Saturday
20th Apr 2024
Dhivehi Edition
An MNU campus. Photo: MNU
A student at the Maldives National University has experienced discrimination on account of a face-veil she wears for religious reasons.
The MNU’s Faculty of Engineering, Science, and Technology produced a promotional video which included the student, and then removed the video within a short while of uploading it. The video was later re-uploaded with the scenes that included the student cut out and replaced with still photos.
When the student had asked the university why her scenes had been removed, they responded that it was to shorten the video. However, replacing her screentime with still images did not change the runtime of the video.
The student vented her frustration on her personal Facebook page. She said that she had “a lot of work” in the way of assignments, but gave her time because she “wanted to do something for her university”.
She asked if her scenes were cut out because of the face-veil she wore. “Is it because of my niqab [ie. face-veil] that I cannot be on the front and represent my faculty?” she wrote. “Does the time and initiation that I was willing to give not matter?”
She further asked how excluding her on account of her religious practices factored into “talks of female empowerment”.
Many people have spoken out in support of the student and decried the MNU’s actions. The MNU has not given an official response.