assalamualaikum
saya rasa terpanggil untuk menulis tentang issue ini. dan saya rasa saya patut memberitahu apa yang saya tahu dan pengamatan saya terhadap isu ini. it's about banning on face-covering Muslims veils in New Zealand. the NZ goverment is running an online survey on YAHOO to collect people's opinion about the banning. first of all, i'm not sure if this pool is really made by New Zealander or other parties so that New Zeland will be wiewed bad in the eyes of other. New Zealand ni sangat suci sebenarnya. sebuah negara down south without any influence from others. they have slow and simple life pace. truthfully, in term of entertainment, Malaysia lagi dasyat. orang-orang New Zealand tidak berhibur keterlaluan. one simple example, movie-movie best datang dari luar sangat lambat masuk NZ. Malaysia far more advance even if compared to Singapore. kalau pusat karaoke dan snooker kebanyakan dipenuhi oleh Korean yang memang tak asing lagi kerana that's how they get entertained bukannya New Zealanders. NZ takde dream world or sort of thing. theme park pn takde, adala ala-la genting tu tapi lame gila. sikit je mainannya. enjoying nature is how they entertain themselves. no wonder NZ bersih dan tersenarai antara 10 negara paling selalmat di dunia.
about banning thing, i'm not sure where the heck the idea come from. well, probably it really comes from the goverment. just to let you know, New Zealand is very much open to diversity. in Auckland alone, there are SO MANY immigrant especially Korean. sometimes, i said to myself, eh aku ni duduk Korea ke? sebab ramai gila Korean. even my classmates pun ramai Korean compared to Whites. also, in New Zealand there are so many refugees and MOST OF THEM ARE MUSLIMS who come from Iraq, Palestine, Iran, Somalia and Nigeria. so the reason for banning is probably because they are scared of the appearance of the people who wear face-covering veils but not because of the negative perception. i don't think they are provoked by Islamophobia. let me tell you a story. this is my story.
when i was in Auckland, i worked to a Muslim Somali guy at his computer shop at Mt. Roskill. most of the community there are immigrants, refugees and permanent residence. my boss is now a New Zealand citizen holder. one day, i waited for the bus to get home and finally there was a bus. probably the last one to city. the driver reminded the passenger to tell him where to stop because he had not driving for quite a long time. finally, there was only me on the bus because it seemed that i was the only one going to the city because i lived in the city. the bus driver asked me to sit at the front seat. he said :" hey you, sit up here" while waving his hand. so i sat behind the driver on the next seat. he asked me:
" you're a Muslim".
" yes, obviously" and smiled.
" how about you? Christian?"
"erm, not really. i'd say i'm a bit of everything" *laugh* kebenyakan orang NZ atheist (tidak beragama)
" tell me about Islam and being a Muslim"
" about what?"
" everything"
*that's so many thing to say, clueless where to stars* he finally asked me where i'm from to break the awkwardness.and the conversation went on and on. he asked me so many Muslim related questions and i tried my very best to give my very best answers. then he finally came to the questions:
" why you wear that? what do you call that" pointing at my tudung.
" this is hijab. Muslim women have to wear this to cover their hair. it also protects women's dignity.also from men to see."
" why do men can't see you hair?"
"because it only for those who deserve it. and we cover our hair so that men won't have desire when they see us.not to be expose and sexy. that's the gist"
" so, who are the people that can see? only husband?"
" yes, of course husband. family but not cousin"
" hey, you know what. i talked to my Kiwi friends (New Zealand's White) about Muslim women with hijab and all of us agreed that women with hijab is sexy. you make us wanna see you more."
*sudah* the conversation went on and on again. *tetiba rasa cam jauh je pulak nak balik city* then he asked me:
" why don't you cover you face like other Muslim women?"
" well, how should i say this. i'm not from middle east. those from middle east usually wear burqa. not sure if it's based on their mazhab. actually, we only need to cover all our body except face and palm covering face is not mandatory"
" hey, do you know the story that happen earlier this year? there was a Muslim woman with face-covering veils was told to get off the bus. the driver didn't not allowed her to get into the with with other crowd, left her in tears on the street? what's you opinion about that"
" yes *nasib baik masa tu baca paper, tetiba memang tajuk tu* i read about it. i think it's not fair to tell her to get off the bus, just because she's a Muslim wearing face-covering veil and loose jubah. just imagine this, there's a robber get into the bus, wearing a baggy pant and hide a gun in his pants. the people will not stop him because there's no evidence that's he's a robber. but when a Muslim woman get into the bus, people are suspicious. they might this she's a terrorist and might carry a gun in his super 'big' cloth" *i said this based on the rebuttal article i read about this issue.
" he doesn't allow the woman to get into the bus because he's scared"
" that's because of the influence of Islamophobia"
" no, we don't have such perception. he said, he GENUINELY scared. probably because of the childhood memory"
blblablablablablablabla.
New Zealanders are very considerate. this issue comes out not because of the idea of Islamophobia. it's just that the people are not fully expose to Islam yet. i never met any rude Kiwi. they are very open to any religion and culture. John Key (NZ PM) said he was comfortable with women wearing veils, adding: “It doesn’t offend me. It’s part of people’s beliefs.”
this is one of the comment made by a Muslim in NZ:
Dr. Qadri's message is right, "However the heading is incorrect, he is not saying face veils should be gone", He is saying when asked by bus drivers, police etc to take your face veil off for security purposes you should do it, and it is not so no necessary to wear it in a country like NZ, unless if you will to do so!...I am a Muslim lived in NZ my whole life, cover my head and body without any problems, but not my face, and totally agree with Professor Qadri who is full of knowledge, and a very pious person.
concerning this issue, Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri, who hit the headlines when he issued a fatwa against terrorism and suicide bombing, told the Sunday Star-Times "covering the face, according to the Koran, is not mandatory". therefore, he has urged New Zealand Muslim women to take off face-veil to avoid harassment and debates that have erupted recently in the country.
in our country itself, we are not really encourage to wear face-covering veil as well. if you're a teacher, you're actually not allowed to wear it at school either. but, nobody really say NO because it's your right what ever you want. plus, it seems very rude to not allow people to wear something look-so-religious if you yourself is a Muslim
i'm not in either side. i'm just giving my opinion. but for those who never take off their veils, it would be something . i apology for the flaws in my writing. i'm might not of the best position to say this nor to judge who's is right and who's wrong. up to you. as i always say, read. think and reflect.
