Hijab pick of Indonesia fashion
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Reuters 19 December 2003
In Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, the Hijab has become a fashion, particularly among the rich and upper class.
A walk through upscale shopping malls like Plaza Senayan in the capital Jakarta is a real eye-opener. Women are covering up, but with a dazzling array of chic, colourful and often body-hugging Islamic clothes, often complemented by the latest accessories. Many smart department stores have opened separate sections for Islamic clothes and stores offer an assortment of magazines and books dedicated to design and Islamic dress for the modern woman. “Islamic dress has gone upper class,” says fashion designer Mira Aviva Zaki on the sidelines of her show at Jakarta’s Hilton Hotel. Although most Indonesians have long opted for a relatively liberal interpretation of the Muslim dress code, the basic rule of covering the body from head to toe still applies. “But we have added more colours and styles,” says Zaki. And the latest styles are proving a real hit. “For active Muslim women like me, I don’t feel out of fashion any more because there are so many styles and colours to choose from,” says banker Ani Mudiarti, her head swathed in bright orange. Hijab was only incorporated in official uniform at public schools and government services in the early 1990s. In 1990, when former president Suharto gave his blessing to the creation of an elite Muslim group openly dedicated to the Islamization of Indonesia, public perceptions of the Hijab started to change slowly. Ironically it was Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, a business mogul and Suharto’s eldest daughter, who helped make a change after she decided to cover her head with loose scarves. But the boom in the business of Muslim fashion came only after Suharto was forced to step down in the face of the country’s worst economic crisis in decades. “In the past two or three years, new designers have come up, especially at the middle to upper class boutiques. Every month there is always a new one,” said Herawati, whose magazine has tripled its circulation since it was first launched last July. Even glamour models are embracing Muslim clothes. Inneke Koesherawati, a former model recalled the day she decided to cover up I just came back from the Haj trip to Mecca and I didn’t feel comfortable any more without being covered,” said Koesherawati whose past movies left little to the imagination. Now Koesherawati insists those days are long gone. “I don’t feel old-fashioned, in fact I feel more cosmopolitan,” she says. “Society has now grown more tolerant of Islamic dress.” - Reuters
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