I just wish she would turn to the veil!
Posted on 01/11/2003 4:46:47 PM PST by vannrox
By Heba Kandil
CAIRO (Reuters) - After years of wearing tight trousers and bikinis, partying and drinking alcohol, 29-year-old Maha now wears an Islamic veil and says she has never been happier.
Encouraged by an Islamic revival and a rise in religious programs on Arab satellite channels, Maha and a growing number of young women among Egypt's wealthier classes have augmented their Western wardrobes with variations on the veil, or "hijab," such as colorful headscarves and long flowing shirts.
Conservative robes, scarves and veils have been a part of the culture in Egypt's rural and poorer areas for centuries. But the veil is now on the rise among the country's urban and traditionally more liberal classes, who a few decades ago wore daring mini-skirts and strapless tops.
"Ever since I veiled and learned more about Islam, I've become less angry and have had more patience and inner peace," said Maha, an office administrator who asked that her real name not be used.
Egypt, unlike ultra-conservative Muslim states Saudi Arabia and Iran, does not require women to wear a veil. Those who choose to cover up - - wearing a wide range of styles from elegant scarves to full-length gowns -- live and work side by side with unveiled women and their male colleagues.
Why more and more young women are choosing to wear the veil is the subject of much debate. Some seem to bow to peer pressure in a society where overt signs of modesty are considered a virtue -- even if coupled with heavy make-up and jewelry. Others say they want to avoid harassment.
"For some poor people who live in nasty neighborhoods, the veil protects women because it sends a message that they're conservative and not easy prey," said sociologist Hania Sholkamy.
Others are inspired by a more austere message from conservative Islamic preachers who spread their beliefs via satellite TV.
Analysts say such a message may be finding an increasingly receptive audience since the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States. Many Arab Muslims, angered by the perceived prejudice of the West toward Islam, are spurning Western standards of dress and culture.
"In Islam, there's this direct link between religion and politics," said Hayat Alvi, professor of Middle East politics at the American University in Cairo, adding that the veil could be as much a political as a religious statement.
HEATED DEBATE
The effect of the veil on women's rights is a central issue of debate. Liberals say veiling is a step backwards for women's emancipation in Egypt and dates to a pre-Islamic culture that helps perpetuate male dominance.
Supporters of the veil say such views reflect prejudice against what is a personal religious choice that does not prevent women from playing a full role in society.
Traditionally, Islamic scholars interpret a verse from the Koran telling women to draw veils over their bosoms as an injunction to cover the hair, neck and ears. They also point to a reference in the "hadith," or traditions of the Prophet Mohamed, stating that women should start wearing the veil once they reach puberty.
But many who have decided to wear the veil say it is not always an easy choice, even in predominantly Muslim Egypt.
When Nerin Salem, a former co-pilot at a charter airline, showed up for work wearing a tight headscarf and her flying uniform, she was fired.
"The veil doesn't obstruct me from doing anything. It's not up to anyone to either prevent women from wearing the veil or enforcing that women wear the veil," Salem said.
She is fighting her former employer's decision in court. The company justified its move saying she was not wearing the correct uniform because the veil was not part of the official dress of blue trousers, white shirt and pilot's cap.
On the flipside, unveiled women say they fear they may be stigmatized for not covering their hair, arms and legs if they become a minority as more of their neighbors, friends, and classmates adopt the Islamic cloak.
Heba Ali, a Muslim 28-year-old health consultant who is not veiled, said most women in Egypt's largely traditional society were vulnerable to the sometimes overwhelming pressure to wear the veil.
"I think I have the internal strength to fight what we call the cultural norms and veiling is definitely part of it. But most Egyptian women are susceptible to the pressure of hijab," Ali said.
REINTERPRETING THE HIJAB
A century ago, the Egyptian intellectual Qassim Amin wrote "The Liberation of Women" and called for new interpretations of the Koran. He suggested that the "yashmak," or flimsy face-covering prevalent at the time, was not mandatory.
Today, liberal thinkers are stirring new controversy by calling for "ijtihad," or development in religious thought, on the entire idea of hijab, which many Muslims consider a "fard," or religious obligation, for women who have reached puberty.
"What we need is serious religious ijtihad on hijab to see if what was applicable many years ago is still feasible today. But launching ijtihad on hijab is a taboo," said Hala Mustafa, an analyst at Cairo's al-Ahram Center for Strategic Studies.
Many conservative Muslims scoff at the idea of debate over the veil.
"There is no discussion or contention on hijab. It is a fard," said one preacher at the Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo, one of Islam's oldest institutions. "What do you mean ijtihad on the veil? We would start to see women's bosoms and necks!"
While Egyptian law does not prohibit or enforce the hijab, it has also not veered toward Turkey's secular end of the spectrum, where civil servants are banned from wearing the veil and it is outlawed at schools and at universities. Analysts say the authorities exert subtle pressures to avoid the veil.
For example, Egyptian state universities -- with the exception of religious institutions -- bar women from wearing the "niqab," which covers the whole face or leaves just a narrow slit for the eyes. The authorities cite security reasons.
Women anchors on Egypt's state-run television never wear the veil, and sport a consciously Western look.
POLITICAL ISLAM
Political analysts compare the recent trend toward hijab to a similar wave of veiling in Egypt in the 1970s and '80s, when political Islam was on the rise.
They say Islamic groups are seeking to encourage the hijab as part of efforts to create a more conservative society despite pressure on such groups from the Egyptian government, which is wary of any movement that could breed a political challenge.
Egypt's largest opposition movement is the banned Muslim Brotherhood, the grandfather of political Islam. Analysts say the government is also wary of outgrowths of Islamic extremism following a 1992-1997 insurgency by Muslim militants seeking to overthrow the government. Some 1,200 people died in the revolt.
But a security analyst said the authorities don't view the rise in veiling as a threat today and clamp down only on religious programs and preachers who draw a large following that could pose a political threat.
"It's a balancing act the government is playing. If a lot of women want to wear the veil, it's fine for the government but as long as they are not taught to oppose the regime," Alvi said.
Lamis, a 24-year-old financial executive who took to wearing the veil last summer had a simpler logic about hijab.
"If you question the person who gets veiled then you should also question the person who wears skimpy clothes. In the end the choice is theirs and no one should question anyone's actions as long as they don't hurt you."
For now.
Very interesting and I'm sure were all glad she found religion.
I wonder if she ever thought about wearing a Bomb belt beneath that glamorous wardrobe?
Findng a religion is easy. Findng your sole is much harder. Lets hope she found the later!
Within two years "purity police" will be throwing acid in the faces of uncovered women.
I just wish she would turn to the veil!
I almost lost it, I was going to give the guy a ration but held back, didn't want to embarress his kids or get busted for a hate crime.
I was going to say "you are NOT welcome in this country if your women are in birquas. That offends us just as much as if you were dragging around a black slave by a chain around his neck. Free your woman, or get the hell out of our country!
Islam is not a religion. It is a form of insanity.
That said, I can understand why some young Muslim women are choosing to wear the veil or don a burqa. I work with three Muslim women (one of whom is my supervisor). One of them, a quite beautiful married mother of five, wears a veil with chic modern western clothing that nevertheless reveals very little of her shape. Another, a fiftyish grandmother, wears a usually black veil with a thigh-length tunic and shapeless trousers. The third, a married lady of 35, wears a floor-length black thing with her face exposed. This last lady, I might add, is one of the most charming, loving, and joyful people I've ever met and I'm quite fond of her.
They all say the same thing: if you don't wear sexy, revealing Western clothing, men can't ogle you; they have to like you or dislike you on the basis of personality, not size of hooters or shape of hind end. They find it very freeing.
And I can see their point. I do historic reenacting for a hobby. On those weekends when I'm at an historic event, my clothes cover me pretty thoroughly. With the high neckline, long sleeves, long skirts, boots, and bonnet I wear, there aren't very many square inches of skin exposed; even my blonde hair is covered. Nobody makes crude suggestions to me when I'm dressed this way; I'm treated like the lady I am. No one can grope me when I'm wearing a cage crinoline and no one can tell if I've put on the odd five pounds. People speak to me with courtesy and respect. Again, it's very freeing.
Now, don't get me wrong. I wear a bikini around the pool and I'm in great shape, so I have nothing to be ashamed of. I wear ordinary business attire for work and church. But I can't help noticing that if you look back at the literature and private correspondence of the nineteenth century you'll see that our ancestors seldom made references to breast size, shape of a woman's rump, shape of legs, etc. It was considered a Big Deal if you could see her shoulders when she appeared at a ball. Women were treated with respect, admiration, even adoration. How things have changed in our culture, where we are sometimes considered just meat to screw these days! I can't blame the women of Islam for wanting to avoid being ogled by disgusting Arab men, who are a thousand times worse about this than American men.
Good.
It's probably better that we don't have to see what years of "partying and drinking alcohol" have done to Maha.
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