The uniform rules over scarves

'IN EVERY SOCIETY today, schools are a key political battleground,' outspoken Singapore commentator Cherian George wrote some years ago.

'Everyone agrees that educating the young must be one of society's top priorities, and that schools should not only prepare children for the future, but also help parents teach them the right values. The problem is, there is rarely unanimity about what those values should be.'

The truth of that observation will be reaffirmed in the city-state in the coming weeks when four sets of Muslim parents deliver on their pledge to take the authorities to court in a case certain to garner extensive media attention, both locally and abroad. At issue is the Government's policy on a common school uniform, under which pupils may not wear Islamic-style headscarves, or tudung, when they attend classes.

Two of the families' children were suspended from government schools last February for wearing a tudung in class. A third was kept away from school by her parents after she was issued with a deadline to comply with the dress code, while a fourth was refused state schooling in 1999.

The parents claim their children's constitutional right to practise their faith is being compromised by the rules, while the Government says a uniform common to all faiths is essential if multicultural Singapore is to remain harmonious.

As the two sides appear unable to agree on what the country's shared values should be, it is time for the courts to decide. Prominent Islamic activist Zulfikar Mohamad Shariff, who is supporting the parents, says legal papers should be filed any day now, triggering the start of formal proceedings. 'We are going ahead,' Mr Zulfikar told the South China Morning Post.