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Puttalam women face discrimination due to Muslim attire

11 Feb 2022

 
  • Cite issues when working and accessing public services whilst donning hijab, abaya
  • Intimidation of Muslim male co-workers prevent them from coming to women’s defence
  By Pamodi Waravita  A number of women from the Puttalam District in the North Western Province have noted difficulties they faced and continue to face when wearing a hijab or abaya to work as public officials and when accessing public services. The hijab is a headscarf that covers the head and neck, but leaves the face uncovered, while the abaya is a loose garment that covers the wearer from the head to the feet, leaving the face uncovered. Therefore, both attire pose no challenge to identification. These sentiments were expressed at a discussion held at the Women’s Education and Research Centre this week, in solidarity with Fathima Famitha Rameez, who, when she attempted to resume her duties as a teacher at the Sri Shanmuga Hindu Ladies College in Trincomalee, on 2 February, was allegedly threatened and assaulted over wearing an abaya to the school.  “I worked in the public service for many years. However, after the Easter Sunday attacks, I noticed a shift in the attitude of my co-workers towards my wearing the abaya. There were initially only three Muslim girls who worked in the office with me, but when four new novices joined – all of whom also wore the said covering – there was suddenly a lot of attention on us. We were constantly demonised by our supervisor. Co-workers who shared the same lunch packet with us in previous years, refused to even sit with us. We were constantly pressurised and yelled at. Protests occurred at our workplace. We were punished even for the smallest mistake. We used to cry at work every day but we could not stop coming to work either as some of us need jobs due to our economic situations,” one participant from the Puttalam District said.  The participant added that although Muslim men were also employed at the same workplace, they were afraid to speak up in their (the females’) defence due to intimidation towards them (the males).  Meanwhile, another participant raised concerns about accessing medical services, as nurses often discriminate against Muslim women who wear the shawl or hijab.  “They even grab the shawl away from our body. This is because they have no understanding of the importance of these pieces of clothing to us,” she claimed.  Yet another participant added that the language barrier between Tamil-speaking Muslim women and hospital staff who only speak Sinhala also aggravates this problem.  Activist Shreen Saroor noted that such acts are concerning as it is important that women from the Muslim community remain free to seek employment and occupy public spaces. “Six Muslim women dropped out from this particular office, following this intimidation. We want to see Muslim women in public spaces. Women being in the government service is important for other women who go to access these services. These are artificially created tensions about our dress code, and therefore, we as women need to start thinking about what we need. Who is determining our dress code and what should we do about it?” questioned Saroor.  Meanwhile, Attorney-at-Law Swasthika Arulingam who is Rameez’s counsel for the writ application filed by the latter at the Court of Appeal in 2021, requesting the court to order the said school to implement the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) recommendation that Rameez and three other teachers (the complainants) be allowed to wear the dress of their choice (abaya) to resume their duties and to continue their work without hindrance or harassment, stressed that the State and the Education Ministry have an obligation to ensure that Rameez’s freedom is protected.  Rameez along with three other teachers had initially filed a complaint with the HRCSL on 21 May 2018, stating that they have been prohibited from wearing the abaya by the school’s management committee headed by the principal. On 2 February 2019, the HRCSL, following an investigation into the complaint, recommended that the complainants be allowed to wear the dress of their choice (abaya) to resume their duties and continue their work without hindrance or harassment.  However, allegations are levelled at the school for not implementing this HRCSL recommendation. Although three of the initial complainants have now accepted transfers elsewhere, Rameez decided to file a writ application at the Court of Appeal in 2021, requesting the school to implement the HRCSL recommendation.  “The case was called up for support in November 2021. The respondents – the Education Ministry, the Trincomalee Zonal Education Director, and the school principal – proposed a settlement and we were in the middle of discussions about the settlement when the latest incident occurred. Rameez was asked to report to duty on 2 February, through a letter sent to her by the Education Ministry, which is when this incident occurred,” Arulingam told The Morning on 3 February. She said this week that the case has been fixed for objections to be called.


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