By: Eric Kawa
Placards with key words and phrases on Hijab
The Sierra Leone Muslim Women’s Network have organized a peaceful advocacy march demanding their rights to be recognized by institutions as they seek employment.
The advocacy march attracted Muslims across the country, schools, top Islamic dignitaries and non-muslims, all converging to the National Stadium in Freetown to express their concerns.
Women in Hijab in a Peaceful Advocacy
It was organized on World Hijab Day; a day set aside in 2013 and observed on February 1st each year in 140 countries worldwide.
The campaign was geared towards what they described as ‘Discrimination’ and ‘Marginalization’ they undergo in their quest to seek employment and education in institutions like : banks, hospitals, schools,universities, the bar ,the army,the Police force among other institutions
The women,were campaigning with key messages like “My Hijab is Not My Brain,” “Hands off our Hijab,” “Our Hijab our Pride”, “Our Hijab Our Identity” among other key messages.
Amanatu Ajibola Thomas is one of the lead pioneers of the campaign. She gave a testimony of the ordeals she went through wearing the hijab as she was deprived of her passion and dreams of becoming a medical practitioner.
“I was doing a course which will eventually lead me to become a nurse, but I couldn’t complete as I was asked to take off my hijab if I wanted to continue with the course which I couldn’t.” She lamented.
Amanatu noted that Muslim women in hijab ,though very qualified in various disciplines are mostly denied access in some work places.
She called on the government to issue a statute in every system or institution which will protect their privacy and defend their rights to work and school especially in government institutions with their hijabs.Sierra Leone’s First Lady, Fatima Jabbie Bio, expressed shock over the concerns noting that she only got to know about such discriminations after a visit with the Sierra Leone Islamic Council.She says,there’s no law in the Constitution that deprives or restricts women from wearing the hijab in Sierra Leone and thus institutions should not deprive those who have made such choices.
She stressed that Sierra Leone is a religious tolerant country in which Muslims and Christians are coexisting peacefully.
Madam Bio,further called on the Muslim Women’s Network and their partners to put their concerns together, identify institutions that have been discriminating against them with evidence and present a position paper which they’ll look into.
The Ministry of Social Welfare is the body responsible for religious affairs in Sierra Leone; its political head, Baindu Dasama pledged her support in working with the Muslim women to ensure that their demands are met.She says,women who are in hijab have the same rights as those who do not put on the hijab and both should not affect each other.
She noted that,since she took up her duties as a minister, she has never got any report of a woman or a girl in hijab who’s been sexually harassed or assaulted;but however,stressed that the dress code should not be the reason for pedophiles and perpetrators to involve in such acts.
Madam Dasama called on Muslims and all Sierra Leoneans to uphold the peace that the country has enjoyed over the years and promised to advocate on their behalf to stop the discrimination especially in places of work and other institutions.Sierra Leone is a secular state with over 70% Muslims and one of the most religious tolerant countries in the world.Muslims and Christians have been coexisting peacefully with intermarriages and relations.
https://worldhijabday.com/about-us/
Eric Kawa 
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