The Burqini Hitting A Shore Near You!

Here's an excerpt of the news I picked up from Bernama while surfing a few nights ago:
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February 04, 2007 11:27 AM
MELBOURNE, Feb 4 (Bernama) -- A new two-piece, head-to-toe polyester swimsuit, is set to revolutionise beach going for devout Muslim women in Australia, Australian National News Agency AAP said in a report today.

The "burqini", which has already been sold to more than 9,000 women in Sydney, is suitable for surf life saving patrols and has been endorsed by the Australian Islamic Council and the mufti of Australia....

...."The whole point is to get women active in the water, to encourage women to participate in sporting activities, in swimming activities, and wearing the burqini allows them to do that,".....

....there had already been a rush for the two-piece swimsuits which were priced between A$150 and A$200....

.....SLSA spokesman Lee Howell told the news agency the Australian Islamic Council was very comfortable with the apparel.

"The mufti (Sheik Taj Aldin Alhilali) has personally endorsed the burqini as being appropriate and permissible for cultural and religious reasons," he said......
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Personally, it's both exhilarating and liberating to learn about the laudable invention of alternative swimwears designed specially for Muslim women donning the headscarfs.

This news also serves as a food for thought for me, the non-tudung ('tudung' is Malay equivalent of scarf) wearer, by ruminating on the prejudices attached to those hijab-wearers when they do go to the beach. People would snigger or be appalled at the sight of them swimming in their daily top and bottom. I think everyone, regardless of their color and creed, is entitled to enjoy the benefits that a seaside has to offer.

Another thing that peeves me is the skewed perceptions and criticisms thrown at this Burqini on the basis that it 'looks' uncomfortable, thus somehow translating it to being prone to water-logging. Purely relying on its physical attributes, the naysayers were hasty to decry the positive aspects of the Burqini.

One myopic commenter ridiculed the swimsuit by likening it to an attire more suited to alienbeings ala Queen Amidala of Star Wars. Actually, come to think of it, I wasn't sure if that was a compliment or an insult...

Another went off tangent by highlighting the plight of some Burqa-clad Muslim women who are constantly struggling within the small confines of their patriachal-driven lives. And I had thought the Burqini is to facilitate this restriction by giving women more freedom to hit the beaches, in an attire more appropriate and comfortable to them.

Granted, in some corners of the globe, women are still being relegated to submissive roles in society and subjected to other cultural-constraints, but to dismiss this invention as farcical at best and hokey at worst, goes against the progressive spirit of the Burqini project.

This was what Lebanese-descent but Australian-based, Aheda Zanetti had in mind when she embarked on this ambitious and risky endeavor. In her website's testimony, she divulged "By providing the appropriate clothing for the Muslim woman, who complies with religious, cultural and sports obligation, we are helping to bring out the best in Muslim woman, to prove that a Muslim woman is a role model to other women in the world, not an oppressed, no name, and no face being."

Fundamentalists, agnostics, atheists, feminists, so-called reformists and anything in between may have their reasons and agendas to disdain the Burqini. Yet, in the beach bum culture of Australia, Aheda has hit upon a goldmine that suitably caters to Australian Muslim women wearing the headscarfs. And looking at the burgeoning number of orders from all over the world, this innovation proves to be a lucrative niche.

In my opinion, the Burqini symbolises, on some levels, a welcome advancement in Muslim women's activities outside of their domestic domain. Without a doubt, the freedom of swimming comfortably goes beyond the existing outlets available for recreational purposes.

For me, in the future when I do decide to don the scarf, the Burqini will come in handy for beach-related activities - although I can readily admit I do not know how to swim. :-) (I can however swim backwards for one side of the pool to another, provided I can touch the bottom of the pool with my feet!)

Besides, with the Australian mufti's stamp of approval, I have only this to say: We Muslim women have definitely come a long way.

Now, if only they would bring down the price from the hefty AUD150-200!

For other news on Burqini, please click here and here.