Hijab Law Violator Sentenced to Unpaid Cleaning Work

A criminal court in Tehran has sentenced a woman to 270 hours of unpaid cleaning work for allegedly violating mandatory hijab rules in public places, the feminist Twitter account Bidarzani reported.

"The accused must work for four hours daily in the building of the Ministry of Interior and its associated departments such as the governor's office" in the capital, it said on June 19.

The sentence, which is final and non-appealable, was issued as an alternative to two months imprisonment.

The report called the alternative sentence "one of the new forms of repression and punishment of women, which will ultimately lead to the exploitation of free labor."

The sentencing comes as the Iranian government has intensified its efforts to enforce the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code for women and girls.

In an act of defiance against the ideology and laws of the Islamic Republic, a growing number of them have appeared in public without head coverings since nationwide protests erupted in September last year.

Some defiant women were arrested, summoned by the authorities and faced legal cases, while hundreds of small businesses and shopping malls were shut down for allegedly failing to enforce hijab rules on their customers. Taxi drivers have been fined for transporting women without headscarves, while police and volunteers have issued warnings in subways, airports and other public places.