Iran group urges headscarf protest

A website is urging Iranian women to doff their headscarves for 5 seconds at 5 p.m. every Thursday, UPI reported referring to Bikya Masr.

The Iran Star collective on its blogging site called the gesture a protest against the repression of women in the country.

"For many years the government dictatorship violated citizenship laws and legal rights and repressed women in our society, therefore we participate in this civil disobedience plan, and sending a clear message to the state," a statement on the Web site said.

The Iranian government requires women to cover their hair when they appear in public.
Violators can be punished with fines and even jail.

The collective accused the government of quashing the hopes of women who participated in the 1979 revolution that ousted the shah.

"This is the same message that was sent on March 8, 1979, where our mothers and sisters protested the same," the statement said.


/Trend/