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RFL/RE – In a significant expansion of dress-code enforcement, Tehran has seen the deployment of “hijab enforcers” within the grounds of Tehran University and the streets surrounding Amir Kabir University, as well as key areas in the city.
The move coincides with disciplinary actions against students, notably more than 50 female students at Tehran University who have faced reprimands and suspensions for allegedly failing to adhere to the compulsory head-scarf regulations.
The Student Guild Councils of Iran reported on November 2 that the presence of hijab enforcers had become more pronounced on the campuses of Tehran University. They noted that alongside the patrols, dozens of female students had been summoned to the disciplinary committee in the past week. They face a range of penalties from reprimands to suspensions for hijab-related infractions.
The deployment of the enforcers is seen as a step beyond the usual disciplinary-committee proceedings, with university security said to be actively involved in harassing students under the guise of enforcing dress codes.
The student councils have stressed that the university’s security apparatus is not only deploying enforcers across campuses but also preventing students whose attire does not meet their standards from entering university premises.
The report highlights the increased pressure from university security and hijab enforcers on students as part of a broader effort to enforce the mandatory hijab.
The student councils have described the recent wave of summonses to the disciplinary committees as unprecedented, even surpassing the numbers seen during the height of last year’s protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini. Many students have reportedly received severe penalties, predominantly for hijab violations.
In addition to first-time summonses and forced pledge signings, many students with previously suspended sentences have been informed — without a formal committee meeting — of the immediate enforcement of their penalties.
The newsletter at the Amir Kabir University has detailed “violent encounters” by security patrols and hijab enforcers with female students around the university. In one recent incident, security forces allegedly attacked a female student whose scarf had momentarily slipped, attempting to confiscate her student ID amid a climate of fear and intimidation.
The newsletter also reported that plainclothed hijab enforcers had been stationed around Amir Kabir University since November 1. These forces, which include military personnel and plainclothes agents, have been particularly active along Tehran’s Valiasr Street, aggressively confronting women for not observing the hijab.
The escalation in hijab enforcement comes days after the death of Armita Garavand, a teenage student who died last weekend due to injuries suffered in an alleged confrontation with Tehran’s morality police.SEE ALSO:Defiant Iranians Ignore Warnings, Stage Fresh Protests After Teen Buried
The initial deployment of “hijab enforcers” in subway stations was reported in mid-August amid rising confrontations with women refusing to comply with the mandatory hijab. Tehran’s municipality is said to have hired 400 individuals as “hijab enforcers,” offering a monthly salary of 120 million rials ($230).
Universities have historically been a battleground in the fight for social and political reforms in Iran.
During the Islamic Revolution of 1979, university students played a prominent role, including the occupation of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran. After the clerics came to power, the authorities instigated a mass purge of Iranian universities, firing hundreds of professors and altering curriculums to promote Islamic values.
Since the revolution, university students have voiced their opposition to the clerical establishment, including during a 1999 protest against the closure of a reformist newspaper, resulting in a raid on a dormitory at Tehran University that left one student dead.
The protests against Amini’s death in September 2022 led to renewed pressure against students, specifically female students who failed to comply with the hijab law.
