Author of the article: Tamta Natchkebia
In the spring of 2018, a young Iranian woman, Mariam Sharif, was attacked on the street of Tehran, the capital of Iran, by an unknown aggressive man who began shouting at her because she was not wearing a hijab.
A hijab is a headscarf worn by women that covers the hair/head and neck, but does not cover the face. Unlike a burqa, it does not cover the face or eyes. In Muslim countries, women also wear a niqab, which is similar to a burqa with one difference: women completely cover their body, head, and face, but not their eyes.
“Obey the rules,” the man shouted.
“It’s none of your business. I don’t like the hijab and I won’t obey it,” the woman replied.
Mariam captured the incident on video and posted it.
After 2 months, she had to leave Iran. Mariam Sharif moved to Georgia.
Vakho Kareli / Aprili Media
She tells us that she had never thought about leaving Tehran before, and therefore had no plans to. However, after leaving the country for a few days with only a backpack, her mother informed her that the police were looking for her and that she should not return home.
“I went everywhere in Iran without a hijab, with a scarf wrapped around my neck. Sometimes people would come up to me and ask me: Where is your hijab? Why isn’t your hijab covering you? Almost every week I was stopped by the ‘morality police’ or other police officers.”
The “Morality Police” is a branch of Iran’s law enforcement system, established in 2005 “to enforce modest dress and chaste behavior.” It serves to subjugate women and restrict their rights. “Morality Police” is an international term; in Iran, it is called the “Guidance Patrol.”
The rules, enforced by the “morality police” who patrol the streets of Iran in vans, are strict:
- It is forbidden to show hair — a hijab or scarf must completely cover it.
- Loose clothing — Women are required to wear clothing that conceals their body shape. They should wear a knee-length coat, jacket, or thin garment with a long dress. Clothing must completely cover a woman’s arms, shoulders, and legs. Only the hands and face may be exposed. Women in Iran are not required to wear the niqab or burqa.
- Wearing bright colors or other clothing that attracts attention is prohibited, including “flashy” jewelry or clothing made of embroidered fabric.
- Only minimal, “modest” makeup is allowed.
Vakho Kareli / Aprili Media
Mariam Sharif says that going around Iran without a hijab is now much more normalized than it was 10 years ago, especially in the capital Tehran. However, the rules remain strict regarding other aspects of dress — you shouldn’t show your body.
“I’ve seen girls taking photos in tops and shorts, showing the victory symbol. However, none of them show their faces,” Mariam tells us, adding that what Ahoo Daryaei did has never been done in Iran before.
Ahoo Daryaei, 30, is an Iranian student who was arrested in Tehran on November 2 for protesting the strict rules of the Iranian regime and its “morality police”.
Before her arrest, university security guards physically assaulted her and tore her clothes off her “for wearing her hijab incorrectly” (she was not covering her hair “properly”) and “for the purpose of enforcing the law.”
Ahoo Daryaei stripped off her torn clothes and stood in a crowded place. Videos showing Ahoo walking around in a crowded place in her underwear were filmed from university windows.
A few minutes later, the woman was violently arrested.
On November 19, an Iranian court said that Ahoo Daryaei was “sick” and was therefore returned to her family. No charges were filed against her.
However, no one has seen Ahoo Daryaei since her release. Her family has not commented, and the Iranian authorities have not specified what was meant by her “being sick.”
Prior to this statement, the Iranian embassy in France said that Ahoo Daryaei was being held in a “specialized care center.” This could be a psychiatric facility, which raised concerns about the woman’s treatment. She was at risk of being beaten and tortured.
On November 14, the head of the Family and Women’s Department of the Tehran Virtue Promotion and Deterrence Headquarters announced plans to open a “hijab treatment clinic” where women would be given “scientific and psychological treatment against wearing the hijab.” Iranian women say it would be like prison.
Locking up women who protest against the regime in psychiatric institutions is a common practice for the Iranian authorities. They label protesters as “mentally unstable” and “forcibly treat” them in order to undermine the credibility of their actions and their words.
Human rights organizations emphasize that this practice, among other things, includes kidnapping and violates fundamental rights in many ways.
Iranian journalists say that amid military tensions between Iran and the US-Israeli conflict, the Islamic Republic continues to oppress women and that it is now waging two wars simultaneously: against Israel abroad and against women at home.
“Ahoo’s friends told reporters that she was a girl who always fought for her rights. Eventually, she got tired of being harassed by university staff or the ‘morality police,’” says Mariam Sharif, sharing the spirit that the sacrifices made by Iranian women are aimed at gaining freedom.
This is not just about the hijab. We are fighting for human rights and freedom in Iran, and the hijab is an important part of that fight, because the hijab has always been a tool of control and oppression in the hands of our government, to make women who they want to be.
Other Iranian women have also stated that the protest against wearing the hijab by Iranian women is much more than a fight against dress codes – it is a fight for freedom.
For example, Afsun Najafi, Hadis Najafi’s sister, said: “On September 21, 2022, at the age of 22, Hadis Najafi was shot dead by Iranian security forces during a demonstration where women were protesting the killing of Mahsa Amin by Iranian police. Hadis Najafi was not an activist, but she shared her life on TikTok and Instagram and dressed as she pleased. She was shot about 20 times, including in the face.
Mahsa Amin, whose murder Hadis Najafi protested, was arrested and beaten by the “morality police” for violating the rules of wearing the hijab. On September 16, 2022, 22-year-old Mahsa died in hospital.
The “morality police” claimed that Mahsa Amin’s death was caused by a heart attack. However, according to the family, the woman had no underlying health problems.
Eyewitness accounts differed from the official version — they said that Mahsa was beaten by the police in a van after being arrested.
It was the murder of Mahsa Amin that led to thousands of women taking to the streets — demonstrators burning hijabs. Vans disappeared from the streets of cities. The main slogan of the demonstrators became “Women, Life, Freedom.” At that time, men also fought side by side with women.
Women sang and danced in the streets and on public transportation — even something that is forbidden in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
They also expelled pro-regime teachers and lecturers from school and university auditoriums and opposed clergy.
Despite the protests of hundreds of thousands of people, life for women in Iran has not become easier. On the contrary, the Islamic Republic of Iran has intensified repression:
The government is now using the death penalty more often against women and their male supporters — according to Amnesty International , in 2023, the highest number of people were sentenced to death in the last 8 years, and the trials in which these sentences were handed down were sham trials.
Amnesty International also stated that during the protests, the Iranian authorities used rape, including gang rape, and other forms of sexual violence as a tool of repression, oppression, and punishment. Children were among the victims of the Iranian regime.
Along with women, the Iranian regime punishes anyone it can reach: for example, men who express solidarity with Iranian women; or journalists who report on the government’s violence against women.
Iranians living in Georgia also protested the murder of Mahsa Amin and the actions of the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The demonstrations were led by Mariam Sharif.
Mariam began holding small rallies for Iranian women’s rights in Freedom Square or near the parliament a few weeks before Mahsa Amin’s assassination.
She says that even after arriving in Georgia, she wanted to be active and show both Georgian citizens and tourists what was happening in Iran.
“When I talked to them, I saw that people don’t have enough information about Iran. It hurts when they ask you why you’re not doing anything. They think that we Iranians are not doing anything. I tried to show that my people are fighting, they are not passive. We are not sitting idly by.
Two or three weeks after we first held such a gathering, Mahsa Amin was killed. The gatherings became more and more crowded. Before that, we would gather with about 10 people,” says Mariam.
Mariam Sharif has refugee status in Georgia. She says that after arriving here, she felt safe for many years, but after the murder of Mahsa Amin, this changed – for her, as a citizen of Iran, it is difficult to fight the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran from Georgia. After the protests in Tbilisi, Mariam received threatening letters, which, as she tells us, forced her to change her place of residence. She also lost several jobs.
Vakho Kareli / Aprili Media
“They spread rumors about me in the Iranian community. They also filed a complaint with the police three times. Imagine — Iranian embassy employees and diplomats go to the Georgian police and file a complaint. I lost my job three times because of this,” says Mariam Sharif.
Finally, Mariam was fired from her job, from one of the international companies, in April 2024 — they told her that she was a threat to them. After that, she tried to freelance — she is a photographer and camerawoman. But finding clients is difficult — as an Iranian citizen, she does not have access to many financial services due to Western sanctions. She says that all this has affected her activism.
“When you have a lot of problems, especially economic ones, you automatically become less active and have to solve your own problems first.”
For Mariam Sharif, being away from her homeland is difficult due to other factors.
“Especially after the assassination of Mahsa Amin, I long to be in my own country and do things within my own country.”
Sometimes people in Iran tell me, “Look, you’ve left the country and what you’re doing outside of Iran doesn’t work.” I sometimes think, maybe they’re right? Maybe my activism from Georgia isn’t enough? I try to do everything I can here, but maybe I could be more useful in Iran.
My life is so difficult now. But when I see my people in Iran, I say, “Okay, Mariam. They are paying with their lives for freedom. It’s your duty to be here and be the voice of the Iranian people.”