Putrajaya will conduct a review of what Malaysian athletes should wear when they represent the country at sporting events, following the furore over national gymnast Farah Ann Abdul Hadi’s uniform at the SEA Games in Singapore.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Jamil Khir Baharom told Parliament’s lower Dewan Rakyat last night that the Federal Government had to pay serious attention to public issues that could “shame and taint” the religion of Islam.
“We take attention of this matter so that this becomes a lesson, in whichever field, including sports, for us to look into the clothing and attire,” he said last night in his closing arguments in the debate over the Religous Affairs Department for the 11th Malaysia Plan.
Jamil was speaking in response to a question from Rantau Panjang MP Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff of PAS, who asked if the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) had issued directives on clothing for national athletes that the Youth and Sports Ministry could in turn implement.
“Not only in sports, but in all areas, Islam does not deny the responsibility of closing the aurat be it for men or women. This is something that cannot be denied or challenged, because this is the view of Islam,” he said, as quoted by The Malaysian Insider‘s Ram Anand.
The online furore over Farah Ann’s uniform has brought out detractors and supporters in droves, with Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin being one of the most prominent Malaysians defending Farah Ann’s attire.
Today, Khairy made a thinly-veiled jab at Jamil and JAKIM’s proposed guidelines when he tweeted this:
Farah Ann’s supporters online have numbered in the thousands.
Photo: Reuters
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