Christian student made to wear headscarf, join Muslim prayers at Negri school, say sources
(TMI) – Following allegations of Muslim students being used to subtly propagate Islam to their non-Muslim peers in secondary schools, fresh claims have surfaced that a Christian student at a primary school in Negri Sembilan was forced to wear a tudung (headscarf) and join a nasyid group.
A source close to the school told The Malaysian Insider the 12-year-old student from Sabah was also coerced into joining a Muslim prayer session at a camp she had attended recently.
“All this happened without the parents’ knowledge and permission,” said the source.
The source also said that when the matter came to light, school authorities told the teachers and students to keep it under wraps.
But the school’s headmaster, Yunus Ismail, denied that the student was forced to don a tudung or forced to participate in the nasyid programmes.
“I have asked the student about it. She was not forced by her teachers. She wore the tudung willingly. We do not force our non-Muslim students to join the nasyid programmes, either,” he told The Malaysian Insider.
Yunus said the matter was resolved two weeks ago, and that it was “not a big issue”.
“I also met her parents, and they have no problems with the whole matter. I believe that several teachers are trying to make this into an issue,” he said.
The girl’s mother, when approached, appeared unnerved by queries over the incidents.
“I don’t want to make it a big issue. I don’t want my daughter to be shunned in school or get into trouble,” she said.
The source said most parents of students at the school were uneducated or had very little education and were also poor. Some worked in nearby oil palm estates.
“The question is, why was a non-Muslim girl forced or encouraged to join Muslim activities and made to wear a headscarf?”
“Why aren’t the teachers and headmaster in the school sensitive to the non-Muslim students? Is it because there are not many of them?” said the source.
It was learnt that the predominantly Muslim school has about 400-500 students, out of whom only seven are non-Muslims.
“The child is a minor, so how could this have happened to her without her parents’ permission or knowledge?” the source said, questioning the motive behind the incidents.
