KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — A billboard in Kelantan shows a Muslim woman in a tudung and baju kurung with the words: “Menjaga aurat adalah perintah Allah SWT” [Covering your ‘aurat’ is God’s commandment].
The image of the signboard, which was shared by the Ipoh branch of Islamist group Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) on its Facebook page, illustrates how women’s bodies in Malaysia have become a battleground between the conservatives and the liberals, just like the opposing campaigns in the Arab world on the headscarf and the miniskirt.
UK news site BBC News reported recently that a campaign in Algeria has men determining what their female family members wear and arguing that the tudung, or the hijab as it’s called in Arab, protects women from unwanted attention.
The “Be a man” Facebook campaign, however, reportedly sparked a reaction from secular activists in neighbouring Tunisia, as they started an “international day of the miniskirt” campaign on the social networking site saying: “We must fight the pro-Islamists taking over”.
Although none here have embarked on such campaigns, the topic of how Muslim women dress themselves in Malaysia is a subject of much debate.
The latest controversy was sparked by social media criticism over the gymnastic leotard of SEA Games gold medallist Farah Ann Abdul Hadi, which allegedly showed off the 21-year-old Muslim athlete’s “aurat” and the “shape of her vagina”.
Conservative Muslim figures say women should cover themselves from head to toe, while liberal Muslims say hemlines don’t determine piety.
According to the beliefs of local politician Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud, a Malay leader in secular party DAP, Muslim women should be allowed to wear whatever they want, from knee-length skirts to even miniskirts.
“Letting men decide what women should wear is highly degrading. Women can decide for themselves what is good and what is bad,” said the young Dyana Sofya, who does not wear the headscarf.
Abdul Hakim Othman, spokesman of ultra-conservative Islamist group Hizbut Tahrir Malaysia (HTM) disagreed with the view, however, and said it is “haram” (forbidden) for Muslim women to wear miniskirts or anything similar in public.
“Muslim women must wear ‘khimar’ (cover from head to chest) and ‘jilbab’ (cover from neck to foot as one dress).
“This is the ‘hukum’ (divine rule) as stated in al-Quran,” Abdul Hakim told Malay Mail Online, citing Surah Al-Ahzab verse 59 and Surah An-Nur verse 31.
Like Abdul Hakim, Perak Mufti Tan Sri Harussani Zakaria similarly said Muslim women must cover their entire bodies except for their face and hands.
“If she wears a tudung, people will respect her. It means she’s religious,” the Muslim cleric told Malay Mail Online.
“Miniskirts are not allowed [in Islam]; women can wear trousers, but they can’t be too tight,” he added.
Malay Mail Online reported last month that tudung brands are flourishing in Malaysia on the back of an increasingly conservative brand of Islam practised in the country.
Hijabsters, or hipsters who don the hijab, however have turned the headscarf into a fashion item.
Housewife Siti Noraini Mohd Kamarulzaman, who buys four to five headscarves every week, said it is compulsory in Islam to cover her “aurat” from head to toe, but noted that the hijab can be fashionable too.
“Fashion is very important to me. To me, wearing the hijab can also prevent rape and the like because it can prevent male desire from the ends of my hair to the soles of my feet,” the 24-year-old woman told Malay Mail Online.
Islamic Renaissance Front chairman Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa, however, said women’s dressing should not be blamed for sexual assault.
“I believe a woman has the right to choice of clothing, but this choice will have to be tempered with prevailing religious sensitivities because that’s where you live,” Ahmad Farouk told Malay Mail Online.
“I don’t think clothing reflects a person’s religious character,” he added.
Sisters in Islam communications officer Aliah Ali said women’s right to decide what to wear should be respected.
“Surah al-Baqarah (2:256) states that there shall be no compulsion in religion and this even applies to coercing, either both covering or removing covering,” Aliah told Malay Mail Online.
“The Quran, in Surah Al-A’raf (7:26) which reads, ‘We have revealed unto you raiment to conceal your shame, and splendid vesture, but the raiment of righteousness, that is the best’, shows to us that the best garment is one of righteousness.
A piece of clothing is not the ultimate reflection of piety,” the Muslim women’s rights activist added.
In Malaysia, however, what Muslim women wear has come to symbolise their religiosity – or the lack of it – according to conservatives who seek to impose their beliefs and dictate other people’s appearances.
