Norway: Youth suffer from religious coercion
Related stories:
* Norway: Education minister against hijab in elementary school
* Norway: Debate on headscarf in school continues
Youth from both Christian and Muslim families say that they forced to use religious symbols. Girls at the Hersleb school in Oslo say that they themselves choose to wear the hijab. But they too know of others who are forced.
Both Redd Barna (save the children ) and SEIF (self-help for immigrants and refugees) are seeing a steady stream of report from children and youth who face religious coercion.
One of those is 'Aisha', who was 11 years old when she came to Norway from Somalia. She wasn't used to wearing the hijab at home. But at her uncle in Oslo she was soon banned from wearing pants and forced to go with a hijab. If she chose to go bare-headed, she was beaten.
"It wasn't so much about religion as about controlling me. That I was modest and virtuous," says Aisha today, and regrets that she doesn't dare come forward with her real name.
She does, however, want to contribute the current debate about wearing the hijab in elementary school.
"I think it's sad to have to talk about banning. But who can claim that a child of 7 years old chooses to cover themselves on their own? Why sexualize innocent children by having to protect them from men's sexual gaze?" she asks, and urges Muslim parents to wait until their girls can choose by themselves.
At Hersleb school in Oslo, five Muslim secondary school girls enter the debate. Three of them chose to wear the hijab. Two want to wait until they feel they're ready.
"I began when I was seven, because I myself wanted it. Had it been banned in elementary school, I would have protested. I felt protected and respected with the hijab," says Noora Abdelghafar.
"I think it's too early to begin in elementary school, then you don't know why you should do it. I'm still waiting to be ready," says Hirisha Memeti, who like the others thinks a ban is completely wrong.
"Then you force those who really want to. Do we bother anybody, like this? It's just a scarf," says Kowsar Osman.
But they understand the reason for a ban: to prevent coercion.
"I know of many who are forced to wear the hijab. One even ran away from home. It's completely wrong. Then they're not happy in their religion," says Noora.
"I also know children who are coerced. But those who use coercion make Islam have a negative reputation. Islam is freedom," Dilan Secici, who is also waiting with her own hijab.
"It's good that the politicians want to help those who are pressured. But then I think the Children's Welfare Agency is better than a ban," concludes Noora.
Gerd Fleischer of SEIF also isn't certain a ban policy is proper. But she is certain that many girls in Norway are forced to wear the hijab, likely combined with forced marriage and honor-related violence.
"I don't have figures on how many stories of coercion and beatings I've heard. But outward everybody is against coercion," says Fleischer, who urges the resource-rich hijab wearers to support their silent sisters.
"It's unfortunate that those who are coerced get so little support from the community."
But ethnic Norwegian youth also experience religious pressure. Redd Barna has mapped out how they experience living in an isolated Christian community.
"Norwegian youth are punished both physically and mentally when they violate the community's norms. They tell of a strict religious upbringing where contact with children and youth outside the community is prohibited, and where both everyday life and leisure time are characterized by religion," says Marianne Borgen, head of the Redd Barna Norway program.
Throughout a two year period the organization spoke with 250 youth on how they saw the isolation, and how they struggled to adapt to live in the mainstream society after they were old enough to break with their family and the strict religious framework they had.
"Humility and self-destruction are seen as a virtue, and even if the children go to a regular school, they say that they don't get to participate in football and other activities in their spare time. The parents often want them to go together to religious meetings instead. The isolation means that many of them have problems adapting to a normal life when they break out from the community," says Borgen.
She brings the following example:
The parents of a boy who was caught lying, hung a sign around his neck that said "don't speak to him". He had to wear the sign for a week in the private school that he went to.
"It's important to focus on children who experience such violations. We don't dare debate these things because many think religious and faith issues belong to the private life sphere."
Source: Aftenposten (Norwegian)
Related stories:
* Norway: Education minister against hijab in elementary school
* Norway: Debate on headscarf in school continues
Youth from both Christian and Muslim families say that they forced to use religious symbols. Girls at the Hersleb school in Oslo say that they themselves choose to wear the hijab. But they too know of others who are forced.
Both Redd Barna (save the children ) and SEIF (self-help for immigrants and refugees) are seeing a steady stream of report from children and youth who face religious coercion.
One of those is 'Aisha', who was 11 years old when she came to Norway from Somalia. She wasn't used to wearing the hijab at home. But at her uncle in Oslo she was soon banned from wearing pants and forced to go with a hijab. If she chose to go bare-headed, she was beaten.
"It wasn't so much about religion as about controlling me. That I was modest and virtuous," says Aisha today, and regrets that she doesn't dare come forward with her real name.
She does, however, want to contribute the current debate about wearing the hijab in elementary school.
"I think it's sad to have to talk about banning. But who can claim that a child of 7 years old chooses to cover themselves on their own? Why sexualize innocent children by having to protect them from men's sexual gaze?" she asks, and urges Muslim parents to wait until their girls can choose by themselves.
At Hersleb school in Oslo, five Muslim secondary school girls enter the debate. Three of them chose to wear the hijab. Two want to wait until they feel they're ready.
"I began when I was seven, because I myself wanted it. Had it been banned in elementary school, I would have protested. I felt protected and respected with the hijab," says Noora Abdelghafar.
"I think it's too early to begin in elementary school, then you don't know why you should do it. I'm still waiting to be ready," says Hirisha Memeti, who like the others thinks a ban is completely wrong.
"Then you force those who really want to. Do we bother anybody, like this? It's just a scarf," says Kowsar Osman.
But they understand the reason for a ban: to prevent coercion.
"I know of many who are forced to wear the hijab. One even ran away from home. It's completely wrong. Then they're not happy in their religion," says Noora.
"I also know children who are coerced. But those who use coercion make Islam have a negative reputation. Islam is freedom," Dilan Secici, who is also waiting with her own hijab.
"It's good that the politicians want to help those who are pressured. But then I think the Children's Welfare Agency is better than a ban," concludes Noora.
Gerd Fleischer of SEIF also isn't certain a ban policy is proper. But she is certain that many girls in Norway are forced to wear the hijab, likely combined with forced marriage and honor-related violence.
"I don't have figures on how many stories of coercion and beatings I've heard. But outward everybody is against coercion," says Fleischer, who urges the resource-rich hijab wearers to support their silent sisters.
"It's unfortunate that those who are coerced get so little support from the community."
But ethnic Norwegian youth also experience religious pressure. Redd Barna has mapped out how they experience living in an isolated Christian community.
"Norwegian youth are punished both physically and mentally when they violate the community's norms. They tell of a strict religious upbringing where contact with children and youth outside the community is prohibited, and where both everyday life and leisure time are characterized by religion," says Marianne Borgen, head of the Redd Barna Norway program.
Throughout a two year period the organization spoke with 250 youth on how they saw the isolation, and how they struggled to adapt to live in the mainstream society after they were old enough to break with their family and the strict religious framework they had.
"Humility and self-destruction are seen as a virtue, and even if the children go to a regular school, they say that they don't get to participate in football and other activities in their spare time. The parents often want them to go together to religious meetings instead. The isolation means that many of them have problems adapting to a normal life when they break out from the community," says Borgen.
She brings the following example:
The parents of a boy who was caught lying, hung a sign around his neck that said "don't speak to him". He had to wear the sign for a week in the private school that he went to.
"It's important to focus on children who experience such violations. We don't dare debate these things because many think religious and faith issues belong to the private life sphere."
Source: Aftenposten (Norwegian)
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