Editorial,
CNBC Indonesia November 16, 2024
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Tajikistan, a country with a Muslim majority, prohibits the use of the hijab for women. This is stated in the Law (UU) approved by parliament in the middle of this year.
Previously, Majlisi Namoyandagon or the lower house of Tajikistan’s parliament had approved a draft law (RUU) banning the hijab and idgardak on June 8, 2024.
The law largely targets the hijab and other traditional Islamic clothing, which have been introduced into Tajikistan in recent years from the Middle East, with officials linking them to Islamic extremists.
Lawmakers also approved new amendments to the administrative violations regulation, which includes large fines for violators. The regulation previously did not list wearing a headscarf or other religious clothing as an offense.
Radio Liberty reports that penalties for violators vary, starting at 7,920 somoni or around Rp12 million for individuals and 39,500 somoni or around Rp61 million for legal entities.
Government officials and religious authorities will reportedly face much higher fines of 54,000 somoni or around Rp83 million and 57,600 somoni or around Rp89 million respectively if found guilty.
The Beginning of the Hijab Ban
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In fact, Tajikistan has informally banned the Islamic headscarf for years. The Tajik government’s crackdown on the headscarf began in 2007 when the Education Ministry banned Islamic dress and Western-style miniskirts for students.
The ban was eventually extended to all public institutions, with some organizations requiring staff and visitors to remove their headscarves.
Local authorities have set up special task forces to enforce the unofficial ban, while police have raided markets to detain “violators.” But authorities have dismissed numerous claims from women who say they have been stopped on the street and fined for wearing the hijab.
The government has in recent years run a campaign to promote Tajik national dress. On September 6, 2017, millions of mobile phone users received a text message from the government calling on women to wear Tajik national dress.
The message states that “Wearing national clothes is a must!”, “Respect national clothes”, and “Let’s make it a good tradition to wear national clothes.”
The campaign culminated in 2018 when the government introduced a 376-page document – the Recommended Clothing Guide in Tajikistan – outlining what Tajik women should wear for different occasions.
Tajikistan also has an unofficial ban on full beards. Thousands of men in the past decade have reportedly been stopped by police and had their beards shaved off against their will.
Categories: Eurasia, Hijab, Muslims, Tajikistan