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Muslim Public Affairs Council spokesperson reacts to FIFA ruling

Edina Lekovic, communcations director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, speaks out on the issue of the hijab in soccer and culture.

By Eric Alvarez
Neverwalkalone.com

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Muslim female protesters
Photo: Keystone)

Iranian players Shihrin Nasiri, left and Saedeh Ahmadi, right in official match in 2005.
Photo: AP - Muhammad Al-Kisswany)

The Muslim Public Affairs Council, based in Los Angeles, has worked for years to bridge the gap between muslim traditions and the misunderstandings that can lead to stereotypes.

The Muslim headscarf is known as a hijab in the Arabic language.

It is an expression of a woman's identity in the Muslim culture and entirely optional in most communities in North America, according to Edina Lekovic, communications director of the organization.

"It is intended to be a symbl of modesty, more than anything else," Lekovic said. "So that a woman is taken and considered for her mind, for her intellect rather than for her body or her sexuality."

Continuing controversy
The FIFA ruling over the ejection of Asmahan Mansour, 11, from a Canadian youth soccer tournament is just the latest in a string of human rights violations, Lekovic said.

"This is just like cases where states discriminate by refusing to issue driver's licenses to women who wear the hijab," Lekovic said.

According to Lekovic, the soccer federation should alter its ruling concerning the hijab ban. "As a world-recognized organization, FIFA should do more to break these sorts of barriers," Lekovic said.

"I think the rule should be modified," Lekovic said. "I think that with every rule there comes an exception depending on the need of individuals."

"Headgear in a rulebook usually refers to a helmet," she said. "To suggest that someone could get hurt because of a piece of cloth is just asinine."

Lekovic said she understands the rules are to protect the players and should be enforced. But perhaps exceptions could be made in independent youth leagues.

"For a group that has worked so hard to spread the sport to women and different cultures all over the world, I would it to have done more with their decision," Lekovic said.

Lekovic commented on the decision of the International Football Association Board, which administers the rules for FIFA, that neither banned the hijab or allowed it but left the decision up to the discretion of the referee.

Edina Lekovic of the Muslim Public Affairs Council reacttion