Iran has taken a significant step up in its efforts to enforce strict headscarf laws, with a particular focus on using technology to monitor women in public. A recent United Nations report revealed that the country is increasingly relying on drones, facial recognition software, and surveillance cameras to keep tabs on who is and isn’t wearing the mandatory hijab.
This heightened surveillance is part of a broader strategy to get the public involved in enforcing these laws, often through what the UN describes as “state-sponsored vigilantism”.
As the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran notes, “The state is increasingly reliant on state-sponsored vigilantism in an apparent effort to enlist businesses and private individuals in hijab compliance, portraying it as a civic responsibility.”
This approach has created a society where ordinary citizens are encouraged to report others for not following the rules, leading to a dangerous environment for women who choose not to wear the hijab.
All of this comes after the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022, which sparked massive protests across Iran against the country’s hijab laws. Despite these protests, the Iranian government has actually intensified its crackdown on non-compliance, especially since introducing the “Noor Plan” in April 2024. This plan has resulted in the arrest of at least 618 women, according to the UN who referenced a local human rights activists.
The UN report highlights that “two and a half years after the protests began in September 2022, women and girls in Iran continue to face systematic discrimination, in law and in practice, that permeates all aspects of their lives, particularly with respect to the enforcement of the mandatory hijab”.
Iranian authorities are using advanced methods to keep an eye on things. Drones are being flown over public areas to monitor compliance, while surveillance cameras on major roads are used to spot women without headscarves. At Tehran’s Amirkabir University, facial recognition software has reportedly been installed at the entrance gate to identify students who aren’t wearing the hijab.
The Iranian police have also developed a mobile app called “Nazer,” which lets the public report instances of non-compliance. Users can provide details like the location, date, time, and vehicle license plate number, which then triggers a warning message to the vehicle owner, threatening to impound the vehicle if ignored.
The report explains how this works: “Users may add the location, date, time and the license plate number of the vehicle in which the alleged mandatory hijab infraction occurred, which then ‘flags’ the vehicle online, alerting the police.”
This system has led to some harmful situations, like in July 2024 when police officers shot and paralysed a woman who had received such a message and was trying to escape a checkpoint near the Caspian Sea.
For women who refuse to wear the hijab, the consequences are severe – arrest, imprisonment, and even physical violence.
As Iran navigates both internal unrest and external economic pressures, the use of technology to enforce hijab laws remains a major point of contention, underscoring the ongoing struggle for women’s rights in the country.
Lead image: AP News
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