Published 08:13 IST, July 14th 2020
Indonesia's 'Veil Policy' to fight COVID-19 spread draws public ire
An Indonesian politician came under public criticism for mandating all female employees and civil servants to wear niqabs in the office to counter COVID spread.
- World News
- 3 min read
An Indonesian politician reportedly came under intense public criticism for mandating all female employees and civil servants to wear veils (niqab) 'at least once a week', in what she defended as a bid to lower the risk of Coronavirus spread.
Mohammad Suhaili Fadhil Thohir, the head of Central Lombak regency, an island located next to popular tourist destination Bali, spoke to a local news daily in the country and stated that he made the decision after govt employees complained about wearing masks while participating in a routine callisthenics event held outside the office every Friday.
Thohir, however, denied all accusations about his orders being religiously motivated, he defended his position saying the veil, although not worn by most women in Indonesia, it is fairly common in the Gulf nations and that 'it is purely for COVID-19 prevention.'
Indonesia's veil policy
'This is not based on any radical teachings of religious fanaticism,' he said, adding that there were no regulatory sanctions attached for ignoring the rule.
The callisthenics event is a weekly held event which promotes the benefits of exercising regularly. Since the pandemic is in full swing, the local politician argued that as an added safety measure, civil servants were asked to wear veils if they couldn't cover their nose and mouth with masks while working out.
However, some employees believe that there is a more sinister reason for it considering the policy was announced last month and male employees got away with just masks and the rule to regulate women wearing veils in government offices, with particular emphasis on Fridays, was mandated without prior consultation.
Notably, according to news agency AP, around 90% of the 4000-strong working women population in the Central Lombak region are Muslim and many believe this is just the first measure in many to follow and that soon Central Lombok's policy would mandate women wore veils during all work hours.
Veils not effective against COVID
Activists and women's rights groups are visibly on the edge over the policy as they argued that preventive masks need to meet certain medical standards but a veil does not. Further, vying for a policy reversal, groups stated that the rule should be reviewed again as it could not only threaten people's health but also chip away at women's rights and freedom.
It may be interesting to note that although Indonesia is a majority Muslim nation, it has long upheld the reputation for being relatively liberal in the region — this coupled with a series of other recent decisions such as incorporating sharia law in some places in the archipelago has raised several eyebrows of the country's long-standing validity as a liberal democracy. Many are prone to believe that the nation is slowly but surely turning to harbour more hardline Islamic views.
Human Rights Watch researcher Andreas Harsono said the veil order was "obviously an extension" of a mandatory hijab regulation for Muslim girls in almost 300,000 public schools across the sprawling archipelago.
He concluded by saying 'everyone should protect themselves from Coronavirus, but a veil is a not a mask.'
(With agency inputs)
Updated 08:13 IST, July 14th 2020
