Jakarta, Indonesia – Indonesia’s national motto is unity in diversity, but Wiwin’s experiences in school have made her question how that maxim plays out in real life.
The 21-year-old lives in West Java. Her family is part of a religious minority called Sunda Wiwitan, who venerate nature and ancestral worship.
She said she faced relentless pressure in high school to wear a “jilbab”, a loose garment worn by some Muslim women, which covers the head, neck and chest.
She told Al Jazeera she often cried after school.
“They [a group of seven teachers] questioned me in the headmaster’s office, asking, what is your religion … who is your God … where is your holy book?” Wiwin recounted.
But but but… Indonesia bans forced religious attire in schools
