By Sarah Hannan
Sri Lankan Muslim generations of the past did a better job at blending in with their environment and neighbourhood.
Elderly women in particular would opt to drape a saree – be it for a special occasion or even if they were just managing their households. The teenage girls would wear a “pavadai thaavani” (half saree), which is a full length skirt, a jacket, and a shawl that is draped to resemble a saree. As of recent, even this has evolved with trendier clothing worn by Muslim women – be it at home or when socialising.
The dressing of hijabs, abayas, and burkas in Sri Lanka had commenced in the mid-90s, with many Sri Lankan Muslim women going to work in Arab and other Emirati countries.
Yet, many would only wear the hijab paired with the abaya or burka only when they step out of their homes. Some would still wear the hijab with their sarees. This was more of a personal choice that the women adopted observing the attires of the Arab world.
With the country’s present situation, the Government has decided to ban full-face covering under emergency regulations. While the regulation itself is only applicable when it comes to the burka and the niqab, a common misunderstanding has placed the hijab under banned clothing for Muslim women.
The regulation denotes the full face including ears to be revealed. Much debate was created after this regulation was gazetted and many women’s rights activists have come forward to question this regulation.
The Sunday Morning spoke to Shifani Reffai to understand the way she, her mother, and grandmother dress, and how it has changed over the years or whether it has changed at all.
“My grandmother wore the saree and my mother did too. But after gaining access to more religious literature, my mother started to wear the abaya paired with the hijab. She mainly wears light colours. With the growing Islamaphobia, it has become way harder for Muslim women to wear these.”
The burka is worn by a minute number of Muslim women in Sri Lanka, Reffai stated. We then questioned as to how the more fashion-forward Muslim women interweave the more religiously accepted ways of dressing.
“If you get on Instagram, you would come across Muslim women’s fashion, and there is an increased interest in tailoring clothing that is modest. Today, for a young Muslim girl, there are more options on how they should attire themselves; they are empowered to express their individual characters through their modest clothing.”
Reffai confirmed that Muslim women who are covered up in public were not always covered up. In the comfort of their homes and when they are with their close family or female friends, they give attention to their clothing and the way they style their hair. She further noted that Muslim women in fact do visit salons, wear makeup, and invest in fashionable attire to keep up with trends.
Oppressing a minority
As of 21 April, many of the Muslim women have been suffering the consequences of the reignited Islamaphobia in the country. While the attacks were carried out by men, one may question why women are becoming the target here.
Several incidents were reported where women were required to remove their hijab prior to entering supermarkets, department stores, and had even been questioned by men on road on why they still cover their heads. This was even before the regulation was to be gazetted.
“I went with my mother-in-law to buy a dress for my daughter’s birthday, just two days after the incident. We were stopped by the security officer who told my mother-in-law to remove the hijab before entering the shop. I was wearing a shawl, he even asked me to take the shawl off. While I agreed to take off my shawl, I sensed that my mother-in-law felt greatly inconvenienced,” informed Rifca Hisham, sharing her experience.
She also noted that while some of them can easily adapt to change and comply with the country’s emergency law, for Muslim women who have been wearing the hijab all their adult life, it comes as a shock and inconvenience to change the way they dress.
Moreover, she had not covered her face, and if the shop had a female security guard for checking, she could have easily gone with her to take off the hijab and comply with the security checks, Hisham explained.
Another incident was reported by a Maldivian family that had walked into a supermarket to purchase some groceries, where the security guards had been quite rude, and had even shouted racial slurs at them.
“We come from a Muslim country and have been visiting Sri Lanka for some time on short holidays. We were alarmed at the way the security guards were casting remarks and barring us from going into the supermarket just because we wore hijabs,” Safira Nazim stated.
With the month of Ramadan nearing and the days of fasting commencing next week, the Muslim families are now restricted from attending Tharweeh prayers (prayer during the night for Ramadan practised by Sunni Muslims), which is ideally done in a group, so as to motivate each other to pray the 11/13 rak’ahs (prescribed movements and words/prayers that are considered as a unit of prayer).
Moreover, it is the women who are now being subjected to make compromises when visiting public places.
All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) Fatwa Division Secretary Ash Sheik M.L.M. Ilyas, commenting on the ban stated: “Prior to the Government decision to ban the face cover under emergency regulations, we requested our Muslim sisters to stop wearing the niqab (face veil). When the country’s national security is at risk, we as Muslims should fully assist our security forces to carry out their duties. By not wearing the niqab, they can easily identify the women.”
Sri Lankan Muslim generations of the past did a better job at blending in with their environment and neighbourhood.
Elderly women in particular would opt to drape a saree – be it for a special occasion or even if they were just managing their households. The teenage girls would wear a “pavadai thaavani” (half saree), which is a full length skirt, a jacket, and a shawl that is draped to resemble a saree. As of recent, even this has evolved with trendier clothing worn by Muslim women – be it at home or when socialising.
The dressing of hijabs, abayas, and burkas in Sri Lanka had commenced in the mid-90s, with many Sri Lankan Muslim women going to work in Arab and other Emirati countries.
Yet, many would only wear the hijab paired with the abaya or burka only when they step out of their homes. Some would still wear the hijab with their sarees. This was more of a personal choice that the women adopted observing the attires of the Arab world.
With the country’s present situation, the Government has decided to ban full-face covering under emergency regulations. While the regulation itself is only applicable when it comes to the burka and the niqab, a common misunderstanding has placed the hijab under banned clothing for Muslim women.
The regulation denotes the full face including ears to be revealed. Much debate was created after this regulation was gazetted and many women’s rights activists have come forward to question this regulation.
The Sunday Morning spoke to Shifani Reffai to understand the way she, her mother, and grandmother dress, and how it has changed over the years or whether it has changed at all.
“My grandmother wore the saree and my mother did too. But after gaining access to more religious literature, my mother started to wear the abaya paired with the hijab. She mainly wears light colours. With the growing Islamaphobia, it has become way harder for Muslim women to wear these.”
The burka is worn by a minute number of Muslim women in Sri Lanka, Reffai stated. We then questioned as to how the more fashion-forward Muslim women interweave the more religiously accepted ways of dressing.
“If you get on Instagram, you would come across Muslim women’s fashion, and there is an increased interest in tailoring clothing that is modest. Today, for a young Muslim girl, there are more options on how they should attire themselves; they are empowered to express their individual characters through their modest clothing.”
Reffai confirmed that Muslim women who are covered up in public were not always covered up. In the comfort of their homes and when they are with their close family or female friends, they give attention to their clothing and the way they style their hair. She further noted that Muslim women in fact do visit salons, wear makeup, and invest in fashionable attire to keep up with trends.
Oppressing a minority
As of 21 April, many of the Muslim women have been suffering the consequences of the reignited Islamaphobia in the country. While the attacks were carried out by men, one may question why women are becoming the target here.
Several incidents were reported where women were required to remove their hijab prior to entering supermarkets, department stores, and had even been questioned by men on road on why they still cover their heads. This was even before the regulation was to be gazetted.
“I went with my mother-in-law to buy a dress for my daughter’s birthday, just two days after the incident. We were stopped by the security officer who told my mother-in-law to remove the hijab before entering the shop. I was wearing a shawl, he even asked me to take the shawl off. While I agreed to take off my shawl, I sensed that my mother-in-law felt greatly inconvenienced,” informed Rifca Hisham, sharing her experience.
She also noted that while some of them can easily adapt to change and comply with the country’s emergency law, for Muslim women who have been wearing the hijab all their adult life, it comes as a shock and inconvenience to change the way they dress.
Moreover, she had not covered her face, and if the shop had a female security guard for checking, she could have easily gone with her to take off the hijab and comply with the security checks, Hisham explained.
Another incident was reported by a Maldivian family that had walked into a supermarket to purchase some groceries, where the security guards had been quite rude, and had even shouted racial slurs at them.
“We come from a Muslim country and have been visiting Sri Lanka for some time on short holidays. We were alarmed at the way the security guards were casting remarks and barring us from going into the supermarket just because we wore hijabs,” Safira Nazim stated.
With the month of Ramadan nearing and the days of fasting commencing next week, the Muslim families are now restricted from attending Tharweeh prayers (prayer during the night for Ramadan practised by Sunni Muslims), which is ideally done in a group, so as to motivate each other to pray the 11/13 rak’ahs (prescribed movements and words/prayers that are considered as a unit of prayer).
Moreover, it is the women who are now being subjected to make compromises when visiting public places.
All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) Fatwa Division Secretary Ash Sheik M.L.M. Ilyas, commenting on the ban stated: “Prior to the Government decision to ban the face cover under emergency regulations, we requested our Muslim sisters to stop wearing the niqab (face veil). When the country’s national security is at risk, we as Muslims should fully assist our security forces to carry out their duties. By not wearing the niqab, they can easily identify the women.”