Tehran: An Iranian woman has been sentenced to two years in prison for removing her headscarf publicly in protest against Iran’s compulsory headscarf law, the judiciary said on Wednesday. More than 30 women have been arrested in Iran since December end for removing their veils.
Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, Tehran’s chief prosecutor, without taking the name of woman, said she intended to appeal against the verdict. He said the woman removed her headscarf in Tehran’s Enghelab Street to “encourage corruption through the removal of the hijab in public”, quoted The Guardian.
Women in Iran are not allowed to show their hair in public and are usually sentenced to short terms of two months or less, with a fine of $25, if they break the law. According to Iranian law, since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, all women whether Muslim or non-Muslim, native or foreigners should be fully covered when in public.
The woman is eligible for parole after three months. However, the chief prosecutor criticised that he would push for the full two-year penalty.
The number of women who wear loose veils has been increasing in the large cities including Tehran. Pointing out to this, the prosecutor said some “tolerance” was possible, “but we must act with force against people who deliberately question the rules on the Islamic veil”, the Guardian quoted Mizan Online.