The Hon. (Dr.) M.L.A.M. Hizbullah

¶ 01 Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim.

¶ 02 Hon. Speaker, under Standing Order 27(2), I wish to question the Minister of Health and Mass Media.

¶ 03 Hon. Minister, in recent days there have been discussions in society and the media regarding the attire of Muslim female nurses. I wish to state:

¶ 04 On 07 August 1992, I brought a Private Member’s Motion in this Parliament seeking permission for Muslim female nurses, in addition to their uniform, to wear trousers in government and private hospitals. In that motion I stated that nursing is a universal profession serving all communities, and government should enable all communities to participate in conformity with their culture and religion. Muslim women find it difficult to work without trousers as Islam does not permit wearing only the upper garment without appropriate lower garments. Therefore, Muslim nurses should be allowed to wear uniform consistent with their religion and culture.

¶ 05 Members from all communities supported the motion; the then Hon. Speaker, the late Al Haj M.H. Mohammed, from the Chair, also stated that this motion should be adopted so that Muslim nurses can wear uniforms in line with their cultural practice. With the consent of the then Minister of Health, Hon. Renuka Herath, the motion was unanimously agreed to—“Motion agreed.”

¶ 06 Since then, for about 33 years, in all government and private hospitals, Muslim nurses have been permitted to wear trousers with their uniforms, and no issues arose. Thousands of Muslim women have served the nation as nurses accordingly. However, in recent months, in the National Nurses Training School and in some other hospitals, permission is reportedly being refused.

¶ 07 Hon. Minister, as a representative from the plural Kalutara District and a Minister respected by all communities, will you issue a circular through your Ministry to relevant departments and institutions to fully implement the permission for Muslim female nurses to wear attire that preserves our culture?