Philippine School Bans the Hijab, Sparks Controversy
A ban on Muslim students wearing the hijab at a Catholic-run school in the Philippines, has sparked complaints and controversy.
Pilar College in Zamboanga has defended its decision to ban Muslim students from wearing the hijab. Many of the schools 3,000 pupils are Muslim. Ciibroadcasting reported the college president, Sister Maria Nina Balbas, defied the complaints the ban has generated by maintaining the school will continue to enforce the ban. Balbas said “Our origin is Roman Catholic and we cannot deviate from that origin.”
The school is the first in the Phillipines to ban the hijab, breaking the country’s tradition of religious tolerance. Alarabiya reported Mehol Sadain, head of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, had demanded the school reverse the ban.
