Confusion over the status of Iran’s religious police “morality police” grew as Iranian-state media casted doubt on reports that the force had been scrapped.
On Saturday Iran’s Prosecutor General Mohammad Jafar Montazeri said that morality police had been scrapped after nearly three months of anti-government protests. But he took his comments on Monday, and said it’s not the duty of the judiciary to disband the police unit. Montazeri further went on saying that no official authority in Iran has so far confirmed the scrapping of the morality police. For many Iranian people, Montazeri’s statement met with skepticism at first place, where many had doubted the decision that indeed will mark a tangible policy change if it was true.
Before Montazeri took his words back, Iranian people said this is not nearly enough and they want more freedom for women, and asked for the demolition of compulsory hijab law. They also viewed this as a trick and empty statement particularly when the candidates are giving during campaigns to temporarily satisfy people’s grievances and buy their participation or even silence their protesting demands.
Indeed, the timing of the message of disbanding police morality came in a sensitive instant. Many say Iranian government spared the false news in an attempt to defuse widespread anti-government protests across the country. Demonstrations sparked following the death of young woman Mahsa Amini after she was detained by the morality police for allegedly improperly wearing her headscarf (hijab). Amini, 22, was died in September 16 of torture in custody.
Hell-bent on disbanding morality police
Iran’s former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad established the morality police in 2005 and was tasked with enforcing Iran’s restrictions on public behavior and strict dress codes, particularly on women. The police have full authority to arrest anyone violating the law, especially those women and young girls that are not wearing hijab or putting loose-fitting clothes. The unit has been given free hand to roam across the cities and spread the culture of modesty and hijab.
The ground reality is that the morality police have been inactive since protests started, but at the same time it is not a simple issue for Iran to give up on the unit. Though there is no substantive news on their future, but Tehran will think twice before disbanding it.
It is also a fact that laws concerning women will not change by scrapping morality police and even if it was demolished it will be meaningless.
This is only reform in the police sector that the Iranian people want, and a little freedom for themselves.
The strikes are significant for the protesters because any idea of real concessions from the government is likely a pipe dream, meanwhile there have been no signs that Iranian authorities are giving any concession. This is very suppressing for many as the Iranian government is going to fail to make any consensus with its own people. Iran has been accusing foreigners for what they called “riots in Iran” but it’s easy to resolve the problem by just opening the door of dialogue. Time has ripped to show and adopt a more conciliatory tone, and express a desire to engage with the problems of the Iranian people.
