--- title: Russian Policewomen Banned from Wearing Short Skirts description: Russia’s Military of Internal Affairs is enforcing a crackdown on police uniform irregularities, including short skirts and stilettos canonical: https://time.com/2931357/russia-policewomen-short-skirts/ author: Melissa Hellmann article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-06-27T04:20:14.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T08:39:52.658Z article:section: World og:title: Russian Policewomen Banned from Wearing Short Skirts og:description: Russia’s Military of Internal Affairs is enforcing a crackdown on police uniform irregularities, including short skirts and stilettos og:url: https://time.com/2931357/russia-policewomen-short-skirts/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb9560413a54f49aa/69869994cd6848a1ac0956ea/2927647.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: A Russian policewoman shoots during a "M og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Russian Policewomen Banned from Wearing Short Skirts twitter:description: Russia’s Military of Internal Affairs is enforcing a crackdown on police uniform irregularities, including short skirts and stilettos twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb9560413a54f49aa/69869994cd6848a1ac0956ea/2927647.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Russian Policewomen Told to Dress More Conservatively by [Melissa Hellmann](/author/melissa-hellmann/) ## Melissa Hellmann Jun 27, 2014 4:20 AM CUT  A Russian policewoman shoots during a "Miss Security" contest in Moscow, 2004\. Russian policewomen bared their legs, navels and a bit of cleavage as they competed to become Moscow's first Miss Security. A Russian policewoman shoots during a "Miss Security" contest in Moscow, 2004\. Russian policewomen bared their legs, navels and a bit of cleavage as they competed to become Moscow's first Miss Security.MLADEN ANTONOV—AFP/Getty Images by [Melissa Hellmann](/author/melissa-hellmann/) ## Melissa Hellmann Jun 27, 2014 4:20 AM CUT Russia’s Military of Internal Affairs is [enforcing](http://www.upi.com/Odd%5FNews/2014/06/26/Russian-Interior-Ministry-bans-short-skirts-for-female-police-officers/3661403794507/?spt=sec&or=on "undefined") a crackdown on police attire in response to rapidly rising hemlines on the skirts of Russian policewomen. The ministry found that policewomen were shortening skirts to above their thighs and wearing stilettos. Policemen, meanwhile, were cutting off their shirtsleeves and incorporating items of civilian clothing into their uniforms, [reports](http://izvestia.ru/news/572759 "undefined") Russian daily _Izvestia_. The crackdown aims to [prohibit](http://www.ibtimes.co.in/russia-bans-policewomen-wearing-too-short-skirts-603178 "undefined") all these irregularities. Along with the stricter dress code, new orders also forbid the use of headphones or earphones on duty. Deputy Interior Minister Sergei Gerasimov insisted that unprofessional apparel would undercut the authority of the police force and said that violators of the new code would be punished. “When you meet people, the first thing you see is their clothing, and for a police officer fulfilling his duties, it is crucial to have a tidy and neat appearance,” Gerasimov told _Izvestia_. Mikhail Pashkin, a chairman of the police officers’ union, suggested that policewomen had been flouting regulations because they wanted civilians to find them attractive. “Perhaps the girls want to get married,” Pashkin told _UPI_. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2931357/russia-policewomen-short-skirts/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2931357/russia-policewomen-short-skirts/"},"headline":"Russian Policewomen Told to Dress More Conservatively","datePublished":"2014-06-27T04:20:14.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T08:39:52.658Z","description":"No more short skirts or stilettos on the job","url":"https://time.com/2931357/russia-policewomen-short-skirts/","keywords":["russia","dress code"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb9560413a54f49aa/69869994cd6848a1ac0956ea/2927647.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Hellmann","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-hellmann/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb9560413a54f49aa/69869994cd6848a1ac0956ea/2927647.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"A Russian policewoman shoots during a \"M","caption":"A Russian policewoman shoots during a \"M","creditText":"MLADEN ANTONOV—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/russia/","name":"russia"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2931357/russia-policewomen-short-skirts/","name":"Russian Policewomen Told to Dress More Conservatively"}}]}] ```