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In a show of solidarity, Iranian women are cutting their hair to protest the death of Mahsa Amini, who died on Friday, September 16. The tragic death of the 22-year-old Kurdish woman has spurred a women's rights movement across Iran. Protesting her death, Iranian women are sharing videos across social media to thwart the hijab and chastity laws in the country.
A video posted on social media shows a woman sitting on top of a box and cutting off her hair, while surrounded by protestors who all clap their hands and chant “Death to the dictator.”
Mahsa Amini died after being detained for allegedly breaking hijab rules
While visiting her family in Tehran, Mahsa Amini was arrested by Iran’s morality police for allegedly breaking the hijab rules. Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, women are expected to wear hijabs in public. On August 15, 2022, President Ebrahim Raisi signed a law that added more restrictions to the archaic rule that stated women posting pictures without a hijab were deemed violators of the law and, consequently, could be punished by having some of their social rights divested for six months to a year.
According to multiple reports, Mahsa Amini, who was apprehended by the moral police, was taken to the detention center, where she reportedly collapsed and was transported to a hospital. She died three days after she went into a coma. Witnesses who saw Amini detained by the police said that they saw authorities beat her with a baton before she was forced into a police van. Iranian officials, however, have refuted the allegations.
The officers claimed that Amini suffered from heart failure. The interior minister backed up the claims and said that Amini suffered from certain physical problems, but her father rebuked their actions and said that Amini did not suffer from any physical ailments.
According to the BBC, Brig-Gen Rahimi, while calling Amini’s death an unfortunate incident, insisted that she didn't suffer any injuries while she was apprehended by the police. In a statement, he said:
"The evidence shows that there was no negligence or inappropriate behaviour on the part of the police."
Her death sparked protests in the capital Tehran and most parts of Iran, where protesters gathered in the streets and women removed their headscarves and set them on fire, the BBC reported.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights condemns Mahsa Amini’s death
On Tuesday, 20 September, Nada Al-Nashif, Acting UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a press release, expressed outrage at the travesty of Iranian officials' investigation into Amini’s death, saying:
“Mahsa Amini’s tragic death and allegations of torture and ill-treatment must be promptly, impartially and effectively investigated by an independent competent authority, that ensures, in particular, that her family has access to justice and truth."
He also added:
“The authorities must stop targeting, harassing, and detaining women who do not abide by the hijab rules.”
At least 31 people have been killed since the protests began in Iran, reports said.
