KEY POINTS:
Are Muslim women really demanding their own swimming pools? Really? Or is this just a beat-up story designed to get hot and grumpy journalists through the silly season?
If I'd been working as a talkback host during the Christmas break, I would have seized on this story like mana from heaven. Nothing gets the phone lines jumping like a story about other people refusing to behave like real New Zealanders and wanting special treatment to accommodate their silly customs. Like a special swimming pool where Muslim women can swim away from leering, slobbering men.
But look a little closer at the story. A Muslim woman, Naaz Shah, was reported in the Christchurch Press as calling for special pool facilities for Muslim women where they could swim without compromising their beliefs. According to Naaz Shah, the lack of a special water sports facility meant Muslim women had no opportunity to exercise and as a result they were becoming unfit and depressed. What a load of bollocks. There's a number of things wrong with this story. One Muslim woman does not represent the views of her entire community. Indeed, the chief executive of the Muslim Association said he wasn't aware of any reports of Muslim women being made to feel uncomfortable at pools. And what about questioning Naaz Shah about other forms of exercise?
Obviously, beach volleyball is out for a good, Allah-fearing Muslim girl, but how about fencing? You're covered from head to toe, including a face mask - that should appease even the most fundamentalist of mullahs. If finding a fencing club proves difficult, there's a chain of women-only gyms around the country, many gyms have women-only exercise areas and most pools have women-only training squads. There are walking groups around the country where there are no dress requirements - all you have to do is put one foot in front of the other and you're away.
All of these facilities have been established because it's not just modest Muslim women who are reluctant to expose their bodies to the world. Any overweight man or woman will tell you of the nerve required to take that first step into the pool or gym and their reluctance to step out of their shapeless, formless garments and into exercise gear.
As it is, most people are far too busy getting on with their own routine to be looking at anyone else, but nonetheless, the fear remains and it's not confined to those of a particular belief or faith.
Bored journalists shouldn't be mischievous and Naaz Shah should realise her head isn't there simply to hold up her headscarf. There's a brain in there she could use.
