For Muslim boys attending Hurstville Boys Campus of Georges River College in Sydney’s west, it is being reported that they are now permitted to decline shaking hands with women as to adhere to their faith.
This comes after several female community leaders attended an awards ceremony at the school and were told by two principals that some students would not shake their hands due to their religious beliefs.
This is because, according to an Islamic hadith bound to the religion, “it is better to be stabbed in the head with an iron needle than touch the hand of a woman who is not permissible to you”.
According to The Australian, the Education Department has backed the “agreed protocol”
“At the school’s 2016 presentation day, the principal explained to invited guests making awards that some Muslim students may place their hand across their chest instead of shaking hands,” a spokesman for the NSW Education Department explains.
‘The department require¬s its schools to recognise and respect the cultural, linguistic and religious backgrounds of all students, with the intent to promote an open and tolerant attitude towards a diverse Australian community¬,’ it said.
“Principals are best placed to know the needs of their local school communities when implementing this requirement.”
However, as former Islamic Council of Victoria secretary Kuranda Seyit told The Australian, despite the fact that those who choose not to shake a woman’s hand don’t mean any disrespect, some people do take the hadith too seriously.
“Students should be able to shake hands with the teacher or the principal, or receive a greeting from a visitor to the school.”
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