A Nigerian muslim lady, Sakinah Abayomi has narrated how an Igbo trader at the popular The Arena market in Oshodi, Lagos, assaulted her publicly by removing her Hijab.
Muslim News gathered that the unfortunate incident happened on Monday, May 1, when she was at the market to buy goods.
Ms Abayomi narrated the incident through her Twitter handle @therealkistore, saying, “Someone just removed my hijab at Oshodi market and everyone there was laughing. They were all Igbo men.
“I was still explaining that I am a Muslim and what he did was gross. They shouted back at me saying which stupid religion makes people cover their hair. Some of you shouldn’t exist at all,” she tweeted.
Ms Abayomi later spoke with Muslim News, where she explained what really happened.
According to her, I am a shopper. I sell sneakers and footwear. I was there to buy some of the stuff I sell from my customer, Frank Collection Sneakers. From Oshodi Under-bridge to Oshodi Street to The Arena Market. I’ve always been touched inappropriately. And when I get touched like that, I say politely “don’t touch me”.
“Yesterday, a guy I have never seen before appeared from nowhere and started hugging me from behind in a narrow pathway. I told him the same line and the next thing he said was “what’s even special in your body”.
The next thing he did was to pull off my hijab. It fell on the floor with the cap. I bent down to pick it and faced the man responsible, only for him to tell me what’s special on my hair. Everyone were all laughing and abusing me for placing so much importance on a piece of cloth worn over my head.
“It happened yesterday (Monday) around 4pm At the arena market at Frank’s shop. Frank is a witness that I know very well. I was very angry and I told him God will judge him because they were much people there who were laughing at me. They even bullied me out of the place while speaking their language, threatened to slap me”.
The victim is therefore calling for help either from government, human rights organisations or individuals, while advising Muslim women in hijab who might find themselves in the ugly situation to always stand for their right against oppression.
“I want justice. I deserve a sincere apology and a statement. I will like the government, human rights organisation or individuals to go to place where the incident happened (with or without me) and make them provide the guy that removed my hijab as well as those that geared him. I can recognise few of them.
“To my fellow Muslim ladies, especially those in Hijab, my advice is that they should be stronger than me and be able to fight for themselves, even if they are fighting alone,” she added.
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