That Girl In Swat: Ideological Struggle is the Key, Radical Islamism and Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Radical Islamism and Jihad

That Girl In Swat: Ideological Struggle is the Key

By Ejaz Haider

Dec 26, 2009

Faiza Khan is my metaphor for Swat’s future. And if I am right, turning Swat around post-military operation should not be difficult.

I was standing in the open quad of the Government High School for Girls in Mingora, my crew setting up cameras for the shoot there, and I could see girls peering through the windows of the classrooms all around. Getting there was not easy. I had to earlier meet with the district’s education officer to get his permission. There were two problems: schools have armed police guards throughout the area and, in this particular case, cultural sensitivities were involved.

“You cannot move freely,” the principal told my producer, a young woman who was my only hope to get through the cultural shackles. With the weight of the education officer’s permission behind me and a lot of persuasion, I was told I would get limited access to a group but only after the girls had themselves covered properly. They were told to stay inside the classrooms while we set up the cameras, and yes, to keep their heads down.

Curiosity and their vigour to challenge the principal’s order came to my rescue. I could see them looking out, faces uncovered and exhibiting the artless freedom that comes natural to young women. And then one of the doors opened; I heard giggles; some girls were trying to push another out of the classroom.

http://newageislam.com/that-girl-in-swat--ideological-struggle-is-the-key/radical-islamism-and-jihad/d/2281

India: The veil in the classroom, Islam, Women and Feminism, NewAgeIslam.com

Islam, Women and Feminism

India: The veil in the classroom

By Saurav Basu

September 15, 2009

Unfortunately, the pressure generated by Muslim fundamentalists through ‘secular’ media effectively compelled Katju to publicly backtrack from his progressive position.

Recently, a college in Mangalore directed a Muslim female student not to enter the classroom with a headscarf. The girl insists that she is obliged to wear the scarf in deference to her faith and refused to comply. Previously, she had been debarred from wearing the burqah. She further alleged that the college was acting under pressure from right wing student organizations who threatened to wear “saffron shawls” in protest. Secularists have predictably howled at the growing ‘culture of intolerance’ and conveniently harped on the Hindutva connection while ignoring the threats posed by Islamic separatism. They were in the queer company of the extreme pan Islamic fundamentalist Jamat-e-Islami Hind and the Students Islamic organisation, which threatened Indians that they would ‘seek the support of the Gulf Islamic Community if required,’ (sic) [link] Ultimately, the college withdrew its headscarf ban but remained steadfast on its decision to ban the burqah from their campus.

The debate over religious symbols in secularized classrooms has been hugely problematic for the secular state of India. Authorities have feigned helplessness in their inability to strictly enforce secular ethos in a highly religious society. Such argumentation is actually a smokescreen for hiding the intimidating instincts of Semitic faiths who unlike Hinduism theoretically and otherwise do not differentiate between public and private spaces.

http://newageislam.com/india--the-veil-in-the-classroom/islam,-women-and-feminism/d/1767