as civil offenses and punished with fines, not jail sentences.
However, hardliners still control the country’s judiciary, so there’s no guarantees — and women outside the capital are still subject to strict punishments.
“Those who do not observe the Islamic dress code will no longer be taken to detention centers, nor will judicial cases be filed against them.” Tehran police chief Gen. Hossein Rahimi was quoted as saying by the reformist daily Sharq.The semi-official Tasnim news agency said violators will instead be made to attend classes given by police. It said repeat offenders could still be subject to legal action, and the dress code remains in place outside the capital.
Tehran police: No more arrests for flouting dress code [Amir Vahdat/AP]
(via Naked Capitalism)
(Image: Khashayar Elyassi, CC-BY)
