“There is nothing to suggest” that the situation of women in Iran will improve after the unexpected announcement of the abolition of the vice squad, a US State Department spokesman said on Monday.
• Also read: Iran: Vice police disbanded, gesture to protesters
• Also read: In Iran, activists question the abolition of the vice squad
“Unfortunately, there is no evidence that Iranian leaders are improving the way they treat women and girls or stopping the violence they inflict on peaceful protesters,” the spokesman said, declining to make “ambiguous claims or waves.” commenting on Iranian power.
The announcement, made by Iran’s attorney general over the weekend, was seen as a gesture towards protesters, but some Iranian human rights activists question its reality.
They also believe that the abolition of the vice squad would not change the requirement to wear the veil, imposed by a 1983 law.
Iran is being rocked by a protest movement unprecedented since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, sparked by the September 16 death of a young Iranian Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, after her arrest by vice police.
In early November, US Vice President Kamala Harris launched an initiative to remove Iran from the UN Women’s Commission.
A call renewed on Sunday by United States Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
The Iranian government “should not” sit on this body “responsible for promoting gender equality and women’s emancipation,” she tweeted, calling for it “removed.”
A corresponding public petition had received more than 165,000 signatures on Monday.
Iran’s withdrawal from this commission is to be voted on next week in the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
On Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani accused Washington of ousting Iran “with the help of some European countries,” an “illegal” and “politically motivated” move.