Aceh bans “tight” trousers for women, shorts for men.
Muslim women in Indonesia’s West Aceh district will be banned from wearing “tight” trousers or jeans under new regulations, an official said Tuesday.
From the start of next year any woman wearing trousers or jeans deemed to be too tight will have to immediately change into a government-issue skirt and their offending garment will be chopped into pieces.
“If a woman flouts (the rule), her trousers will be cut up on the spot and replaced with a skirt that will be provided free of charge by the West Aceh government,” district chief Ramli Mansur told AFP. “This rule applies not only to women but also to men, who are prohibited from wearing shorts,” he added.
Pretty Pink Unicorns 4:04 pm on October 27, 2009 Permalink |
As a former traveler in Aceh, I have a few words on this topic:
Traditional clothing for males in Aceh is a long skirt-like sereung (Malay sarong), preferrably in a grey plaid or Madras. For women, it is pants.
Even foreign men must wear long sleeves and pants in Aceh, and I’d say a very large proportion of women are heavily veiled.
So what’s up with this Saudimentalism? Giving women skirts is Egyptian-Saudi, not Acehnese. Answer: Aceh has always suffered under the weight of the Arab world’s assertions that they own Islam… It’s so detrimental. All the Saudi and Egyptian preachers go to Aceh, and the Acehnese go to Egypt to learn. Have some pride in your own traditions!
Also, I should add that someone is going to police women’s bodies is so trite I want to cry.
Dan 4:19 pm on October 27, 2009 Permalink |
What distinct traditions do Acehnese have? I have always figured they were the most conservative of all in Indonesia.