The Iranian regime, which has positioned “hijab” as one of the central aspects of its identity since its inception and imposed significant costs on the people, particularly women, over the years, has now launched a new initiative called the “Hijab Rehabilitation Clinic” with a budget of 2.55 trillion rials (approximately $3.73 million).
The Iranian regime uses the pretext of the hijab to suppress Iranian women, who have consistently been at the forefront of protests against injustice, employing it as a tool to control the shifting dynamics of Iranian society. The regime allocates large budgets for this purpose and utilizes governmental forces and agencies to maintain control.
In 2022, following the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police, widespread protests erupted in Iran, which the regime brutally suppressed. This crackdown resulted in the deaths of at least 750 people and the imprisonment and torture of over 30,000 individuals.
On Saturday, November 16, Iranian newspapers linked the launch of the “Hijab Rehabilitation Clinic” in Tehran to an individual named Mehri Darestani. They reported that this person, who is behind the project, received 1.55 trillion rials (approximately $2.27 million) from the public budget and an additional 1 trillion rials (approximately $1.46 million) in special government funds to establish the clinic.
According to the state-run Etemad newspaper, the creators of this “clinic” claim that it was established with the collaboration of “experts and concerned individuals” at the “Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice Headquarters” and “based on frequent referrals to the headquarters in Tehran Province by families, women, and girls.” Following specialized assessments and expert sessions, they launched the first “specialized counseling and support clinic for returning to hijab” under the name “Hijab Rehabilitation Clinic” in Tehran.
The Jomhouri Eslami newspaper also commented, “The well did not yield water, but for some, it provided endless bread. The Hijab Rehabilitation Clinic generates no visible benefits but imposes significant costs. The simplest and least costly consequence is that it turns the matter into a joke. The second, in a more serious view, is the perception of insult to individuals, which not only fails to bring support but also deeply divides unity.”
According to state media, this center aims to emulate social harm prevention and intervention programs. Reports claim that the clinic will offer “individual counseling, group sessions, and skills workshops on self-awareness and managing social pressures.”
Two days after the announcement of the establishment of the “Hijab Rehabilitation Clinic,” which was claimed to be “voluntary,” an official from the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice Headquarters stated that “badly veiled” women would be referred to these centers by court order.
Mohammad Reza Mirshamsi, the deputy for social affairs of the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice Headquarters, mentioned that the “determination of alternative penalties” for individuals engaging in the “illegal act of unveiling” was one of the reasons for launching these clinics.
He added that judges from the judiciary had “requested that alternative punishments be established for individuals arrested for unveiling.”
