MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Education on Tuesday reiterated its policy of respecting the religious rights of students including the right of female Muslim school children to use veil or headdress (hijab) inside the campus.
In DepEd Order No. 32, the agency reiterated its policy on the protection of religious rights of students which was contained in DECS Order No. 53 series of 2001 entitled "Strengthening the Protection of Religious Rights of Students."
Based on the order, Muslim girls shall be allowed to wear appropriate clothing during Physical Education classes based on their religious beliefs. Muslim students shall not be required to participate in non-Muslim religious rites.
"These measures are part of our continuing thrust to make education universal, inclusive, and embracing of all faith," Education Secretary Armin Luistro said.
The Philippine Constitution guarantees the rights of citizens to freedom of religion and non-discrimination on the basis of sex, religion, creed, or color.
The DepEd said that for Muslim Filipino women who have been hired as Arabic Language and Islamic Values Education teachers, the wearing of ustadja (covering of the whole face) is allowed outside the classroom.
However, inside the classroom she is requested to remove the ustadja for proper identification of the teacher by the pupils thus promoting better teacher-pupil relationship.
The DepEd added that effective language teaching is better achieved when face covering is removed as pupils can clearly see the lip formation of the teacher when speaking which significantly helps in the correct production of the letter sounds.