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Tehran rejects controversial new hijab law
A draft law that would give greater powers to Iranâs police and volunteer militias to enforce womenâs compulsory wearing of the veil has been ruled unconstitutional, state media reported Saturday
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draft law that would give greater powers to Iran's police and volunteer militias to enforce women's compulsory wearing of the veil has been ruled unconstitutional, state media reported Saturday.
Under Islamic law in force in Iran since the 1979 revolution, women must wear loose clothing, known as hijab, that covers the head and neck and which conceals their hair.
But many now push the boundaries by wearing thin head scarves, tight leggings and fashionable coats rather than a chador, a long and traditional black garment that covers the entire body from head to toe.
The draft law, called the 'Plan on Protection of Promoters of Virtue and Vice' was rejected by the country's influential Guardian Council, a 12-member group that scrutinizes legislation.
The official IRNA news agency, quoting a council spokesman, said the 24-point plan contained 14 flaws and it 'contradicted the constitution and was not approved'. The report did not give specifics.
The council has sent the law back to parliament for amendment, IRNA said.
President Hassan Rouhani, who has been under pressure from hard-line lawmakers to pursue a tougher police stand on the veil, distanced himself from the planned law in a speech on October 25.
'We should not be overly focused on one issue, such as bad hijab, to prevent vice,' he said, alluding to the Islamic duty to promote virtue.
