{"id":27254,"date":"2007-07-18T15:47:00","date_gmt":"2007-07-18T15:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/?p=27254"},"modified":"2024-07-04T13:48:01","modified_gmt":"2024-07-04T05:48:01","slug":"the-politics-of-muslim-clothing-in-indonesia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/articles\/2007\/07\/the-politics-of-muslim-clothing-in-indonesia\/","title":{"rendered":"The Politics of Muslim Clothing in Indonesia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

Jilbab\nversus Schools<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is about the dynamics of jilbab\nconflicting with the social, political, and cultural issues in Indonesia. The\npolemics of jilbab dates back to the 1930s; a 17 year old school girl disagreed\nwith the rule urging adult women to wear head covers in order to preserve their\nchastity. According to her, Java (Indonesia) is not Saudi Arabia; embracing\nIslam as a religion does not necessarily mean having to adopt the Arabic\ntradition (of wearing head covers) as well. The Islamic media then,\n“Bergerak” (or “On the Move”), supported her argument. (Van\nDijk, 1997: 65)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1983, Nugroho Notosusanto launched a press release\nto respond to the issue of jilbab among female students at school. It states:\n“for those who opt to wear head covers, the government will help facilitate\nthe moving of these students to private schools where their uniform include\nhead covers.” (Kompas, August 6, 1983) Before this, the Minister held an\nexceptional meeting with the Indonesian Council of Religious Scholars (or more\ncommonly known as Majlis Ulama Islam or MUI), he explained, “a uniform\nought to be identical and unvarying; otherwise, there is no point to the\nmeaning of a uniform.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the press release issued by the Chairman of\nMUI, K.H. E.Z. Muttaqien, responded to the question of head covers worn with\nschool uniforms, he said: “Pedoman Pemakaian Seragam (or the Manual of\nSchool Uniform) was a rule for the headmasters to regulate school uniforms\naccording to the educational surrounding or contexts of their respective\nregions. With regards to the issue of religion, the whole nation including\nteachers and mubalighs (Islamic preachers), would refer to the instruction of\nthe President in front of MUI Gathering, which consists of the following four\npoints: the right to believe in religion, master religious values, live\npeacefully among different religions, and perform wisely in solving religious\nmatters. MUI along with other institutions were working on the operational pattern<\/strong> (bolded by the writer) of the\ninstruction of the President.” (Kompas, March 20, 1984) Please note that\nthe issue stated by MUI was head covers not jilbab. Jilbab is a new word at\nthat time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the Working Session of Commission of the\nIndonesian Legislative Assembly IX DPR RI with the Minister of Religious\nAffairs, Munawir Sjadzali, in 1987, the Minister admitted there had not been an\nofficial decision made on the appropriate dress code for Muslim women in public\nand had to await a decision from the Islamic leaders on the subject. (Kompas,\nJuly 17, 1986)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The issue of jilbab at schools eventually became\ncritical when four senior high school students from Bogor who brought a legal\naction to court after the headmaster forbade them from wearing head covers.\n(Kompas, October 6, 1988) It was triggered by a letter, sent to their\nrespective parents, informing them of the expulsion of their children from\nschool. The students claimed that the headmaster’s decision had left their\nstudent status unclear. Their exams, homework, and laboratory tasks had not\nbeen examined by the teachers as though they were never present at class. In\nfact, it was clearly noted that these students had abided by the rules stated\nin the Manual of School Uniform released by the government; the students had\nensured that their head covers matched the school colours even though they were\nwearing head covers. Finally, it was reported by Legal Aid Society in Jakarta\nthat the case came to a peaceful settlement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A similar case happened the following year, ten female\nstudents from Senior High School 68 Jakarta went to the Legal Aid Society in\nJakarta as they were prevented from attending classes; they were accused of\nviolating the school uniform rule and should therefore be “returned to\ntheir parents.” (Kompas, January 5, 1989). It was reported that they could\nno longer attend classes and sit for exams at first, later the situation\nworsened when the students found that they were denied their school report\ncards and was forbidden from entering the school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The school had suggested that the students remove\ntheir head covers during school hours, but this suggestion was rejected by the\nstudents and their parents, due to their religious beliefs. The school proposed\nto move the students to another school, and to issue letters stating that\n“they have been returned to their parents.” The letter was also\nsupported by the Soegijo, Department Head of the Department of Education and\nCulture in Jakarta. He said: “I would like to convey my deepest gratitude\nfor your effort to maintain discipline and obedience amongst the student body.\nYour students will be re-accepted back at school and allowed to sit for their\nexams if they are ready to remove your jilbab”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the course of this disagreement, a separate but\ninteresting statement emerged during a book discussion about Jalaludin Rakhmat’s\n“Islam Alternatif’ (or “Alternative Islam”). The speaker, Dr.\nIr. Fachrurozie Sjarkowi, in his article “Beated in Achievement,\nJilbab-Wearers Cornered” said: “All incidents faced by those\njilbab-wearers were caused by the fact that certain female students in Islamic\nschools appear inferior, lacking in knowledge and skills, in comparison to\nfemale students in public schools. Hence, jilbab\u00ad wearing students are often\noverlooked as good role models.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These disagreements resulted in the official\ndeclaration of The School Uniform Guide for junior and senior high schools\nbetween 1991 and 1992. “Surat Keputusan No. 100\/C\/Kep\/D\/1991” was the\nrevision of “Surat Keputusan No. 052\/C\/Kep\/D\/1982” on the school\nuniform, after a series of consultations with Islamic leaders, their community,\nmass media, the Council of Attorney General, Minister of Information Affairs,\nand State Intelligence Coordinating Agency. It states that any female students,\ndue to the personal belief, would be allowed to wear a special uniform so long\nas the colour and design abide by the school’s uniform specifications and with\nthe consent of her parent or guardian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a previous letter, it was declared that “Due\nto the religious consideration and local tradition, a school would be granted\nthe authority to design its uniform (especially for the female student\npopulation) of that school.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The design of head covers was another matter. In the former regulation, student wearing head covers were required to tie them up like blangkon, a traditional Javanese head-dress. Their blouses were similar to a suit hanging outside the skirt, with long sleeves, and the skirts were either up to the knees”(junior-high) or ankles (senior high). In the latter regulation, female students were required to wear white head covers with their blouses -\u00ad- long sleeves up to the wrists with a buttoned pocket on the left — tucked inside their skirts. The length of skirts for both junior and senior high students were to reach the ankles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under this new ruling, female students in public\nschools now has the choice to wear (or not to wear) jilbab — whereas, for\nthose who went to Islamic schools or colleges, they are generally required to\ndo so. Before, there were also a number of the female students who only wore\njilbab at schools or colleges. They would remove their jilbab after classes. It\ncan be said that the new regulation has unveiled a new chapter for female\nMuslim believers in Indonesia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the fall of the New Order regime, the regulation\non school uniform became more relaxed to a point where a school would have\nseveral variations on the uniform. From 2002, there was a new “dress\ntrend” among female senior high school students in Jakarta. It was quite\neasy to find a female student in a pleated skirt up to her ankles, with short\u00adsleeved\nblouse and loose flowing hair; others may wear knee-length skirts with the same\nshort sleeve blouses. There were also groups of students who would wear jilbab\nwith the usual uniform but the skirts would extend all the way to their ankles.\nFrom my interview with some of the female students, I discovered that the\nuniform has become a fashion trend and not a precondition for wearing jilbab.\nThey even said that some of the teachers welcomed this trend as it made the\nstudents appear well-mannered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regional\nAutonomy and the Side Effects<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regional autonomy has enabled officials to implement\nstrict religious rules in certain regions. The Regent of Cianjur, Warsidi\nSwastomo has forced the officials and officers of his Regional Government to\nwear “Islamic clothes” and requested for other members of society to\nfollow suit. In this instance, “Islamic clothes” refers to jilbab for\nwomen and long shirts (similar to long tunics with round necklines) for men\n(Kompas, February 1, 2002) This was intended to forge the sense of spirituality\namong its people. The Regent believed such policy could increase the quality of\nhuman resource in his region and had been designed for Islamic believers in\nthis region — the matter had also been discussed with non-Islamic leaders who\ngave their consent and agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the meantime, the Province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam formally implemented Islamic law in its region on March 15th<\/sup>, 2002, which coincided with the Islamic New Year of 1 Muharram 1423 Hijriah. It is a requisite for everyone in this region to cover their body and dress accordingly (to maintain their humility according the teachings of Islam). The names of stores, streets, and destination boards on buses were printed in Arabic and Latin. For those who did not dress appropriately as demanded by the Islamic law: women’s clothing was to cover the body, would be sanctioned. It was also reported in the mass media that two days prior to the practice, store-owners were busy changing their store names to Arabic and Latin while the regional officers were changing the street name, departments. In fact, there a number of them would eventually add on English translations to their signage. Long distance buses and inter-city trips were also written in both Arabic and Latin. (Kompas, March 14, 2002) Beauty salon entrepreneurs had to abide by the Islamic rule as well. Female hairdressers were not allowed to serve male customers; they had to segregated from the men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To support the practice, the Regional Government of NAD\nplanned to recruit 2,500 Islamic Law Police. Due to the huge budget to recruit\nand train, the government eventually had to fund the campaign. Polsus Syariah\nwould fall under the control Dinas Syariat Islam, and was put in charge to\nmaintain Islamic laws in the province such as ensuring appropriate dressing\namong women and men, and prohibiting adultery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This policy would have been impossible to implement\nduring the New Order era. Regional autonomy has provided particular regions\nwith the opportunity to give more value to Islam, a religion which they have\nembraced willingly, without worry of discrimination or stigmas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stylish\nJilbab<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A number of Muslim fashion shows and competitions\nbegan during the mid 1990s. Fashion designers who focused on Muslim clothes,\nshowed their design forecast just like other designers who would preview their\nautumn \/ winter and spring \/ summer collections each year. Before, Muslim\nfashion designs only appear in women’s magazines on special occasions like Idul\nFitri, but they have come to take up a major section in the fashion editorial\nover the subsequent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays, many women do not wear jilbab with\nloose-fitting clothes to conceal their body contour. They tend to wear tight\nt-shirts or long-sleeved shirts, and fitted jeans. The phenomenon has led to\nthe term, “stylish jilbab” or “fashionable jilbab”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jilbab and Muslim clothing became popular in the late\n1990s. Many women would dress up in Muslim outfits in loud colours and designs\nat wedding receptions. To a certain extent, wearing such outfits can be a\npractical move as this replaces the traditional and elaborate heavy hair bun,\nor konde, often worn by Javanese women at such events. Besides, the outfit also\nallows for more movement and flexibility (as compared to the traditional sarong\nand kebaya). Here, we see the reasons for wearing jilbab which is borne out of\npragmatism instead of religious faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Muslim clothes is particularly popular and ubiquitous\nduring Ramadan. Television stations would air soap operas and programmes\npraising God, various quiz shows around the hours of breaking fast, and nearly\nall television news presenters and infotainment hosts would wear Muslim\nclothes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other contributing factor leading to the\npopularity of jilbab lies with the local celebrities. Among those who wear the\njilbab are Inneke Koes Herawati, Yessi Gusman, and Desy Ratnasari along with\nolder stars like Sitoresmi, Ida Royani, and Ida Leman. The last three names are\nalso well-known fashion designers. Public figures often hold significant\ninfluence over the masses; there was a time when “kerudung Mbak\nTutut” became a popular style, as it was worn by Mbak Tutut, the nickname\nfor President Soeharto’s eldest daughter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The popularity of Muslim clothing diminished during\nthe Bali bombing fiasco as it was rumoured that Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) members\nwere behind the strikes. People began to doubt those who wore Muslim clothing,\nlooking at them with great mistrust and prejudice. Nevertheless, jilbab and\nother Muslim clothing remain common in Indonesia. It is necessary to note the\nvarious modes clothing worn by Muslim women in Indonesia often reveal their\nrespective ideologies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I find it difficult to formulate the reasons why\nMuslim women wear jilbab. In any case I would like to highlight the works by\nAngki Purbandono, a visual artist from Yogyakarta, entitled “The Fashion\nof Indonesian Muslim Women”. In this series, Angki interviewed and\nphotographed five Muslim women dressed different attire: Dian (a woman in\nveil), Riska (a fashionable woman in jilbab), Sitoresmi (a fashion designer who\noften wears glamourous Muslim clothes), Atik (a woman in long jilbab), and\nEndah (a woman who used to be in jilbab). I would like to share some parts of\nthe interview between Angki and the women:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nInterviews<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dian (25 years old):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the\nbeginning, my family did not agree with this whole wearing veil business; but\nsince I am aware of my identity as a Muslim woman, I kept with it. So far, my\nfamily is okay with it. I never faced any difficulties wearing the veil. Well,\nthey say its easier to wear dark colours or black, so as not to attract too\nmuch attention from the opposite sex.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ndecision to wear the veil came from my belief, books, and my reading group.\nThey were my biggest support, not my family. It’s not that that I’m easily influenced\nby friends; I do believe this is the way of God, and this is the way I would\nlike to dress. My group does not belong to a particular Islamic organization.\nIt is an open membership. You may continue to join or leave it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my\nopinion, the appropriate Muslim cloth that covers the whole body is the veil\nthat I wear now. It does not only cover the head like what most women are\nwearing but it will be difficult to tell every one. I tell my close friends\nonly.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I mingle\nwith anyone, with or without veil. I teach in an Islamic kindergarten and it is\nrather exclusive. So to be sure, I take off my veil when I teach the children.\nWhen I leave the school, I put it on again. The children are used to my veil.\nThey are not afraid of me or surprised. I face no problems or pressures from\nthe children or the surrounding neighbourhood where I live.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Endah (23 years old):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I used to wear jilbab but I no longer do it now. My family is not a religious one, just so\u00ad-so; we fast during Ramadan, celebrate Idul Fitri, and whenever we remember, we would pray. I learned something after joining my friends mengaji group in SMP; the right way of life is according to the one written in the Holy Book. I started wearing jilbab when I was in the third grade of SMP, in 1995. After wearing jilbab and mingling with some Islamic friends, I felt as if I found an oasis, away from the unhappy family and neighbourhood interaction such as speaking rudely, gambling and drinking, and the kind. I felt comfortable in my little world: living peacefully, no distractions, moving from pengajian (reading the verse) group to others, taking care of my community, lowering my gaze, and reading Islamic books.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was\nseparated from my close friends when I went away to college. There, I began\nreading different books in the library, met a lot of people, had discussions on\na wide range of subject. It is here that I began to compare my way of life to\nothers. I asked myself “Is my world very small?” In time, I changed\nfrom my long jilbab for a shorter one; there came a time when I finally\nsummoned the courage to ask myself about the jilbab I wore, “Why am I\nafraid to take it off?” Was I afraid of being mocked by others? What was\nthe influence of jilbab on my spiritual life? I asked myself about people and\ntheir fanatic beliefs. In short, I realize ALL religions basically teach you to\ndo good.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I want to\nlive in peace. I want to be comfortable. I want to live a life where I am in\ncontrol, where I can make conscious decisions because I am the master of my own\ndestiny. Eventually I took off my jilbab. I wanted to be a new person.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Riska Andini (21 years old):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wear\njilbab because I’m used to it. I went through an Islamic programme for a year\nduring senior high school. I would uneasy, uncertain without it. The jilbab\nreassures me, it is comforting.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My chin\nwas pierced but it was not out of following fashion trends. I did it because my\nfriends dared me: “Come on, we dare you to get a piercing!” they\nsaid.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I want to\nbe well behaved as I wear jilbab, but I smoke. My parents know but I dare not\nsmoke in front of them. Honestly, I do feel the “burden” by how\nothers might perceive my actions, or when they look at me (smoking and the\npiercing) but so far I have gotten along fine, it is a tolerant community, and\nI do not feel so bad.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have a steady\nboyfriend. I do what people commonly do on when they date. I wish my jilbab\nwould not be a barrier for me to get along with someone I like. In my opinion,\njilbab is just a piece of clothing; ya, it does look that way, so when I’m not\nwearing it, it looks like I’m without a piece of clothing; I’m exposed.           \u00b7<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apart from\nmy college activities, I’m also a part of a Brit Pop and Indie Pop club called\n“Common People”. We would often meet in a particular place and\nparticipate in discussions. Now, I’m working on a music magazine project with\nthese friends. I am the only woman wearing jilbab among them.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Angki, in her series, printed each photo in the real size of human body. Then, it was patched on a piece of thin board with a leg so it could stand upright. The head of each photo was omitted to allow visitors “put on” their own heads to each figure in the installation. The record of the interview was compiled in a disc for visitors to listen to, like a footnote for a piece of writing. In this work, Angki asks: “What would you wear -\u00ad- to express your ideology and identity — if you were an Indonesian Muslim woman?” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It appears that jilbab in Indonesia is interpreted by the Muslim women. It is elastic, flexible, and is dependent on the context of each individual. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First Published: 18.07.2007 by Kakiseni <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jilbab versus Schools This article is about the dynamics of jilbab conflicting with the social, political, and cultural issues in Indonesia. The polemics of jilbab dates back to the 1930s; a 17 year old school girl disagreed with the rule urging adult women to wear head covers in order to preserve their chastity. According to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"iawp_total_views":17,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,3544,3600,3583,3539],"tags":[3650,3652,501,3658,3663,3661,3660,709,3656,628,3662,3654,3651,3653,3655,3664,3659,3657],"language":[7523],"writer":[7717],"class_list":["post-27254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles","category-culture","category-exhibition","category-religion","category-visual-arts","tag-angki-purbandono","tag-bergerak","tag-culture","tag-desy-ratnasari","tag-dr-ir-fachrurozie-sjarkowi","tag-ida-leman","tag-ida-royani","tag-indonesia","tag-inneke-koes-herawati","tag-islam","tag-jalaludin-rakhmat","tag-jamaah-islamiyah-ji","tag-jilbab","tag-majlis-ulama-islam","tag-mbak-tutut","tag-mui","tag-sitoresmi","tag-yessi-gusman","language-english","writer-nuraini-juliastuti"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27254"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27254\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39182,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27254\/revisions\/39182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27254"},{"taxonomy":"language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/language?post=27254"},{"taxonomy":"writer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myartmemoryproject.com\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/writer?post=27254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}