Hijab: My Right, My Choice, My Life

Yesterday, I set this picture as profile picture in Blackberry Messenger. No one gave a comment until my college friend left me his comment. We had such a long conversation. I think it was an interesting discussion. I will try to write our discussion briefly.

My friend told me that hijab was an obligation because wearing hijab is a God’s command and we should obey it. He said that hijab was not a human rights but it was the obligation.

I have belief that we should see the problem by the other perspective. I don’t agree with him. I think, beside the obligation, hijab is the human rights too. In Indonesia, the largest populous Muslim-majority nation, there is no problem for a woman in wearing hijab. But I try to see the regulation of wearing hijab in the other country. There are countries which ban their citizen in wearing hijab. Wearing hijab has raised complex human rights issues in the context of women’s rights to freedom of their religion, equality, non-discrimination, education, and work.

As the obligation, I think we agreed that wearing hijab is God’s command. The evidences from Islam are clear. As a Muslim woman, wearing hijab is a commitment. She wears it out of obedience to God. It is not related with the religious symbol, moral, or norm. It is the honor and chastity.

In the last, we concluded nothing. Like we were in the college, our discussions were never clear. *LOL