“Fashionable” chadors to encourage women to conform to Islamic dress code

On July 28, 2008 · In Iran, Islam, Shariah Law, Women's Rights Under Shariah Law

Iranian authorities launch new clothing lines to get women to cover their heads, but ‘immoral’ dresses are still traded in underground sales.

Tehran (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Summer time rimes with repression time for Iranian women as the authorities take care of women with inappropriate Islamic covering. Since the introduction of the plan to increase public morality, police officers across the country have issued warnings to tens of thousands of women for their failure to wear appropriate Islamic covering in public, or even their own vehicles, and conform to the Islamic regime’s interpretation of Islam’s precepts.

Now the government has come up with a new strategy with incentives for women to cover up their heads. A Tehran political leader is in fact promoting fashionable head covering. A fashion show titled ‘My Land’s Women’ will exhibit 200 new chadors, 50 new high-quality hejabs and 60 new dresses approved by regime-sanctioned stylists.

Commander Ahmadi of the Tehran police force insists that the government intends to tighten up its enforcement of appropriate Islamic covering. Greater repressive measures are in his opinion necessary to keep the capital safe from inappropriately-covered women, drug abusers and thugs.

For this reason any inappropriately dressed woman can expect a warning, an arrest or legal charges.

Store owners who carry clothing that does not conform to Islamic standards are in danger of having their businesses shut down.

However, in the past few months, some “immoral” clothing items taken off store shelves have appeared at underground shows.

In the past few months, new guidelines titled “Hejab and Decency” have been distributed in schools as part of a plan to promote a hejab culture among the youth.

http://www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=9836