Indonesia’s Aceh province have dispensed 20,000 long skirts and forbid stores to sell tight clothes and dresses as the Tight Pants Ban took effect on Thursday.
Muslim women are not allowed to wear revealing clothes and anyone caught disobeying the dress code would be given a long skirt.
Mr. Ramli Mansur, head of the West Aceh district, said they would enforce the dress code campaign for two months and the Islamic police would decide if a woman violates the code or not.
On Thursday, several raids were conducted and the authorities caught 18 women who were riding motorbikes and wore jeans. They were given long skirts and their pants were confiscated. And, after listening to pieces of advice given by Islamic preachers, they were released.
One of the women taken into police custody was a 40-year-old woman who said, “I am not wearing sexy outfits, but they caught me like a terrorist only because of my jeans. Wearing jeans is more comfortable when I travel by motorbike.”
Mansur explained, “The rule applies only to Muslim residents in West Aceh. We don’t enforce it for non-Muslims, but are asking them to respect us.”
