Tehran bans dog walking in public spaces by
Martin Morgan
By News
from Elsewhere...
29/01/2019
Tehran Police Chief Hossein Rahimi said
"we have received permission from the Tehran Prosecutor's Office, and will
take measures against people walking dogs in public spaces, such as
parks".
'Fear and anxiety'
He told the Young Journalists Club news agency
that the ban was due to dogs "creating fear and anxiety" among
members of the public.
As if this were not draconian enough,
Brigadier-General Rahimi added that driving with a dog in your car was also
banned.
"It is forbidden to drive dogs around in
cars and, if this is observed, serious police action will be taken against the
car-owners in question," he told the agency, which was set up by Iran's
state broadcaster to train young journalists.
Owning dogs as pets, and walking them in
public, has been contentious ever since the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran,
and owners have sometimes had their dogs confiscated.
Dogs are viewed as "unclean" by
Iran's Islamic authorities, who also regard dog-ownership as a symbol of the
pro-Western policy of the ousted monarchy.
The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance
banned the media from publishing any advertisements for pets or pet-related
products back in 2010, and there was a push in parliament five years ago to
fine and even flog dog-walkers.
The latest anti-dog drive has not created great
waves on social media, although one Twitter user asked whether the people of
Tehran will be forced to ride camels next.
Reporting by Martin Morgan
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