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Malaysian City Imposes Islamic Dress Code On Women
By
Kazi Mahmood, IOL Southeast Asia Correspondent
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Malaysian women
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KUALA
LUMPUR, January 10 (IslamOnline.net) - The Malaysian city of Kuala
Terengganu, in the northern state of Terengganu where the Islamic
Party of Malaysia (PAS) is in power, has imposed its own dress code
for non-Muslim women working in the private sector, creating havoc in
some quarters of the largely Muslim country.
On
Saturday, January 10, the PAS defended the Terengganu government’s
imposition of a dress code for women workers, saying that provocative
dressing by women has “a very close link” to murders, rapes,
molest and sexual abuses.
PAS
Youth chief Salahuddin Ayub also blamed Jews for pioneering a
“provocative, seductive and branded dressing culture” which
prioritized the ego of the dresser.
In
a statement to the press, received by IOL, Salahuddin said that the
government’s protest over the ruling showed that they were
anti-Islam and that United Malays National Organization (UMNO) was a
proxy of the Jews.
“The
question of violating basic human rights does not arise when enforcing
the compulsory rule of covering the aurat (parts of the body that
should not be exposed according to Islamic belief),” he said.
Salahuddin
added that it was not a matter of rights but of responsibility to
adhere to rules set by Allah.
The
dress code, which bans anything that is considered moderately
revealing clothing to sexy attires in public and private departments,
is said to be unprecedented in Malaysia.
Some
observers say this is a direct imposition of the PAS’s values on the
personal lives of the people in Terengganu, adding that it is a taste
of what is to come if the Islamic party comes to power in Malaysia.
“It
is clear to me that the PAS will not respect non-Muslim rights, if
they take power in this country. People like their freedom to dress up
the way they want and preventing women from wearing a type of attire
will not prevent rape or illicit sex,” said Vicky Ranjit, a
Malaysian of Indian descent who lives in Ampang.
She
also said that it was crucial for the PAS to explain the reasons
behind imposing such rules on women, since in Malaysia non-Muslims and
Muslims alike have been used to their total freedom of choice on
dresses.
Vicky
explained that it was never a problem for Malay women in some states
to wear skirts and not to adorn the scarf. “Why now that is a
problem? I can’t understand that,” she said.
The
rulings are opposed by both government and opposition parties, some of
which openly protested to the PAS, which has remained adamant on the
issue altogether.
"Surely,
the matter involves impinging on the rights of non-Muslim women
guaranteed under the Federal Constitution. It was the State Legal
Advisor who should be consulted," Karpal Singh, an opposition
leader and a die hard anti-Islamic law in Malaysia has said Tuesday,
January 6.
However,
supporters of the PAS say the party is serious on the issue and that
it is good to at least prevent harmful things to happen to women.
“The
government here is serious on Islamic dress code and the conduct of
the people in the society, be they Muslims or non-Muslims, though many
do not approve of such a code,” Sharifah, a government servant
interviewed by IOL Friday said.
The
PAS has been trying to convince the country's non-Muslims that it will
respect their way of life in those areas where it holds power, yet the
dress code ruling and its banishment of entertainment centers and
alcohol sale in some areas have caused fears among some non-Muslims.
From
now on in Kuala Terengganu, non-Muslims will be banned from wearing
short sleeved blouses, tight jeans, skirts with slits, or skirts cut
above the knee.
Muslim
women will have to wear a headscarf drawn tightly about the face,
according to the BBC online news which added that the traditional
loosely draped Malay headscarf will be banned and the rules will apply
to all work places.
PAS
has proposed that Islamic hudud laws (Islamic penal code) be imposed
only on Muslims in states where they are in a large majority whereas
in states where non-Muslims are majority, the hudud will not be
imposed.
The
state government in Terengganu headed by Abdul Hadi Awang, considered
a strong man in the PAS, has decided to close down karaoke lounges and
snooker halls and to bar Muslims from all premises where liquor is
sold.
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