The protests in Iran continue. They were sparked by the death of a young woman. She was caught by the vice squad because she is said to have not worn her headscarf properly. ARD journalist Natalie Amiri knows the Iranian moral police from personal experience.
SRF News: Why is it that the case of Mahsa Amini, who died in prison, is triggering such protests in Iran – the strict dress code has been in place for decades?
Natalie Amiri: It only took one more drop to break the camel’s back. Dissatisfaction in Iran is enormous: in the past few months, there have been hundreds of smaller protests for a variety of reasons – water shortages, food price increases, unpaid salaries or corruption.
Because of the accumulation of various factors, there is so much anger on the streets.
All of these people are now taking to the streets because of their anger at the murder of the young woman. In addition, Mahsa Amini was Kurdish and the Kurds generally do not allow themselves to be harassed by the regime. Because of the accumulation of the various factors, there is so much anger in the streets now.
The actual cause of the unrest was the dress code for women in Iran. What exactly do these regulations look like?
A woman must wear an Islamic veil. So she has to wear a coat and a headscarf or a chador. The body must not be shown in its forms – so that the men are not aroused. For this reason, a woman is also not allowed to sing. Meanwhile, many women are shocked and tired. You don’t want to put up with this anymore.
Not a strand of hair is allowed to stick out – otherwise the woman will be dragged into a car and taken to an interrogation station.
In reality, many Iranian women now only wear the headscarf on the street as a fashion accessory. But when the moral police come, the strict law applies: not a strand of hair may stick out, the body must be covered. Otherwise the woman will be arrested, which means she will be dragged into a car and taken to an interrogation station.
Where do these dress codes for women come from?
They come from the Sharia – the laws and norms derived from the Koran and the Sunna. Sharia reigns supreme in the Islamic Republic. Depending on the government, the political atmosphere or the state of society, these rules are relaxed or tightened a little.
How did you experience the dress code in everyday life in Iran when you were still working there?
As a woman, you are constantly asked to put on the headscarf “correctly”. On the other hand, you dive into a parallel world, go to parties where the women wear miniskirts that are shorter than ours. This parallel world split away from the Iranian power elite a long time ago. In the meantime, only the power elite is sticking to the current situation.
What’s next?
The obstruction of the Internet is an immense hurdle. People have difficulties in coordinating demonstrations. But it is important that many people show up at the demonstration sites so that the security forces do not immediately gain the upper hand. Many are now hoping for Elon Musk, who should help make the internet available again. But Musk hasn’t come forward yet.
Raphael Günther conducted the interview.