A new draft law that would enshrine harsh punishments for women and girls who fail to wear a hijab in Iran could amount to “gender apartheid,” UN experts said in a statement on Friday.
“The draft law could be described as a form of gender apartheid, as authorities appear to be governing through systemic discrimination with the intention of suppressing women and girls into total submission,” the experts said.
The proposed legislation, which is currently under review by the Iranian parliament, would establish harsh penalties for women who refuse to wear the veil— including long jail sentences.
The 70-article draft law also proposes stiff new penalties for celebrities and businesses who flout the rules and the use of artificial intelligence to identify women in breach of the dress code.
The UN experts argue that both the new law and existing restrictions “are inherently discriminatory and may amount to gender persecution.”
The new bill would reclassify failure to wear the hijab as a more severe offense, punishable by a five-to-10-year prison sentence as well as a higher fine of up to 360 million Iranian rials ($8,508). Previously, those who breached the dress code faced between 10 days to two months in prison, or a fine between 50,000 to 500,000 Iranian rials, what is today between $1.18 to $11.82.
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