On Mar. 27, Singapore's Mufti, Nazirudin Mohd Nasir conveyed his views to Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong following public discussions on allowing Muslim nurses to wear the tudung while working.

In the letter addressed to PM Lee, Nazirudin said that they "warmly welcome" recent updates from the government, and noted that a decision will be made when the discussions with stakeholders have been concluded.

Decision on allowing the tudung to be announced

Previously, it was reported on Mar. 23 that Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said there is "likely to be a change" in the issue of nurses being allowed to wear the tudung at work.

He said that there had been discussions with MUIS, and internal discussions within the government.

Shanmugam said that they are also "consulting with the community before we make a change", and that community discussions were ongoing and would take a few more months.

When the discussions are complete, the government will announce their decision.

Mufti: Policy changes should be done sensitively

Nazirudin noted that on the issue of nurses donning the tudung, he and fellow asatizah (a plural term for Muslim religious scholars or teachers) are supportive of policy changes being done sensitively, without undermining social cohesion.

They will continue to provide reassurance and appropriate guidance to those affected while respecting the choices of these individuals.

Nazirudin said that together, they agreed that as social challenges become more complex, they must strive towards thoughtful and respectful public discussions.

These have to be motivated by a desire to "strengthen the common good and social harmony", he said.

Decision is complex with many considerations

"With the review, we hope the Muslim nurses will find comfort and continue to excel in their professionalism," Nazirudin said.

The letter adds that the Muslim community "fully appreciates" that the decision to let Muslim nurses don the tudung is a "complex" one with "many difficult and competing considerations".

Nazirudin wrote that it is not easy to manage different aspirations and expectations while being able to maintain a high level of trust and confidence between communities in a multireligious society.

He noted that the Muslim community fully supports the government's "secular and neutral stance" in treating the different religious groups equally, while they consult the community.

PM Lee responds

In response to Nazirudin's letter, PM Lee thanked him for expressing MUIS' support towards the government's deliberations, and thanked MUIS and the asatizah fraternity for participating in the government's consultations.

PM Lee also expressed his gratitude to Nazirudin and MUIS for helping to build Singapore's racial and religious harmony, noted that MUIS had stepped up on many occasions to lead interfaith efforts.

This includes outreach in recent months to the Christian and Jewish communities, in light of terrorist threats.

PM Lee's letter highlighted that Singapore has reached " a delicate balance" that considers the interests of all communities, through mutual accommodation, compromise and trust build amongst groups.

However, PM Lee stressed that this is dynamic, and new issues and pressures will arise as younger generations of Singaporeans grow up and attitudes change.

"Any change we make must be carefully considered and gradual. Only thus will the changes be understood and accepted by all communities, and the outcomes reinforce rather than weaken our racial and religious harmony."

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Top image via MUIS' Facebook page