We championed wearing tudung for decades, says ex-MAS union
BY ANISAH SHUKRY
Published: 2 January 2016 7:30 PM
malaysian insider
A female cabin crew checks on passengers aboard Rayani Air, Malaysia’s first shariah-compliant airline. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, January 2, 2016.
A female cabin crew checks on passengers aboard Rayani Air, Malaysia’s first shariah-compliant airline. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, January 2, 2016.
For decades, the now-defunct MAS Employees Union (Maseu) pushed Malaysia Airlines to allow its Muslim cabin crew to wear the tudung and not serve alcohol on flights, said its former executive secretary Jabarullah Abd Kadir.
But the management turned a deaf ear for fear it would affect revenue, while government leaders ignored the matter because they did not "internalise Islam" (menjiwai Islam), said Jabarullah when contacted.
"We've been championing this since the beginning. We told our management that our members have been in tears because they want to be allowed to wear the tudung and not serve alcohol. But nothing has happened.
"When our Muslim leaders won't internalise Islam, how can we ever change?" he said.
And now Maseu, once the airline's biggest and most powerful workers’ union, can do nothing about it as it ceased to exist after Malaysia Airlines completed its restructuring exercise.
Jabarullah was commenting on Perlis Mufti Datuk Dr Asri Zainul Abidin's statement that the government should press Malaysia Airlines to allow Muslim flight attendants the option of wearing the tudung and not serving alcohol.
Dr Asri made his statement in a Facebook posting earlier today, and his post has garnered 38,326 likes and 7,965 shares
Jabarullah also poured scorn on the alleged double standards of Muslim society, saying he believed that if Malaysia Airlines' practices were enforced by a non-Muslim company, everyone would be kicking up a fuss.
"But when it's your own people (Malays) doing it, why is everyone quiet about it? All our leaders are Muslim, even the Malaysia Airlines management were mostly made up of Muslims before it was sold off.
"When a minister goes on Malaysia Airlines, obviously he can see the crew serving alcohol. He could raise this in the Cabinet because he has power. But has this even been discussed in Cabinet?" said Jabarullah.
He said it was a shame that Rayani Air, Malaysia's newest airline, could implement the shariah-compliant concept even though it was owned by a non-Muslim couple, yet Malaysia Airlines could not do the same.
The National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia (Nufam) has similarly raised this issue many times to the government, only to be met with silence, according to its president, Ismail Nasaruddin (pic).
But he said it was a "delicate issue" since Malaysia Airlines was seen as an international carrier.
"If the Muslim cabin crew want to wear the tudung and not serve alcohol, then what happens when most or even all of the cabin crew on a particular flight are Muslims?
"Who will serve alcohol to the non-Muslim passengers? Will Malaysia Airlines have to completely overhaul its image and stop serving alcohol? It can't. This is a complex issue," said Ismail.
He suggested that Malaysia Airlines cabin crew who felt strongly about the matter consider joining Rayani Air instead, since the new airline requires Muslim air stewardesses to don the tudung.
"Rayani Air did a good thing in the sense that, right from the start, it knew that it wanted to go with that concept. I hope Rayani Air can welcome those who want to be a part of its crew."
The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) said that, ideally, all employers should look into the religious requirement of their staff.
But MEF executive director Datuk Shamsuddin Bardan said as long as the government did not intervene with a policy stating otherwise, Malaysia Airlines was free to impose any conditions on its staff.
"Until and unless there's a ruling by authorities, I would say the existing practices and rules should apply, employers are free to decide what to do," he said, adding that each company had their reasons for putting into place such practices. – January 2, 2016.- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/we-championed-wearing-tudung-for-decades-says-ex-mas-union#sthash.AnCPNQWR.dpuf
But the management turned a deaf ear for fear it would affect revenue, while government leaders ignored the matter because they did not "internalise Islam" (menjiwai Islam), said Jabarullah when contacted.
"We've been championing this since the beginning. We told our management that our members have been in tears because they want to be allowed to wear the tudung and not serve alcohol. But nothing has happened.
"When our Muslim leaders won't internalise Islam, how can we ever change?" he said.
And now Maseu, once the airline's biggest and most powerful workers’ union, can do nothing about it as it ceased to exist after Malaysia Airlines completed its restructuring exercise.
Jabarullah was commenting on Perlis Mufti Datuk Dr Asri Zainul Abidin's statement that the government should press Malaysia Airlines to allow Muslim flight attendants the option of wearing the tudung and not serving alcohol.
Dr Asri made his statement in a Facebook posting earlier today, and his post has garnered 38,326 likes and 7,965 shares
Jabarullah also poured scorn on the alleged double standards of Muslim society, saying he believed that if Malaysia Airlines' practices were enforced by a non-Muslim company, everyone would be kicking up a fuss.
"But when it's your own people (Malays) doing it, why is everyone quiet about it? All our leaders are Muslim, even the Malaysia Airlines management were mostly made up of Muslims before it was sold off.
"When a minister goes on Malaysia Airlines, obviously he can see the crew serving alcohol. He could raise this in the Cabinet because he has power. But has this even been discussed in Cabinet?" said Jabarullah.
He said it was a shame that Rayani Air, Malaysia's newest airline, could implement the shariah-compliant concept even though it was owned by a non-Muslim couple, yet Malaysia Airlines could not do the same.
The National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia (Nufam) has similarly raised this issue many times to the government, only to be met with silence, according to its president, Ismail Nasaruddin (pic).But he said it was a "delicate issue" since Malaysia Airlines was seen as an international carrier.
"If the Muslim cabin crew want to wear the tudung and not serve alcohol, then what happens when most or even all of the cabin crew on a particular flight are Muslims?
"Who will serve alcohol to the non-Muslim passengers? Will Malaysia Airlines have to completely overhaul its image and stop serving alcohol? It can't. This is a complex issue," said Ismail.
He suggested that Malaysia Airlines cabin crew who felt strongly about the matter consider joining Rayani Air instead, since the new airline requires Muslim air stewardesses to don the tudung.
"Rayani Air did a good thing in the sense that, right from the start, it knew that it wanted to go with that concept. I hope Rayani Air can welcome those who want to be a part of its crew."
The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) said that, ideally, all employers should look into the religious requirement of their staff.
But MEF executive director Datuk Shamsuddin Bardan said as long as the government did not intervene with a policy stating otherwise, Malaysia Airlines was free to impose any conditions on its staff.
"Until and unless there's a ruling by authorities, I would say the existing practices and rules should apply, employers are free to decide what to do," he said, adding that each company had their reasons for putting into place such practices. – January 2, 2016.- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/we-championed-wearing-tudung-for-decades-says-ex-mas-union#sthash.AnCPNQWR.dpuf
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