WUNRN
Apr 30, 2008
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian
police will launch a crackdown next month on small companies which fail to
enforce strict religious dress codes, Mehr News Agency reported on Wednesday.
The move indicates an expansion of a
clampdown on "immoral" conduct launched last year against women
flouting rules to cover their heads and disguise the shape of their bodies in
public, in line with Iran's Islamic system.
"In the
first stage, police will only confront companies ... that are active in small
buildings or complexes," the head of the moral security police, Ahmad
Rouzbehani, was quoted as saying.
Mehr said
the move was "to prevent social damage" and the hijab, or veil,
"should be respected". It said the campaign would start from around
May 4.
Iran's
religious codes require women to cover their hair and wear long, loose clothing
to disguise their bodies in public, including offices where they may work with
male colleagues.
Police
sometimes check offices to ensure the codes are upheld and can shut them down.
Some coffee shops have been closed after police said workers or customers were
not meeting standards.
Restaurants
and other public places often have signs asking customers to respect the
Islamic Republic's dress requirements.
The
enforcement of "hijab" has been a cornerstone of the Islamic system
introduced after the 1979 revolution.
The
crackdown against what clerics see as "corrupt" Western influence
coincides with rising pressure on Iran by the West over its nuclear program.
The United States and its allies say Iran wants to build an atomic bomb, which
Tehran denies.
"Everybody,
both women and men, just as they want financial and physical security, like to
have moral security," Rouzbehani said, adding that police had urged people
"to come forward with their reports".
In the past, crackdowns tended to be launched at the start of
Iran's hot summers and petered out soon after. But last year's extended into
winter and included a drive against tight women's trousers and even men with
spiky "Western" hairstyles.
Those who violate dress codes are usually cautioned on a
first offence, sometimes after a brief visit to a police station. But they can
be held for longer, taken to court and required to have "guidance
classes" after repeat offences.
Dress codes are most often flouted in wealthier, urban areas.
Conservative dress is the norm in poorer, rural areas.
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