Public Morals, Religion, and Human Rights: A Study on the Requirements for Chaste Social Dress in Iranian Society

Ahmadinejad, Maryam

doi:10.30497/flj.2025.248210.2179

Public Morals, Religion, and Human Rights: A Study on the Requirements for Chaste Social Dress in Iranian Society

Articles in Press

Document Type : Scholarly Article

Author

Maryam Ahmadinejad

Assistant Professor, Women Research Center, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran‎.

10.30497/flj.2025.248210.2179

Abstract

Interpreted as a legitimate objective based on the doctrine of the margin of appreciation, public morals possess the legal legitimacy to function as a mechanism dependent on the cultural-historical and belief contexts of a society, thereby influencing the delineation of individual freedoms to create equilibrium between national interests and human rights requirements. Relying on an analytical-descriptive methodology, this study seeks to answer the following question: Does the obligation for women to observe chaste social dress, under the necessity of safeguarding public morals, constitute a valid justification within the human rights framework? The research findings, through distinguishing between secular and religious societies, reveal that in secular legal systems, although religion plays no direct role in the legislative process, certain institutionalized religious values embedded within the cultural fabric are redefined as components of public morals.In contrast to this approach, within legal systems based on religion, religious doctrines directly and fundamentally shape "public morals."Accordingly, the Iranian legislature's action, manifested through the prohibition of "sartorial norm-breaking" in discharging its responsibility to protect public morals, materializes as a legitimate reflection of national sovereignty rights aimed at safeguarding public morals.

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