School children in a Singapore School

By Kazi Mahmood, IOL Southeast Asia correspondent

KUALA LUMPUR, December 8 (IslamOnline.net) - Defying a nation wide ban on Hijab in schools would mean a potential civil disobedience act with serious educational and social repercussions for the 15 percent of Muslims in the tiny nation state of Singapore, where everything is tightly controlled and Muslims are even told how to live their life, experts told IslamOnline.net Monday, December 8.

“Scarves (Hijab) are seen as religious symbols in Singapore schools and they are also banned in some government departments such as hospitals and clinics forcing Muslim women to throw away their head scarves when they are at work,” Sharifah Alwani, a teacher in a religious school in Geyland, told IslamOnline.net.

On December 1, Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loon made it clear to Muslims in a formal warning before the start of the new school season that Hijab was not part of the school uniforms and effectively banned in institutions of learning.

However, the ruling does not apply to privately owned Madrassahs (Schools) where Muslim girls are seen proudly wearing their head scarves in classes and can even be seen in their Islamic attire on the streets.

In a statement that caused concern among the Muslims in Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, son of the founder of modern Singapore Lee Kuan Yew, said to the Berita Harian Malay newspaper December 1 that the issue of wearing scarf at school was a question of social integration.

He said that allowing Muslims to wear scarf in schools would upset national integration of the Muslims in particular as it would raise questions among other students at school level.

He basically said that the scarf issue could be considered an issue that could bring more division and less interaction among Singaporeans and that allow it to be worn by school children would upset people of other faith.

In the year 2002, several Muslim children decided to follow the instructions of their parents to wear Hijab when they were to be admitted into primary schools.

The children were refused admission on the basis that it was not in keeping with the regulations of primary schools to allow students wearing scarf in classes.

Last year, four 7-year-old girls were suspended from the Singapore school for civil disobedience, some of them are now studying in Johore Bahru, the neighboring Malaysian state.

In a related matter, at least one Muslim activist, Zulfikar Sharif Mohamad was forced to go into exile in Australia after his ‘al-fateha’ Non-governmental organization’s (NGO) offices were raided by police and several charges were to be laid against him by the local police.

Zulfikar, in interviews to IslamOnline.net in 2002, has said that his movement would continue to fight the Singaporean government for its secular views.

He also said it was unfair of the Singaporean authorities to allow Hindus of sikh origin to wear scarves and other headgears in the same public institutions.

Besides Zulfikar’s organization which still maintains its website online at the www.fateha.com, very few Singaporeans were seen protesting the anti-Islam ruling.

“Sikh’s wear the head gears as a sign of religious symbolism and they are allowed to go to primary, secondary schools or even Universities in Singapore with such religious symbols.

“With them, the issue of religious and racial integration does count, it seems. Racial integration takes a bad lining when it comes to Muslims following their Islamic duties by wearing the scarf,” a Singaporean Muslim, Sharifah, told IOL.

She added that Muslims did not protest wildly against such rulings since they too are tightly controlled in this country where one is allowed to practice one’s faith but under tight conditions imposed by the regime in place.

“Especially when it comes to Muslims, there are limitations imposed and there are ‘orders’ given by the Prime Minister or other officials, who may be Malay-Muslim too, to tell Muslims to be on their guard not to be too excited with their race or culture when mixing with others in public places,” she added.

There is even a law and set of by-laws that do not allow Muslims or any one to discuss on the issue of scarves at schools in Singapore.

“The ruling is set to alienate Muslims in this society and it is clear that the authorities do not want Muslims to teach their children the basics of Islam, which is dangerous,” added the executive, who decided not to disclose where she is working.

While in Singapore, rules are rules, some Muslims too are adamant to keep the principles of their Imaan (Faith). When the school dress code was challenged last year, there was no attempt at compromise on both sides.

It was the children that ended up being traumatic and it was a Malaysian Muslim school that salvaged their early years in a primary institution.

Most Muslims in Singapore are ethnic Malays, a minority of about 15 percent in this Chinese-dominated country of four million.

“Singapore is no exception to the Muslims. Non-Muslims are treated well and given all the freedom they need in Malaysia, yet this does not happen to Muslims in Singapore,” said Aini, another Singaporean Muslim education instructor met by IOL in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.

She urged the Singaporean regime to accept the facts and to allow those Muslim children who want to wear the scarf to do so as this would not destroy racial integration in the tiny capitalist country.

However, a Mujahideen element who is also member of the Mujahideen Council of Indonesia, headed by jailed leader Abu Bakar Basyir, said to IOL that Singapore is becoming more anti-Muslim.

“Singapore is now the Israel of the South East Asia and it will not compromise on its rulings, which will be harsh in the future on Muslims, mark my word,” said the Sheikh who lives in Indonesia but frequently travels to Malaysia.