Iran International
Amnesty International has condemned Iran's new compulsory veiling law, saying it intensifies the oppression of women and girls while exposing activists opposing the rules to charges carrying the death penalty.
“Iranian authorities have adopted a new draconian law that further erases the human rights of women and girls, imposing the death penalty, flogging, prison terms and other severe penalties to crush ongoing resistance to compulsory veiling,” Amnesty International said in a press release on Tuesday.
The "Law on Protecting the Family through the Promotion of the Culture of Chastity and Hijab," comprising 74 articles, is set to take effect this Friday. It imposes severe penalties on women and girls who defy veiling requirements, including exorbitant fines, prison terms, flogging, and travel bans.
Amnesty highlighted that activism against the hijab law may even be deemed “corruption on earth,” a charge punishable by death under Iran's penal code—a concern recently raised by Iranian women’s rights activists.
“This shameful law intensifies the persecution of women and girls for daring to stand up for their rights following the ‘Woman Life Freedom’ uprising,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Drafted in May 2023, less than a year after the Woman Life Freedom uprising sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini in September 2022, the law was introduced in response to widespread defiance of compulsory veiling by women and girls, Amnesty said.
Amnesty detailed sections of the new law and how it, warning it criminalizes acts such as “nudity, indecency, unveiling and bad dressing.”
Article 50 of the law defines “unveiling” as failing to cover the head with a hijab, chador, or headscarf. “Bad dressing” is defined in Article 48 as exposing body parts below the neck, other than the hands and feet, or wearing clothing deemed to “contribute to or incite sin by others”.
However, the rights group warned terms such as “nudity” and “indecency” remain undefined in the new law, allowing for subjective interpretation and enforcement.
Under Article 48, fines for “bad dressing” begin at $160 for a first offense and rise to $4,000 for a fourth. Further infractions can result in $8,000 fines, up to five years in prison, a two-year travel ban, and a two-year ban on social media use. Article 49 mandates that “nudity” in public or online may lead to up to 10 years in prison or a $12,000 fine, with repeat offenses punishable by 15 years in prison or a $22,000 fine.
Amnesty noted that women unable to pay fines face severe restrictions, including being barred from reclaiming impounded vehicles, renewing driving licenses or passports or leaving the country. Article 56 also allows for asset seizures or imprisonment in such cases.
Article 38 prescribes up to five years in prison, travel bans, and fines for “insulting or ridiculing the hijab” or “promoting nudity, indecency, unveiling, and bad dressing.” Meanwhile, the law also bans the import and sale of clothing, dolls, mannequins, books, paintings, and other items that “promote nudity, indecency, unveiling, and bad dressing.”
“The complex web of fines, prison sentences and other severe punishments going as far as the death penalty demonstrates the state policy to control women and girls through fear and economic hardship. This law has particularly devastating consequences for the most economically disadvantaged in society,” Eltahawy added.
Amnesty warned the law grants sweeping powers to Iran’s intelligence and security forces, including the Revolutionary Guard and Basij militia, to enforce veiling rules.
Eltahawy called on the international community to act urgently, urging governments to use diplomatic and legal avenues to hold Iranian authorities accountable for systematic human rights violations.
