SINGAPORE, Feb 4: A school in Singapore on Monday suspended two Muslim schoolgirls for wearing headscarves in defiance of a government rule, as criticism of the policy mounted from Malaysia.

The education ministry said in a statement that Nurul Nasihah and Siti Farwizah, both aged seven, were suspended. A third school girl, Siti Amir, was absent from class on Monday, the deadline for the girls to stop wearing the scarves.

Another schoolgirl, Khairah Faroukh, was given until Monday to comply with the ruling because she started wearing the headgear, or tudung, only on Jan 14, a week after the three others.

The case has tested racial relations in ethnically diverse Singapore and exposed ethnic and religious differences in a country long envied for its social stability.

It has also drawn criticism from largely Muslim Malaysia, Singapore’s northern neighbour.

Nurul’s father Mohamed Nasser said his daughter cried on being informed it would be her last day at the Whitesands Primary School.

The girls had been threatened with suspension on Monday if they continued to violate a government ban on headscarves in school in a rule designed to promote harmony among ethnic groups.

The scarves can be worn to and from school but have to be taken off during lessons.

Nasser said he and his daughter were ushered into the principal’s office as they arrived at the school Monday and told about the suspension.

“When I told her that it might be her last day she felt bad, she was crying. She was feeling very sad,” he said.

“The principal hugged my daughter and told us she can still return on condition that we complied with the rules. She (the principal) said she will not erase my daughter’s name from the rolls,” Nasser said.

“To comfort her, I promised I will buy her some big coloured pencils,” he said.

But Nasser, who is among 453,000 mostly Muslim Malays in the largely ethnic Chinese city-state, was adamant that his daughter would not comply with the government rule “at the expense of my religion.”

“The most important thing in my life is my religion. I can’t compromise on my religion. I am holding on to my faith strongly,” he said, adding that his wife supported his decision.

Although the case of the girls has been front-page news here, most of the Muslim minority in largely ethnic Chinese Singapore are supportive of the government.

The third major ethnic group in Singapore are the Indians, some of whom are also Muslims.

Nasser said he would ask his daughter to remove the headgear if the government gave written assurance that she would be allowed to resume wearing the scarf when she reached puberty or secondary school.

Otherwise he would have to enrol her in a Muslim religious school, he said, adding though that these schools were already full and their quality was not as good as government schools.

The government’s headscarf policy has elicited criticism from officials and groups in neighbouring Malaysia, including the deputy education minister Datuk Abdul Aziz.

The latest salvo Monday came from opposition politician Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, wife of jailed former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.

“Just as the attire of Sikhs, nuns and monks do not contribute to social disharmony, we believe the choice of wearing a certain attire by Muslims would not lead to social disintegration,” said Wan Azizah.

“In fact, tolerating and facilitating the expression of religion as understood by adherents of a particular faith could only lead to a society imbued with tolerance and moral virtues,” she said.

Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at the weekend urged Singaporeans to reject foreign interference, saying “race and religious relations in Singapore are matters for Singaporeans to decide, not foreigners.”

The fathers of two Muslim primary students said their daughters would wear Islamic headscarves to Singapore schools on Monday despite Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong’s warning of suspensions.—dpa