PRISTINA. Kosovo's independent
ombudsman on Wednesday, September 26, pleaded with Prime Minister
Agim Ceku to scrap a ban on the wearing of hijab in schools, few
days after the expulsion of three students for wearing the Muslim
headscarf. "Students should not be deprived of
the right to wear religious symbols as headscarves," Hilmi
Jashari said in a public letter to Ceku and Education Minister Agim
Veliu, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"I ask you
to undertake urgent steps in solving this issue," Jashari
wrote.
Last week, three girls were
expelled from their schools in Skenderaj, northwest of Pristina, for
wearing hijab.
Islam sees hijab as an obligatory
code of dress, not a religious symbol displaying one's affiliations.
The Ombudsman Institution in
Kosovo (OIK) is an independent organization with a mandate to
address alleged human rights violations or abuses of authority by
public institutions.
It carries out investigations and
issues reports.
Basic Right
Jashari said the right to
practice religion is enshrined in the European Convention for Human
Rights.
This right could not be prevented
by executive orders, he said.
"Wearing
headscarves is a symbol of presenting of someone's belief,"
added Jashari.
In 2004, France banned the
wearing of the hijab at public schools and institutions.
Since then the issue of hijab has
been thrust into the limelight with many Western European countries
following suit.
Islam is the official religion of
Kosovo, which is seeking independence from Serbia, with Muslims
making up more than 95 percent of the population.
Observers consider the ban on
hijab in schools in Kosovo as a measure to limit a stronger Muslim
identity in the UN-administered province.
Kosovo has been run by a UN
mission since a 1999 NATO bombing campaign halted civilian killings
and ethnic cleansing by Serbian troops in the province.
Its status is one of the last
disputes remaining from the disintegration of Yugoslavia in the
1990s and the creation of a number of new independent states in the
Balkans.
26/09/2007
Source: IslamOnline
