Egypt TV channel gives veiled women new face

CAIRO - Reuters

Veiled women recording a program in a studio of a new TV channel in this file photo. REUTERS photo

Abeer Shahin graduated from the prestigious American University in Cairo but struggled to find a job because of employers’ aversion to her full Islamic face veil, or niqab.

But now she has found a job she hopes will change how Egyptian society views niqab wearers once and for all: she is going to work as a TV anchor for a new channel being managed and run exclusively by women who wear the full veil.

“It’s unfair to deal with veiled women as a standard religious housewife. No, she can be a
doctor, a professor and an engineer,” said Shahin, wearing a loose black robe and a black head scarf that reveals only her eyes.

“I was told that it (TV anchorwoman wearing niqab) won’t work because of the body language.
 Well, the tone of my voice can convey my emotions and reactions.”

In an age of new freedoms in the post-Hosni Mubarak Egypt, niqab-wearing women long oppressed socially and politically are hoping for a new place in society.

Though Egypt is a deeply conservative and predominantly Muslim society, niqab wearers have cited discrimination in the job market, education and elsewhere.

There have been instances where some were even prevented from sitting their university exams.