Allow Hijab In Army, Police And Para-Military Forces- MURIC
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is considering interim relief to allow a Muslim female soldier to wear hijab.
The minister of defence is also set to review the policy on dress code in the South African army.
In a related development, a female Muslim police woman of South East origin who was formerly called Patience but who has converted to Islam and now bears Halimah is allegedly facing disciplinary action from her senior colleagues for using hijab with her police uniform somewhere in Ikorodu, Lagos State. A photograph of Halimah in police uniform with her hijab tucked under her police beret went viral two weeks ago.
Sequel to this development, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has appealed to the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Police and all para-military forces in the country to allow their female Muslim staffers to use hijab. This was stated in a press statement signed by its director, Professor Ishaq Akintola, on Tuesday, 23rd July, 2019.
According to the Islamic human rights organization, “Many Muslim women in the armed forces and the police are suffering in silence. Halimah the police woman is not the only one who craves to use hijab. There are many others. They cannot speak out for fear of the kind of disciplinary action being faced by Halimah. But the result is lack of job satisfaction, loss of focus and a desertification of spiritual well-being. They are just being human and every homo sapien is body, soul and spirit.
“This is why we are calling on the police authorities to treat Halimah’s case with understanding. This is not a case of professional misconduct. It is a quest after spiritual sanctification. The police should note Section 38 (i) and (ii) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which guarantees her religious freedom.
“The case of Halimah can be compared to that of Fatima in South Africa and the latter is not being court-martialed. Instead, the South African army is reviewing its dress code as it pertains to Muslims. This is what our army and police should do. We cannot affor to stick dogmatically to an anachronistic system.
“The world is changing fast. Lt. Cdr. Wafa Dabbagh became the first Canadian military officer to wear hijab in 1996 and the Canadian military dress code manual was adjusted to allow it in 2001 (https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43758999). Canada gave her female Muslim police officers the liberty to wear hijab in 2013 (https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/2008754/canadas-mounties-allow-women-officers-wear-hijab)
“Scotland had just six female Muslims out of 17,242 officers in August 2016 when it approved hijab because it was discovered that Muslim women were avoiding police job due to fear of losing their hijab if they joined (https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/scotland-police-muslim-hijab-diversity-tolerance/ and https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-3716642). Ireland joined the European bandwaggon on approval of hijab for police women who are Muslims in April 2019 (https://www.islamicfinder.org/news/ireland-permits-muslim-police-officers-to-wear-hijab/)
“The British police, Ireland, Scotland, US, Canada, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Trinidad and Tobago, New Zealand, Australia, etc have already keyed into the use of hijab by their female Muslim members. In November 2018, a High Court judge in Trinidad ruled that Muslim women police officers are to be allowed to wear their hijabs while on duty. So what is Nigeria waiting for?
