Considering the fact that the Islamic Republic system is an ideological system, the entry of Tehran municipality under the leadership of Alireza Zakani into the project known as “Noor” to accompany the broad and long arm of the law enforcement forces as the main executive arm of this project seems logical. But is the logic of this matter – of course within the framework of a leader-centered system – synonymous with its correctness?

In such a system where democracy has lost its meaning and its people have been subjected to foreign terms such as force, oppression, and tyranny for the past four decades, the implementation of such a plan is equivalent to declaring war on individual freedom. Let us not forget that these very people have protested against the issue of hijab in various forms in recent years, and the peak of these protests can be clearly seen in the movement of “Women, Life, Freedom”. Therefore, the system, with all its power, even from an institution such as the municipality whose duties are clear in today’s world, takes steps to suppress women who oppose compulsory hijab.

Alireza Zakani, the current mayor of Tehran, in response to reporters in the month of Ordibehesht this year, referred to the entrance of this organization into the “Noor Plan” as two factors: “law” and “religion”. The expression of such statements from the official tribune of a country, even if it contradicts its own policies – which a look at the duties of municipalities in the law book can prove this contradiction – confirms the fact that the Islamic Republic, under the leadership of Ayatollah Khamenei, is more than ever seeking to unify the system.

In the book “1984” by George Orwell, there is a section that discusses the “Ministry of Truth”; a place where they are responsible for altering or erasing all historical records to align with the ruling ideology. One of the famous parts of the book that refers to this topic is related to the character “Winston Smith” who works in the Ministry of Truth and is tasked with editing and revising past documents and news to always be in line with the official party line.

Recent statements by Alireza Zakani about the entry of Tehran Municipality into the issue of hijab, using excuses such as “religion” and “law”, bear little resemblance to the character of Winston Smith in the novel. In one part of the book, Winston says: “Every record, every book, every report, every date, everything that might even create doubt and suspicion about the information it presents must be erased. History is rewritten and altered by the Party, more than individual memory.”

In fact, by recognizing the entry of the municipality into the issue of hijab, the government appears to be natural or as we mentioned at the beginning of the text, “logical”, which after a while becomes a duty for future municipalities and even current municipalities throughout Iran.

The story of the municipality may have started with the employment of groups of supporters of the regime in the form of “Hijab Guardians”, but after the introduction of the Hijab and Chastity Bill and the implementation of the “Noor Plan” following the order of Ali Khamenei, the role of Alireza Zakani becomes more prominent than ever before.

Actions such as city advertising to preserve the hijab, detailed and coarse orders to remove the faces of women from gravestones, and most importantly, the purchase and installation of facial recognition cameras are among the steps that municipalities – especially in the capital of Iran – have taken in order to preserve the main ideology of the system – mandatory hijab.

Amir Hossein Bankipour, representative of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, announced in mid-Ordibehesht month that according to the Hijab and Chastity Bill, it is planned to directly connect the cameras of all government offices, and even private companies and stores, to law enforcement centers with the aim of identifying the identities of women who oppose mandatory hijab.

The secret contract worth more than two billion euros between the Tehran Municipality and one or more Chinese companies, which are active in the field of selling face recognition cameras, vans, and security equipment, can be seen as the municipality’s intention to suppress women who oppose mandatory hijab. Some members of the Tehran City Council have said that the municipality has paid over 400 million euros for the purchase of smart cameras and urban control, and 380 million euros for the purchase of 10,000 vans. This is contrary to the interests of Tehran, according to the Tehran City Council, as they are well aware, as active observers of the municipality’s activities, of the deteriorating and critical situation in the capital of Iran.

What the mayor’s confirmation stamp approves, according to Mehdi Chamran, the head of Tehran City Council and a close associate of Alireza Zakani. He says that the contracts of the Tehran municipality in China are “confidential” and their publication poses a “security” problem, and that “these contracts have been signed under the supervision of experts from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Central Bank.”

Chamran closes the path of criticism to this agreement by using words such as “confidential” and “security” and raises these actions at the macro levels of the system’s goals.

Taking these facts into consideration, it may now be possible to compare present-day Iran with what was depicted in George Orwell’s 1984. The installation of facial recognition cameras in Tehran is like the “Big Brother” eyes in the novel, not only targeting the fight against optional veiling, but also violating people’s privacy. Alireza Zakani and possibly future mayors become tools in an authoritarian and totalitarian society, where the government uses them for extensive surveillance, control, and suppression of the people.

In such a society full of worry and fear, the government knows what you are doing, where you want to go, what clothes you are wearing, what your interests are, what cigarette you smoke, how far your relationships have gone, and essentially they control your thoughts and mind.

Seyed Mehdi Mousavi, poet and lyricist, wrote a song called “Confidential” many years ago, in which he says:

Nakhande in “Asaam Asaas” dar jaayi tabaasheh shodeh.

The book “Asaam Asaas” has been published in place of destruction.

“Nakonande gerye-ye pasheti talafon zabt shavad”

“The cry of autumn will be captured by the camera”

Nakhande shahde da’vamane dar mashinand

The car’s engine stopped working.

People see the light, they see it.