Executions aren’t new in Iran, but this time they’re different
CNNFEB 22 2023
Following four months of protests, Iran's judiciary has decreed that women violating the hijab policy be "firmly punished" by police.
Since the September 2022 death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old ethnic Kurd arrested in Tehran for allegedly failing to adhere to hijab laws, protests against the measures have swept the country.
The Iranian prosecutor general's office has issued new guidance asking the police to refrain from arresting women who break the country's dress code but rather impose penalties upon them. Authorities have stated they would use new surveillance technology to enforce the law, and institutions that allow women to enter without wearing hijabs will also face fines.
The demands for fundamental changes to the freedoms of women in Iran despite widespread government repression must be heard. Authorities, both in Iran and around the world, must listen to their cries against discrimination. There is no place for such sexist oppression in the world today.
The current unrest in Iran is the product of perilous plots hatched in the West. Contrary to much Western propaganda, Islam and the Shia sect respect and protect women. The wearing of a hijab should not be disrespected by the West, which attempts to undermine the important position of women in the holy religion and in Iran.