Iran: Sepideh Rashno, activist against forced veiling, must serve 4 years in prison

Iranian justice has summoned an activist against forced Muslim burqa to serve a sentence of nearly four years in prison before suspending the sentence until March 10, local media reported Saturday. Sepideh Rashno, 29, was detained for more than a month in July 2022 after an argument with another woman who accused her of taking off her burqa on a bus.

Judicial authorities have told Sepida Rashno that she will have to report to prison in the coming days to serve a sentence of three years and eleven months in prison, reformist daily Sazandegui reported. On Saturday afternoon, the Ham Mihan newspaper reported on its website that execution of the activist’s sentence had been suspended until March 10, without providing further details.

After the Islamic Revolution of 1979, the veil became mandatory in Iran for all women who have to cover their hair in public.

Images without a veil on Instagram

In December, the activist’s lawyer said an appeal court had upheld his client’s prison sentence “for an incident on a bus” and for “publishing indecent images” online. Following the incident, Sepideh Rashno posted photos of herself without the veil on Instagram, as well as texts against the strict dress code imposed on women.

In recent months, more women have been appearing without the veil in public, especially following the protest movement sparked by the death in custody in September 2022 of Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for violating a strict dress code. Her death led to protests against Iranian political and religious leaders, and the young woman became a symbol of the fight against the obligation to wear the veil.

Several hundred people, including police officers, were killed and thousands arrested during demonstrations that took place in October and November before they subsided. Nine people were executed for their participation in the movement, which authorities described as “riots” instigated by Western countries.