The authors of this article consider the recent rise in the number of Indonesian women who wear the hijab by drawing on academic research to explore their decision to do so and the external factors that structure it. 

Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim nation, with 88 percent of its approximately 261 million people self-identifying as Muslims. In terms of customs, however, the way people practice religion in Indonesia varies significantly from the Middle East, where Islam originated. Veiling, for example, is widely considered a Middle Eastern custom that until recently was only embraced by a small minority of the rural population and the older generation. In the past two decades, however, there has been a rise in the number of women wearing the hijab, fueled primarily by young, well-educated women from urban areas. While Javanese women have long played prominent roles in family and public life, enjoying the right to own farm land, operate small businesses, participate in schooling, and even initiate divorce, this trend toward veiling poses questions about women's status and place in contemporary Indonesian society.

Ethnographic research in Indonesia reveals the motives of young Muslim women in donning the hijab to be intricate, often stemming from a desire to reconcile increased dedication to Islam and the values espoused therein, reflecting a new awareness and a deepening understanding of their religious duty. According to Nancy Smith-Hefner, women oppose the idea that external pressures influence their decision to veil, stressing the deeply personal character of the practice. Considering that veiling is a relatively new and foreign practice in Indonesia, which is not always welcomed by the older generation, women who do don the veil undertake this practice in defiance of the wishes of parents, husbands, and other figures of authority. Hence, rather than demonstrating women's lack of autonomy and heavy reliance on their parents, it points to women's agency, autonomy, and choice.

While women's testimonies reflect a commonality in understanding that the decision to veil must be voluntary and stem from a woman's own awareness and individual will, pressure to veil does surface in multiple accounts, according to Suzanne Brenner. Indeed, many women who do choose to veil do so, among other reasons, because of strong pressure from friends or siblings. Such findings undermine the assumption that veiling is the sole result of a woman's free choice and a manifestation of her agency.

The implications of such choice on women should also be considered. According to Brenner, while choosing to veil may indicate a women's autonomy and the ability to choose for herself, veiled women inevitably need to comply with various social norms that women who do not veil are not expected to obey. Smith-Hefner cites holding hands with male friends, avoiding tight clothes, and swimming as examples of such behavioral restrictions. Hence, careful consideration must be given to the idea that greater autonomy in personal choice does not automatically signify greater freedom. Indeed, a woman who chooses to veil often must act in ways that are decidedly more constrained than before veiling. 

Looking at this practice from a different angle, Elizabeth Bucar reports that in recent years veiling has also become a form of fashionable self-expression, with a growing movement of women wearing the veil for merely aesthetic reasons. Veiling, and most especially fashion-veiling, challenges both Western constructions of beauty and the moral authority of the male clerics. In doing so, veiling might be considered a form of liberation, allowing Indonesian women to determine the weight, virtue, or value of the veil, and by extension, Islamic dress in general. By redefining the functionality of the veil, women are also challenging notions that equate the veil to inward piety.

Veiling, according to Brenner, is also a way to challenge the Western notion of modernity. Increased dedication to Islam offers a way for Indonesians to validate their sense of belonging to the modern world without having to adopt a consumerist or self-indulgent Westernized lifestyle, which in the eyes of many Indonesians lacks morality and religiosity. By identifying with the international Islamic community, they join a modern, global fellowship of Muslims who imagine themselves united in a shared set of beliefs and values. Therefore, as Smith-Hefner argues, veiling functions as a symbol of participation in a world that is at once modern and Islamic. 

In addition, particularly among the ultra-religious Salafi women in Makassar, wearing the full chador (“cadar” in Indonesian) allows Salafi women greater visibility in the public sphere. Women who wear the chador and are actively involved in the Wahdah Islamiyah movement are no longer kept in the background. Instead, these women play an integral part in the recruitment of newcomers, and therefore in the continued development of the movement. Yet, it is critical to consider that wearing the chador is a precondition for that participation, and hence women’s agency depends on it. We learn from Smith-Hefner that veiling can also be a precondition for feeling secure in the public space, and may therefore be suggestive of disempowerment. Interactions within the coed framework of the university experience, Smith-Hefner tells us, have caused some university students to consider veiling as a means to enjoy freedom of movement while protecting against unwanted male advances and harassment.

Ultimately, women reported a multitude of reasons behind their decision to veil, not always relying on merely one. Their decision, it should be emphasized, is not always separated from the wider social context and the fear of suffering from a variety of societal implications. Hence, we suggest further research on the micro level to more fully understand the most prevalent motives for veiling, as well as consistent monitoring to better understand the trend as it evolves. Such an investigation should be focused on the decision-making processes of individuals, considering external factors that contribute to and affect it, rather than focusing on its outcome, which might be easily misinterpreted when removed from the broader cultural context. As such, it is crucial to consider social context in order to make sure that a women's own individual preferences are the main factors that determine her decision, and not external pressure.

References:

Elizabeth M. Bucar, “Secular Fashion, Religious Dress, and Modest Ambiguity: The Visual Ethics of Indonesian Fashion-Veiling,” Journal of Religious Ethics 44, no. 1 (2016): 68-90.