Former diplomat Datuk Noor Farida Ariffin says the provision of sarongs at government departments to cover up ‘offending’ parts of the body indicated a growing religious conservatism on the part of many Malay Muslims. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, June 28, 2015.
It was also a case of little Napoleons trying to be “more pious than the Pope”, they said.
They added that it was time Putrajaya put a stop to this moral policing, saying the leadership must take a firm stand against those who abused the rights of the people seeking services at government departments.
They also said Cuepacs, the umbrella group of civil service unions, had no business endorsing such actions.
Human rights activist and lawyer Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said government departments were not places of worship where there would understandably be a dress code.
"They have to realise that these government offices are public premises, to serve the public and not to tell them how to dress.
"They have gone overboard in seeking to enforce a dress code. Who gave them the right?"
She added that this was not Malaysian culture and asked which society we were copying with this trend of growing conservatism.
"This isn't the Malaysian culture, who has the right to impose this culture on everyone without any discussion or agreement?
"It’s a unilateral imposition of a value system that is new and that has not been discussed widely and openly," she added.
Ambiga said while those visiting government departments should not be indecently dressed, it was a matter of opinion and as such, those manning the gates could not impose their personal views on the public.
Former diplomat Datuk Noor Farida Ariffin of the group of prominent Malays, or G25, wondered if the incidents involving the security guards stemmed from their own overzealousness or whether the orders were issued by their higher-ups.
In any case, she said the provision of sarongs to cover up “offending” parts of the body indicated a growing religious conservatism on the part of many Malay Muslims.
"It shows the intolerant attitude of these holier-than-thou Muslims and their willingness to impose their Islamic values on fellow Malaysians of other faiths.
"It also shows their lack of respect for other races and other cultures.”
Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam, the former secretary-general of the Ministry of Transport, termed it as a case of “little Napoleons trying to be more pious than the Pope”.
"You cannot dictate everybody's life, there must be self-respect which must be given due consideration unless the person is indecently dressed.
"But it's not like they were in their bikini or underpants, so what's the issue, why are they so affected by the sight of knees?" said the chairman of the ASLI Centre of Public Policy Studies.
Ramon said this was unheard of during his time in government service, when women wore mini dresses, as the philosophy was about allowing freedom of choice.
"We were more civilised and broad-minded, more accommodating, more tolerant and more caring.
“Now little Napoleons and despots are trying to run the country.”
Lawyer Latheefa Koya attributed the dress code policing to “exaggerated conservatism”, adding that it was quite unnecessary as Malaysians did not dress indecently.
She said in any case, the dress code was a mere guideline and should not be enforced as law.
She said the dress code went beyond issues of indecency because it also required men to wear collared shirts and shoes.
"This is clearly a case of misplaced priority since this will effectively deny certain types of people from accessing public services," she added.
The lawyer also reminded Cuepacs that civil servants were there to serve the public irrespective of the way they dressed and ought not to act as moral or fashion enforcers.
Firm stand on dress code enforcement
Latheefa said it was time for these guidelines to be reviewed.
Ambiga said there could be legal recourse if someone was refused entry and could not get their business settled in a government department.
"Let's say they went to get a licence and could not enter the building, and suffered damage, they would have legal recourse.”
Ramon urged the government to show leadership in order to put an end to this latest furore, saying that otherwise people would fear and resent going to government departments.
"The best thing for the government to do now is to come out with courage and confidence to state clearly their stand or face the consequences of people's approval or wrath.”
Noor Farida also urged the government to direct its agencies to stop issuing dress codes from now on, saying there was no legal basis for it.
"The government should put a stop to this unhealthy development.
"A member of the public, unless they have broken the law with regard to indecent exposure, cannot be denied the services that are being sought from the agency concerned on the basis of his or her attire.”
She also hit out at Cuepacs, saying she was surprised at its move to endorse the actions of the civil servants who gave out sarongs to “inappropriately” dressed members of the public to cover up.
"In my view, this is tantamount to moral policing and is something which Ceupacs has no business endorsing," she added.
A Road Transport Department guard caused a storm on social media for ordering a woman who had gone to the department’s Gombak office to cover up with a sarong.
The woman had worn a skirt above the knees.
On June 16, another woman was told to cover her legs before she was allowed into Sungai Buloh Hospital.
She was not given a sarong to wear but wrapped herself in a blanket from the hospital.
About a week later, two women were barred from entering the Selangor government headquarters in Shah Alam for wearing skirts which ended above their knees.
The RTD and hospital have issued apologies to the women involved in the three incidents, after they attracted public scorn, including from former ministers.
Cuepacs, however, praised the staff of these offices who had used their own money to buy sarongs for visitors deemed improperly dressed.
They also urged those visiting government institutions to abide by the dress code to prevent future incidents.
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