Iran sends women defying hijab rule for psychiatric help
Iranian women
Iran's government is forcing women to seek psychiatric help as part of their efforts to enforce laws that mandate covering their heads, often with hijab.
Healthcare organisations have cautioned that the country's judiciary is misusing psychological treatments, while others view this action as a sign of the government's struggle to maintain hijab rules, France24 reported.
In a defiant gesture, Iranian actress Afsaneh Bayeganposted photos of her hair without a hijab on Instagram and recently appeared at a public event in a similar manner. In response, Bayegan, aged 61, received a two-year suspended prison sentence and was instructed to attend a "psychological centre" weekly for the treatment of her supposed "anti-family personality disorder".
In another incident, a woman in Tehran was reportedly sentenced to a month of cleaning corpses in a morgue after being caught driving without a hijab.
Following the death of Mahsa Al Amini in September 2022, who was detained by Iran's morality police for her "improper" headscarf, many Iranian women have opted to show their hair in public as a mark of defiance.
The movement has garnered support from Iranian celebrities, athletes, and actresses.
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Early on in July, a Tehran court handed down a sentence of two months in prison and six months of psychological treatment to a woman, citing a "contagious psychological disorder leading to sexual promiscuity" due to her failure to wear a hijab.
The increasing trend of sentences requiring women to undergo psychological treatment has raised concerns within the Iranian psychiatric community.
In an open letter to Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Ejei, the head of the country's judiciary, the presidents of four mental health organisations accused the authorities of exploiting psychiatry for ulterior motives.
"Diagnosing mental health disorders is the responsibility of psychiatrists, not judges," they decried, according to France24.
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