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| Sevil Suleymani |
In recent months, the Islamic Republic has started implementing new initiatives to strengthen the application of Sharia laws and increase control over women’s clothing.
Sociologist Sevil Suleymani, in an interview with Voice of America, emphasizes that the Islamic Republic will never give up on enforcing the compulsory hijab, as doing so would mean abandoning its identity and existence.
According to her, after the widespread protests that erupted last September, it was expected that the Iranian authorities, who consider the compulsory hijab as the foundation of their existence, would act even more aggressively on the issue of hijab.
“In those protests, the existence of the Islamic Republic was questioned through the hijab issue, and it was expected that after the protests slowed down, the authorities would take some kind of revenge. They would try to intimidate the protesters and prevent future similar protests. Therefore, it was expected that the Islamic Republic would become more aggressive because those protests frightened the government, making it feel that its identity and existence were under attack,” Suleymani explains.
Suleymani states that the compulsory hijab issue, which is fundamental to the existence of the Iranian regime, has also become a symbol of resistance against the regime. The sociologist comments on the consequences of the hijab issue turning into a symbol of struggle.
“The hijab has been chosen as a symbol in the issue of women and in the struggle with the Islamic Republic. The good thing about this is that when it becomes a symbol, it reaches many people. A lot of people see it, understand it, and start to connect with it. But the problem with this is that because it has become so popular, the issue starts to become superficial, losing its depth. The hijab becoming a symbol has caused the issue of women to be simplified. It’s as if Iran’s problem with women is just the veil and hijab,” Sevil Suleymani remarks.
She adds, “The problem with the hijab becoming a symbol is that it overshadows all other issues. No one talks about whether a child will reach the mother or the father. The issue of having a guardian or protector for women is no longer considered a problem. Issues like the marriage contract, the division of property, and even the fact that women are considered half-human in the judicial system are no longer seen as problems. These are problems, but we don’t see them being discussed or written about. Everyone just talks about the hijab issue. Another problem is that because of its popularity and its transformation into a political act, even those who used to ridicule feminism and the women’s issue are now using it to create political rhetoric.”
Link to the original interview in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
Sevil Süleymani: Etirazlardan sonra İranın hicab mövzusunda daha da aqressiv davranacağı gözlənilən idi