Since the 1979 revolution, women in Iran have been banned from moving outdoors without the hijab. In recent years, protests against the mandatory hijab have intensified.
It has now, according to BBC Persian, led Iranian President Ebrahim Raisai to describe the resistance as an “organized promotion of moral corruption in Islamic society”. He recently ordered the implementation of a 2004 resolution on chastity and the hijab – and the authorities also named Tuesday, July 12, the “Hijab and Chastity Day”.
In response to the regime’s increasing pressure on women to cover their hair, hashtags such as # No2Hijab and #WalkingUnveiled have been launched on social media. There, women share photos and videos where they take off their veils, in protest of the requirement to wear a veil in public, reports The Independent.
“New female revolution”
Journalist and human rights activist Masih Alinejad has long campaigned against the curfew and is behind several previous veil protests on social media. The fact that the posts behind the hashtags are now shared by well-known activists around the world means that Iranian women have won the battle, she tells SVT.
– All I see now is a first step towards a new female revolution. Their weapon is social media, their weapon is their hashtag. That is why their voices are being heard now, says Masih Alinejad.
Women who take to the streets without wearing the hijab risk being sentenced to prison or fined.
At the same time as the opposition is spreading on social media, large events were held on Tuesday in support of the hijab laws.