Iran: New Compulsory Veiling Law Intensifies Oppression of Women and Girls

Iranian authorities have adopted a new draconian law that further erases the human rights of women and girls, imposing the death penalty, flogging, prison terms and other severe penalties to crush ongoing resistance to compulsory veiling, Amnesty International said today. The “Law on Protecting the Family through the Promotion of the Culture of Chastity and Hijab” will come into force on 13 December 2024, according to Iran’s Speaker of Parliament. Update 17 December 2024: On 14 December 2024, state media reported that the promulgation of the law has been temporarily paused.

Legal Background and the "Woman Life Freedom" Uprising

The new law was drafted by the judiciary in May 2023 in response to widespread defiance of compulsory veiling by women and girls in protest at the death in custody of Jina Mahsa Amini, which sparked the “Woman Life Freedom” uprising in September 2022. The Guardian Council approved the bill earlier this year. While the president has yet to ratify the law, the Speaker of Parliament, Mohammad Ghalibaf, announced on 27 November 2024 that the law will take effect on 13 December 2024.

“This shameful law intensifies the persecution of women and girls for daring to stand up for their rights following the ‘Woman Life Freedom’ uprising,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa Regional Office. The authorities are seeking to entrench the already suffocating system of repression against women and girls while making their daily lives even more intolerable.

Definitions of Offenses

The law criminalizes and introduces severe penalties for “nudity, indecency, unveiling and bad dressing (bad poosheshi)”. Specifically, the draft provides the following definitions:

• “Unveiling” is the act of women and girls not covering their heads with a hijab, chador, or headscarf (Article 50).
• “Bad dressing” for women and girls is defined as exposing any body parts below the neck, other than the hands and feet, or wearing clothing that “contributes to or incites the commission of sin by others” (Article 48).

It is important to note that “nudity” and “indecency” are not defined within the law, though they carry heavy penalties.

Penalty Scale and Economic Sanctions

The law, containing 74 articles, imposes flogging, exorbitant fines, harsh prison sentences, travel bans, and restrictions on education and employment. Penalties for defiance of compulsory veiling laws include:

• Bad Dressing (Article 48): Women and girls face fines starting at around US$160 for the first infraction and escalating to US$4,000 for the fourth infraction.
• Subsequent Offences: Risk a fine of around US$8,000, up to five years’ imprisonment, a two-year travel ban, and a two-year ban on using social media platforms (Articles 48 and 38).
• Nudity (Article 49): Nudity by women and girls in public or online leads to immediate detention, prosecution, and up to 10 years in prison or a fine of up to US$12,000. Repeat “offenders” can be imprisoned for up to 15 years or fined around US$22,000.

Escalation to the Death Penalty

In a dangerous escalation, the law permits the imposition of the death penalty for peaceful activism against Iran’s discriminatory compulsory veiling laws. Article 37 of the law provides that “promoting or propagating nudity, indecency, unveiling, or bad dressing” in collaboration with foreign entities, including media and civil society organizations, may be punished by up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to US$12,000.

This article states that if the conduct amounts to “corruption on earth”, it can be punishable by death under Article 286 of the Islamic Penal Code. This legal provision effectively means that women and girls sending videos of themselves unveiled to media outside Iran or otherwise engaging in peaceful activism may be sentenced to death.

Implementation and Impunity

The law also penalizes private entities that fail to enforce compulsory veiling, while providing impunity to officials and vigilantes who violently attack women and girls for defying it. The international community must not stand idly by as Iranian authorities further codify repression and even resort to the death penalty to suppress dissent against compulsory veiling. They must use their leverage to press the Iranian authorities to withdraw this law and abolish compulsory veiling in law and practice while pursuing legal pathways to hold Iranian officials accountable for committing widespread and systematic human rights violations.