Controversy at various levels is surrounding the appearance of female announcers wearing the head cover on the Egyptian silver screen, according to the London-based daily, Al Sharq Al Awsat.
After banning the appearance of obese announcers last year, the continuous number of female announcers wearing the head-cover pose to a point that prompted officials to ban the appearance of any announcer wearing Islamic dress. The move came despite the fact that there is currently no law prohibiting announcers from wearing the head cover.
The crisis escalated when the Egyptian MP, Hamdi Hasan, inquired to the Minister of Information Safwat Al Sherif, about the reasons behind the prohibition. "Every girl has the right to wear a head cover. They (female announcers) have not committed any violation by wearing a head-cover, and there are also many top ranking women in the government who wear the cover without being asked to step down," Hasan told the minister.
For their part, announcers have expressed their resentment to the act. "Unfortunately, we have been victims of the prevailing tradition, that no announcer should appear wearing the Islamic dress, even if presenting a religious program," said Mu'tazzah Mahaba, the news announcer at Nile TV, who has recently started wearing the head cover.
Another announcer, Neviene Al Gondi, who works for channel 2 said, "I am happy wearing my head cover even if the TV officials are against it." - Albawaba.com
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
