THE Central Islamic Organisation of Guyana (CIOG) has condemned the call by prominent lawyer, Mr. Huckumchand, for a female Muslim to remove her Hijab, before being cross examined by him in a court matter regarding her husband.

CIOG’s General Manager Shafdar Alli alluded to the fact that the Hijab is a customary garment worn by female Muslims as a means of protection and modesty which is an act of obedience to God.
He noted that, as guaranteed by the constitution of Guyana, every Guyanese has a right to practise a religion of their choice.
“…clearly the act of this lawyer is a clear violation of this fundamental right and an insult to the Muslim community,” Ali charged.
“The CIOG calls on all right thinking human beings to support this sister on her stance to be cross examined with her garment on,” Alli said.
When contacted for a comment yesterday afternoon, Huckumchand confirmed that he had asked the female Muslim to remove her Hijab in court.
“With her face all covered up, I could not see her demeanor which is very important to the court…the court has to observe her demeanor,” Huckumchand said.
“I would not backtrack on the principle that every witness who goes into the box, that their demeanor must be observed and taken note of by the Trier of facts,” the lawyer declared.
He made it clear that while he is not attacking Muslims, he will continue to refuse to cross examine anyone in a courtroom if he cannot see the person’s face.
“I cannot, and will not, cross examine her if I am seeing only her eyes…while the constitution states that every man/woman is free to practise and follow his or her own religious beliefs, the court system has a certain mode of dress that must also be adhered to,” Huckcumchand argued.

“I am not going to apologise for the stand I took. If a person wears a Hijab and her face is shown I have no objection but if the face is completely covered with only her eyes showing then I will not cross examine her,” said an adamant Huckumchand.