Several thousand ethnic Albanian protesters say they want education authorities to reverse an Administrative Instruction approved and signed by the Ministry of Education in Kosova which goes counter to the Constitution article on freedom of religious practice in public which resulted in suspension of a girl from school because she wore a Muslim headscarf in a secondary school in the town of Ferizaj, 40 kilometers south of the capital, Prishtina.
The protesters, chanted anti-government slogans as they walked in the capital, Pristina, Friday. Some carried placards reading "Stop Discrimination" and "Veiling of the mind is forbidden, not of the head.", "The Communist Times Have Passed" etc.
Girls being forbidden to enter schools throughout Kosova is considered "a direct attack" on Basic Human Rights to get educated, and a direct attack on Islam values and religious freedom as well.
Ombdusperson in Kosova has requested immediate halt to these unscrupulous acts of discrimination, but unfortunately the government plans to satisfy their sadistic pleasure agains Muslim community in Kosova goes beyond the call and seemingly they are determined to go ahead with oppression.
The Muslim Community in Kosova have been demanding their rights for so long claiming they enjoyed more rights during Communistic regime rather than now in so-called "democratic" Kosovo.
Arlinda Zeka, 16, has lately been suspended from high school in the town of Ferizaj. Although Kosova's constitution guarantees religious freedom, education authorities forbid wearing headscarves inside school premises. The Islamic Headscarf stands as a pillow of moral principle, and therefore must not be called a religious symbol or a uniform as it is called and abused by ex-Communist (now "democratic") Kosovan authorities.
There is an urgent need for international factor to get involved and help stop this government initiative to discriminate people, and help prevent further discrimination and injustice likely to continue in the future.
Kosovo government also requires urgent pressure to respect the law and order and help strengthen democracy in the region in order to build people's trust and confidence in authorities as people have been living under Communist Oppression for decades.
Saturday, 8 May 2010
Friday, 23 April 2010
“Guilty of Wearing a Headscarf” – A girl student gets suspended from school!!
There has been quite a bit of time since Islamic headscarf issue started to ground off and now has become a stereotype of its kind in the post war Kosovo. The Islamic Headscarf has always been treated as a strong religious obligation based on Islamic foundation of morals and ethics which has been attacked and confronted often during the last decade. Islam opponents go further along discriminating and depriving women from their right to wear the headscarf in the schools and public institutions in Kosova.
One year ago, most of the cases where girls were suspended or dropped off schools were justified under 4.7 article of the Kosovo Law for elementary and secondary education which was clearly denounced by the then Ombudsperson in Kosovo, Antoni Novicki defining that the mentioned law is referred to the teachers and not to the students, and that the directors’ decisions to suspend or expel girls from schools for wearing the headscarf was judged unlawful and discriminating by Mr Novicki, who shortly after, managed to influence a right decision for those girls to be brought back to school.
Later on, seeing that this was not convenient, the new Minister of Education, Enver Hoxhaj provides an administrative instruction 7/2009 which were two sub articles which would be added to the article 4 of the Law saying: “Ban on wearing religious uniform”.
This happened due to them not being able to realize “lawfully” their indulgence in discriminating Muslim girls at schools which now must become an issue of debate in Kosova if it is to follow steps to democratization.
There is an urgent need for media in Kosovo to initiate debate concerning the ban on Islamic Headscarf and which was previously tried to but with some flaws. The debates have been organized by media which stand strongly opposed to Islamic Headscarf and Islam Religion, and that could be seen during debates where even the TV presenter was taking parts during discussions and debates and showing unscrupulous partiality in favour of the ban and preventing the invited representatives from expressing their attitudes and call for their rights.
The freshest case where a girl got suspended few days ago on 15.04.2010 upon insisting on donning the headscarf, is the case of Arlinda Zeka, a student at secondary school ‘Pjetër Bogdani’, in Ferizaj town. It is a case shown on local TV, which again shocked the population in Kosovo and which needs an urgent call for debate and human rights movement in Kosovo to protect the rights of communities in practising their religious beliefs and freedom to education lest tensions should not escalate in the future.
The Head of Islamic Community in Kosovo, Naim Ternava has not yet been shown on local media denouncing opposition to these unlawful and undemocratic acts. There are many cases worth mentioning where the Islamic Community of Kosovo, issues declarations and statements for the press and do not enjoy the right to see or hear their declarations shown in newspapers, TV or radio news, which is quite disappointing.
There has been support to religious freedom and free education in Kosovo by some NGO’s and civil society who do not consider the Islamic Clothing as uniform, rather they consider it as religious ethics and morals based on Islamic Faith, a right which is surely guaranteed by the Constitution of Kosovo.
According to a survey done in 2007 in Kosovo, the majority of people surveyed, claimed not to be against the Islamic Headscarf or harbor any hatred against it.
Oppositions to anti-Islamic tendencies and movements from Kosovan institutions are not to be seen in public media but they are present anywhere in the Internet and any other means possible which gives you visual pictures of the period during Communistic dictatorship when people couldn’t perform any religious duties or express their own free opinion in public media and public institutions.
It is about time when Kosovo people must stand against these unlawful and undemocratic acts of discrimination, and call for International involvement to settle these troubling issues which are door to potential crisis in Kosovo.
One year ago, most of the cases where girls were suspended or dropped off schools were justified under 4.7 article of the Kosovo Law for elementary and secondary education which was clearly denounced by the then Ombudsperson in Kosovo, Antoni Novicki defining that the mentioned law is referred to the teachers and not to the students, and that the directors’ decisions to suspend or expel girls from schools for wearing the headscarf was judged unlawful and discriminating by Mr Novicki, who shortly after, managed to influence a right decision for those girls to be brought back to school.
Later on, seeing that this was not convenient, the new Minister of Education, Enver Hoxhaj provides an administrative instruction 7/2009 which were two sub articles which would be added to the article 4 of the Law saying: “Ban on wearing religious uniform”.
This happened due to them not being able to realize “lawfully” their indulgence in discriminating Muslim girls at schools which now must become an issue of debate in Kosova if it is to follow steps to democratization.
There is an urgent need for media in Kosovo to initiate debate concerning the ban on Islamic Headscarf and which was previously tried to but with some flaws. The debates have been organized by media which stand strongly opposed to Islamic Headscarf and Islam Religion, and that could be seen during debates where even the TV presenter was taking parts during discussions and debates and showing unscrupulous partiality in favour of the ban and preventing the invited representatives from expressing their attitudes and call for their rights.
The freshest case where a girl got suspended few days ago on 15.04.2010 upon insisting on donning the headscarf, is the case of Arlinda Zeka, a student at secondary school ‘Pjetër Bogdani’, in Ferizaj town. It is a case shown on local TV, which again shocked the population in Kosovo and which needs an urgent call for debate and human rights movement in Kosovo to protect the rights of communities in practising their religious beliefs and freedom to education lest tensions should not escalate in the future.
The Head of Islamic Community in Kosovo, Naim Ternava has not yet been shown on local media denouncing opposition to these unlawful and undemocratic acts. There are many cases worth mentioning where the Islamic Community of Kosovo, issues declarations and statements for the press and do not enjoy the right to see or hear their declarations shown in newspapers, TV or radio news, which is quite disappointing.
There has been support to religious freedom and free education in Kosovo by some NGO’s and civil society who do not consider the Islamic Clothing as uniform, rather they consider it as religious ethics and morals based on Islamic Faith, a right which is surely guaranteed by the Constitution of Kosovo.
According to a survey done in 2007 in Kosovo, the majority of people surveyed, claimed not to be against the Islamic Headscarf or harbor any hatred against it.
Oppositions to anti-Islamic tendencies and movements from Kosovan institutions are not to be seen in public media but they are present anywhere in the Internet and any other means possible which gives you visual pictures of the period during Communistic dictatorship when people couldn’t perform any religious duties or express their own free opinion in public media and public institutions.
It is about time when Kosovo people must stand against these unlawful and undemocratic acts of discrimination, and call for International involvement to settle these troubling issues which are door to potential crisis in Kosovo.
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