Women portrayed in cartoons or animated films shown on Iranian TV must wear hijabs. Such a ruling was issued by Iran’s highest religious authority, the great ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“Seeing the hijab in the animation is required due to the consequences of not wearing the hijab,” Khamenei said when asked about the justification for such a regulation.
Some Iranian activists denounced the cleric’s ruling deeming it “toxic.”
“Even female insects like bees are supposed to wear hijabs! Their obsession with women’s hair is toxic. And such people are in power in Iran!’ – wrote on Twitter Iranian journalist and activist Masih Alinejad, who is in exile in the US due to her categorical opposition to wearing the hijab, among other reasons.
Religious leaders are also calling for an end to screenings of foreign movies in Iranian cinemas, which Khamenei himself said may lead to “misleading thoughts and distortions of the facts.” Iran also has strict censorship laws in the domestic film industry.
The wearing of a headscarf and covering the body became compulsory for women in Iran shortly after the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979.
Women who show up in public without their hair covered are the targets of the Iranian police and are subject to verbal and physical attacks from male passers-by.
The photo shows a cartoon poster from Tehran communication workshops promoting polygamous marriages in 2019.
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