More revealing garb may also expose Iranian pragmatism

TEHRAN, Iran -- The 15-year-old girl trying out her new in-line skates in central Tehran also was making a bold fashion statement -- jeans, a bulky sweater rolled up to her elbows and a bright orange head scarf barely hanging on to her hair.

Yet her outfit drew no special attention -- part of a quiet, but potentially momentous, test under way in Iran.

Almost daily, new boundaries are being defined for the "hijab," the Muslim dress code for women enforced since the Islamic revolution 23 years ago.

Hair now cascades from beneath loose scarves. The once-mandatory coverings of billowing black chadors or shapeless coats have been cast aside by some young women for elegant knee-length smocks or even tight business-style jackets. Some just toss on a baggy sweater.

Such fashion liberties would have risked arrest or a beating by morality enforcers only a few years ago.

Now, though, Iran's ruling clerics are tolerating the expanding fashion frontiers in some areas. Their restraint is interpreted widely as being part of a new pragmatism: a willingness to permit more social freedoms in hopes of dampening challenges to the theocracy's powers and avoiding another wave of pro-reform rallies.

For example, Iran recently released many imprisoned reformists and leaders seem willing to ignore -- for the time being -- some rule bending, such as using satellite television dishes, which are illegal but widespread.

"They are learning that you can't keep expression bottled up. If you do, it could erupt," said Elahah Koolaee, a parliament member criticized by conservatives two years ago for refusing to wear a chador to the chamber. She attends in a head scarf and "manteau" -- the long coats still worn by many Iranian women.

An uncommon sight

A lot depends on how far and fast the hijab shrinks.

A crackdown can be ordered at a moment's notice by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who once described liberal Islamic dress for women as a "threat to the nation."

The newer, eyebrow-raising hijab styles currently are favored only by a relatively small group. Black chadors, revealing only a woman's face, still are a common sight.

But the heartland of the so-called "bad hijab" -- affluent areas of Tehran -- has been the vanguard for other national trends, such as Internet cafes and the fusion of Western and traditional music. A noticeable loosening of hijab styles in more conservative areas could force the clerics to respond.

Some rules still are too sensitive to challenge, such as showing uncovered legs in public. Women opting for shorter tops wear jeans or slacks.