Hijab Ban Order Led To 17,000 Girls Skipping Exams in Karnataka, Advocate Tells SC
New
Age Islam News Bureau
16
September 2022
• ‘Hijab
Ban Order Weaponised Against Muslim Women’: PUCL Study
• Fatima
Karim, Moroccan Blogger Sentenced For "Electronically Attacking
Religion"
• I
Only Wanted To Encourage Women, Not Belittle Them, Says Actor and Entrepreneur
Rosyam Nor
• Saudi
FA launches Women’s Premier League, Division One
• SDAIA,
Google Cloud to Launch Training Program To Empower Women In AI Sector
• Iranian
woman declared brain dead after her arrest by morality police in Tehran
Compiled
by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/hijab-ban-karnataka-sc-skipping-exams/d/127962
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Hijab
Ban Order Led To 17,000 Girls Skipping Exams in Karnataka, Advocate Tells SC
Photo:
Hindustan Times
-----
Sep
15, 2022
Senior
advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, who appeared in the Supreme Court on behalf of Muslim
girls challenging the Karnataka high court's verdict on the ban on hijab (a
headgear worn by some women from the faith), told the Supreme Court that the
ruling resulted in thousands skipping the examinations.
Ahmad
was responding to the Supreme Court's inquiry on whether there is an accurate
statistic of students dropping out of Karnataka educational institutions due to
the Hijab ban.
"Do
you have those authentic figures that because of this Hijab ban and the
subsequent judgement of the high court, 20, 30, 40 or 50 students have dropped
out?," a bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia asked.
“My
friend (one of the lawyers) informed me that 17,000 students had really
abstained from the exams after this particular judgement," Ahmadi told the
bench that is hearing arguments on a batch of pleas challenging the Karnataka
high court verdict that refused to lift the ban on hijab in educational
institutions of the southern state.
Questioning
the credibility of the report, the bench said, "We don’t want to say
anything about reports. We didn’t accept. The issue of the dropout rate was
never raised before the HC. You are arguing for the first time here."
According
to Ahmadi, Muslim girls who had previously been confined to madrasas had broken
stereotypes by enrolling in secular educational institutions while wearing the
hijab, but the government order requiring students to not wear the hijab on
school premises took that away from them.
Senior
advocate Rajeev Dhavan, appearing for another petitioner, said the ruling is
probably targeting Muslims and women from the faith particularly, thereby
violating articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution. Such indiscriminate targeting
is against the law and the Constitution, he added.
He
also said that across India and the entire world, whether it is an Islamic
state or otherwise, Hijab is recognised as valid.
Source:
Hindustan Times
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‘Hijab
Ban Order Weaponised Against Muslim Women’: PUCL Study
Muslim
women in hijab participate in a candle light march during a protest rally over
the 'hijab' ban in Karnataka, in Kolkata, February 11, 2022. Photo: PTI
Photo/Swapan Mahapatra
-----
Sumedha
Pal
September
16, 2022
As
the Supreme Court continues to hear a batch of petitions on the hijab ban in Karnataka’s
educational institutions, the human rights body People’s Union of Civil
Liberties (PUCL) carried out a study to understand the impact of the ban on
students in urban and rural areas of the state.
The
PUCL said in its report that the ban – which has compelled many Muslim women to
choose between their attire and education – has taken a toll on them. Many of
them are even scared to go to college alone, because of the harassment they
have been facing after the high court upheld the government’s order on the
hijab ban.
The
Wire spoke to PUCL researchers on how they understood the impact of the hijab
ban on the ground in several districts of Karnataka.
“In
each district, there’s a certain nuance or a certain struggle that these girls
are facing [after the hijab ban]. And if we don’t stand with these girls at
this point, we’ll completely fail as a civil society…and to be able to fight
with them, we need to understand the gravity of it,” one of the researchers
told The Wire’s Sumedha Pal.
The
researchers also pointed out that until now, the impact of the hijab ban, data
collection etc. had been led only by Muslim civil society organisations;
however, it’s important to understand that “this is not only a Muslim issue,
this is each one of our issue.”
Source:
The Wire
https://thewire.in/video/watch-karnataka-hijab-ban-order-muslim-women-pucl-study
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Fatima
Karim, Moroccan Blogger Sentenced For "Electronically Attacking
Religion"
15
September, 2022
A
Moroccan court of appeal confirmed Tuesday evening a heavy prison sentence
against a Moroccan blogger over
"undermining the Islamic religion" through online posts,
reported AFP Wednesday.
Last
month, Fatima Karim, a 39-year-old Moroccan blogger, was sentenced to two years
in prison for "electronically attacking religion" by sharing
sarcastic comments on verses of the Quran and hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad-
texts that are considered sacred in the Muslim tradition.
"The
Court of Appeal of Khouribga sentenced Fatima Karim to two years in prison,
confirming the judgment of the first instance," the blogger's lawyer,
Habib Aadi, told AFP.
Fatima's
lawyer said, "The verdict was very harsh" and the appeal in cassation
is "still under consideration."
In
the trial, Fatima asserted her right to freedom of expression, guaranteed by
the Moroccan constitution. She also publicly apologised to "anyone who
felt offended" by her publications, assuring that she never intended to
undermine Islam, the state religion in Morocco.
The
blogger, who was based in Oud Zem, 96.7 kilometres away from Casablanca,
describes herself as a secular person who supports the separation of religion
and the state or political power.
The
charge was triggered by the public prosecutor.
Article
267-5 of the Moroccan Penal Code, under which Fatima Karim was convicted,
punishes from six months to two years in prison "anyone who undermines the
Islam religion".
Under
the article, Moroccan courts can hand sentences ranging from six months to two
years in prison, in addition to fines between MAD 20,000 (US$1,916) and MAD
200,000 (US$19,163).
Under
the official national motto "God, Nation, King", the Moroccan code
punishes by prison or fines for a range of offences that include offending the
king or members of his family, causing prejudice to the monarchic regime,
Islam, or Morocco's territorial integrity.
Human
Rights Watch says the Moroccan code emboldens the state to sabotage freedom of
speech.
Source:
The New Arab
https://english.alaraby.co.uk/news/moroccan-blogger-sentenced-jail-over-attacking-islam
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I
Only Wanted To Encourage Women, Not Belittle Them, Says Actor and Entrepreneur
Rosyam Nor
September
14, 2022
PETALING
JAYA: Actor and entrepreneur Rosyam Nor said it was not his intention to
belittle women in a promotional video for an event by the women, family and
community development ministry.
He
said he only wanted to encourage and inspire women to stand up and develop
themselves.
He
said his words in the video, which several women MPs said had degraded women,
should be viewed from a positive perspective.
“The
programme encourages women to rise up in the field of entrepreneurship.
Therefore, the issue of me speaking rudely towards women, or belittling them,
should not come up,” he said, according to a report in Harian Metro.
In
the 40-second video, Rosyam is heard saying that women are tardy, when
promoting an event for the women, family and community development ministry.
“Waking
up late, everything is late. Women are always tardy. Wake up from your sleep!
“Tomorrow
at WTCKL, my programme is with Datuk Seri Rina (Harun) and her ministry (shows
the ministry’s name), read it yourselves.
“Tomorrow,
if anyone wants to join, just come at 9am and meet me. I will ‘belasah’ (beat
you up) in order for us to rise up,” Rosyam said in the video.
Rosyam
explained that “belasah” in this context meant to “brainwash” and encourage the
participants to rise in the field of entrepreneurship.
“‘Belasah’
means to brainwash. This programme is aimed at encouraging women so that they
will rise in the field of entrepreneurship.
“So,
there should be no issue about me belittling women. Those who have joined my
programme will understand what I said and there is no problem with the words
used,” he said.
He
added that “waking up late” was a phrase that he used to urge women entrepreneurs
to go after opportunities.
“It
is a metaphor, and I used it to refer to women entrepreneurs, it does not
relate to women waking up late,” he said.
Source:
Free Malaysia Today
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Saudi
FA launches Women’s Premier League, Division One
September
15, 2022
RIYADH:
The Saudi Football Association launched on Thursday the first edition of the
Saudi Women’s Premier League, with the participation of 8 teams.
The
teams participating are Al-Nasr (previously the Kingdom’s women’s team),
Al-Hilal (previously Al-Tahadi women’s team), Al-Yamama, Nessor Jeddah, Shoalat
Al-Shargia, Al-Aseffa, Sama w Maras.
The
new season will start on October 13, on a home-and-away basis, with a total of
56 matches.
The
federation also approved the establishment of a Division One, with the
participation of 17 teams, which will be distributed across three regions. That
league will start on November 11, also on a home-and-away basis.
The
Division One champions will be determined through a knockout system of the
quarter-finals, and will be promoted to the Premier League the following season
to replace the last placed team in the Premier League, who will be relegated.
The
Saudi Football Association has approved financial support for the Premier
League clubs, where each team will receive SAR250,000, while each team in
Division One will receive financial support of SAR50,000.
Lamia
Ibrahim Bahian, member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Football
Association and General Supervisor of the Women’s Football Administration,
praised the support that the Women’s Football Department enjoys from the Board
of Directors of the Saudi Football Association,
She
noted that the Saudi Football Association is proceeding at a steady pace
according to an ambitious strategy to advance women’s football in the Kingdom.
Director
of the Women’s Football Department, Alia bint Abdulaziz Al-Rasheed, indicated
that women’s football is currently taking important steps towards developing
women’s competitions, after the success achieved by women’s football
competitions in the 2021-2022 season, with the participation of 16 teams, and
Thursday's inauguration of the Premier League and Divison.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2163496/sport
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SDAIA,
Google Cloud to launch training program to empower women in AI sector
September
15, 2022
RIYADH:
Saudi Arabia has partnered with American tech firm Google to launch a global
program that will look to reduce the gender gap in the technological sector,
especially artificial intelligence.
The
Saudi Authority for Data and Artificial Intelligence announced the new
initiative named ‘Elevate’, in association with Google Cloud, during the 2nd
Global AI Summit in Riyadh on Sept. 15.
The
program will provide accessible training to women in tech and science,
empowering them and pursuing the growing number of job opportunities in the
field of data and artificial intelligence.
“Elevate
is a global program which aims to use AI to reduce the gender gap by empowering
more than 25,000 women globally in the next five years,” said Rehab Alarfaj,
Strategic Adviser of SDAIA.
Alarfaj
noted that she is proud to live in a country like Saudi Arabia where women’s
empowerment is a top priority.
“The
economic contribution of Saudi women in the labor market has nearly doubled
from less than 18 percent in 2016 to nearly 34 percent in the first quarter of
this year. So, we are already exceeding the target outlined in Vision 2030,”
she added.
Alarfaj
further said that a strong society can be built only through the active
participation of women.
Sarah
Al-Husseini, Google’s head of Government Affairs and Public Policy for Saudi
Arabia said that the ‘Elevate’ initiative is not just meant to address the gender
gap, but also to allow women to pursue their dreams.
“Elevate
offers a four-month program with cost-free access, designed to train these
women in areas like cloud architecture, data engineering, and machine learning
engineering,” said Al-Husseini.
She
added: “The program has a social learning element. It includes mentoring by
Saudi experts and live webinars by Google experts.”
Speaking
at the event virtually, Princess Haifa Bint Abdul Aziz Al-Muqrin, Saudi
Arabia’s permanent representative to the UN Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization, said that women are underrepresented in the field of AI
and technology.
“At
the moment, when digital technologies are reshaping everyday life, we cannot
deny that women are underrepresented in AI and STEM fields in general. Women
only represent 3 percent of Nobel prize laureates in science and only 12
percent of artificial Intelligence researchers globally,” said Princess
Al-Muqrin.
She
said that this inequality is depriving the world of enormous untapped talent,
insisting that women’s involvement and perspectives are needed in the
technology sector to make it work for everyone.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2163151/business-economy
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Iranian
woman declared brain dead after her arrest by morality police in Tehran
September
16, 2022
DUBAI:
An Iranian woman was declared brain dead hours after she was reportedly
arrested by morality police in Tehran for not complying with the country’s
mandatory hijab rules.
Mahsa
Amini was allegedly beaten inside the morality police’s van while being taken
to a detention center, according to reports by Radio Farda, quoting
eyewitnesses.
The
22-year-old had traveled from Kurdistan to Tehran to meet relatives when she
was arrested on September 13.
Her
family was later informed that Amini was hospitalized after the media center of
the Tehran Police Department had alleged she ‘suddenly suffered a heart
problem.’
Mahsa’s
older brother Kiarash Amini said in an interview with Iranwire news website
that according to doctors’ diagnoses his sister suffered from a heart attack or
a stroke, ‘and that while her heart was still beating, her brain is no longer
conscious.’
Authorities
in Iran have increasingly cracked down on women who violate the mandatory
wearing of the hijab in public, which became compulsory Iranian women and girls
over the age of 9 after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Reports
suggest that women deemed ‘non-compliant’ have been barred from entering
government offices, banks, or riding on public transportation.
Source:
Arab News
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2163671/middle-east
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