Jakarta (Antara Babel) - An Indonesian Muslim Community called HijraHeart held a discussion with students from the University of Indonesia on issues regarding Muslim women's garment, or hijab, and produced a petition to support women to wear the headscarf.
"Muslim women wearing hijab are still facing challenges that ban them from wearing the Islamic dress, especially in certain workplaces," Amaliah Begum, a HijraHeart spokesperson, stated on Friday.
She explained that the discussion forum sought opinions and views on the restriction on wearing the Muslim garment, which is still prevalent in communities across the world, the expected ideal conduct, and solutions to addressing this challenge.
Amaliah, who is also an Indonesian World Hijab Day ambassador, believed that wearing a hijab is a religious obligation that should not be prohibited or restricted by anyone.
Moreover, she said, Indonesia, which a country with the largest Muslim population in the world, should support Muslim women to wear hijab.
The petition to support women wearing hijab was signed by dozens of students and Islamic activists, and it will back the international campaign of wearing hijab under the movement of "World Hijab Day."
World Hijab Day was first commemorated on February 1, 2012, in the US by Nazma Khan who experienced a great deal of discrimination for wearing a hijab.
So far, 150 countries, including Indonesia, are part of the movement, and the number is expected to reach 190 in 2017.
