Mehdi Omidvar, the spokesperson for Iran’s Chamber of Guilds, announced that based on the regulatory guidelines for business premises, all business units are now required to install police-approved cameras, which will allow police access to their footage through a designated system.
Omidvar made this announcement in a media interview on Tuesday, October 2, 2024.
He stated that according to police regulations and guidelines for monitoring public places, a system called Saptam has been established for surveillance of public areas, which “oversees the quality of the security systems (cameras) in business units.”
The justification for this system is that in case of an “incident or crime” at business premises or public spaces, the police can review the recorded footage and follow up on the matter.
However, it is unclear from his statements whether the term “crime” refers to theft or includes non-compliance with mandatory hijab laws.
Since the nationwide protests in Iran in 2022, which were sparked by the death of Mahsa (Zhina) Amini while in the custody of the morality police, the Iranian regime has imposed greater control over its citizens.
The regime’s Tahlil Bazar website reported that the police have requested business owners to install cameras with specifications that meet the standards of police-approved laboratories, as the police are unable to track footage from “low-quality, non-guaranteed cameras” in cases such as theft.
According to Omidvar, “This system was created with the help of the private sector, in cooperation with the National Licensing Portal and the Police for Public Places.”
Based on the spokesperson’s statements, 39 professions and around 280 related industries, including jewelers and restaurants, will now be connected to the police surveillance system through the National Licensing Portal, which is the platform for obtaining business licenses.
Iranian regime’s police and judiciary also use citywide cameras to enforce the mandatory hijab laws, even fining vehicles carrying women without hijabs.
Meanwhile, the regime has ignored the demands of grieving families who have asked authorities to use camera footage to identify the attackers responsible for the deaths of protesters during the 2022 demonstrations.
The Iranian regime continues to suppress dissent. During nurses’ protests in August 2024, many protesting nurses were arrested or threatened with job dismissal by security forces.
