No harsh steps over unIslamic dress- Iran

Tehran, Apr 24: Islamic dress codes should not be imposed by confrontation, Iran's president said today as police said they would be taking a softer approach during a summer campaign against ''social corruption''.

''Islamic hejab is a historical choice of Iranian women and there is no need for forced confrontation to encourage it,'' President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who swept to power last year with the backing of conservatives, was quoted as saying by state TV.

Police said they would crackdown from Saturday on women ignoring the dress code, which requires them to cover their hair and wear long, loose-fitting clothes to cloak their bodies. Offenders can be punished by fines, lashes or imprisonment.

Crackdowns on dress codes are common in the Islamic Republic before the summer when women tend to wear lighter clothes. But Tehran police chief Morteza Talaei said police this year would seek to persuade not confront violators.

''The police 'guidance' patrols are not commissioned for forced confrontation,'' Talaie was quoted as saying by Tosea newspaper.

Some analysts said the softer approach might be because the government did not want to alienate any part of the population when it is under mounting international pressure over its nuclear programme.

''The government should not adopt a tough line on social issues while trying to satisfy its hardline supporters,'' said political analyst Masoud Mirzai. ''The government needs the people's support because of increasing international pressure.'' Western nations have threatened to press for international sanctions on Iran if it does not heed calls to stop uranium enrichment work. The United States has not ruled out military action, but Iran has said it will not halt its nuclear work.

''IMMORAL BEHAVIOUR'' Enforcement of strict moral codes governing women's dress, Western music and mingling of the sexes became more lax after President Mohammad Khatami's election in 1997 on a platform of social and political reform.

But even under Khatami, there were sporadic crackdowns and Islamic volunteers and morals police arrested many young women wearing colourful, tight and revealing coats and scarves.

Since Ahmadinejad won the presidency last year with the backing of conservative clerics and Basij religious militias, hardliners have pressed for tighter controls on ''immoral behaviour''.

Ahmadinejad was elected after promising a return to the values of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's 1979 Islamic revolution.

But some analysts say hardliners may find less need than under Khatami to flex their political muscles in public, such as through heavy-handed crackdowns, now that Ahmadinejad and other conservatives hold Iran's main levers of power.

''In the cultural issues, we should avoid uncalculated confrontations and prevent such confrontations. We should not allow cultural discussions to turn into political debates and war between the groups,'' Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying.

Tehran's streets, particularly in wealthy areas, are full of young women wearing heavy make-up with flimsy headscarves that barely cover their hair. The Islamic dress code is less commonly challenged in poor suburbs and rural regions.

Reuters