Matahari Department Store In Ramadhan Knees Panic?
Traffic in Jakarta yesterday was a delight, a real change from the usual nightmare.
=
The USUAL!
=
First day of Ramadhan, so kids off school, people staying home for family fun. It took me under an hour to get from home to Blok M, where I’d a lunch-time rendezvous with some Indonesian friends. I say lunch-time rather than lunch, because they were fasting.
Arriving way too early, I decided to hang out at JCO with my recently acquired IPad and have a non-fasting coffee while communicating with important folks overseas.
==
=
Oh no! JCO no longer has a Blok M Plaza outlet!
Never one to waste a trip, I went downstairs and bought some potatoes in Giant supermarket.
=
=
Then, in case there might be handy discounts in Matahari, I ascended to that fine department store and….
HUH?!?!
One of the joys of shopping there has always been their personnel department’s choice of staff.
=
=
Matahari shop assistants are almost without exception very pretty. Their uniforms – as above, though I didn’t take that photo myself – comprise red tops and black skirts, look smart ,and, while not overtly sexy, enhance the employees’ good looks.
But when I entered, I saw to my dismay that the girls have all been TROUSERED!
Needless to say, I made enquiries and was calmly informed that they had been ORDERED to abandon the skirts for the duration of Ramadhan.
Can this be true?
My further enquiries, if this bizarre diktat applied to only Muslim staff or was it being imposed on Christian, Hindu or Buddhist girls – who obviously do not, and are not required to, observe the Islamic Holy Month – went unanswered.
Either the people I spoke to didn’t know or were unwilling to say more.
This is worth asking about, given the fuss made every year by Islamist fanatics, when stores ask staff to wear Santa hats.
Jemaah Ansharusy Sharia, which aims to spread leaflets about the ban on use of Christmas accessories by Muslims. In the leaflet, JAS forbids Muslims to help Christians who were preparing for Christmas.
——–
Outfit NEVER seen in ANY Jakarta mall!
———
They also appealed to employers not to force Muslim employees to wear Christmas accessories. http://www.harianindo.com/2014/12/19/34805/fpi-meminta-agar-perayaan-natal-tidak-menganggu-pemeluk-agama-lain/
‘FORCE’ is surely the key word.
If Matahari girls want to wear trousers, at Ramadhan, because they think a glimpse of their nice knees might distract the devout from the introspection demanded by their creed at this time of year, okay, that’s one thing.
I find it unlikely, because the uniform skirts are perfectly respectable, hardly micro-minis. Even so, they can take their case to management.
But for management arbitrarily to order a cover-up of ALL knees?
What’s wrong with knees anyway?
=
In Sumatra, Knee-ophobia Rules! No Knees is GOOD Knees!
Well, lots, according to certain authorities on the subject!
Fear And Loathing of Knees In MaIaysia, Truly Arabia!
ooooooooooooo
Jim in Jakarta 21:00 on May 18, 2018 Permalink |
My apologies Ross. I doubted you.
I could not believe that Matahari really did something as pathetic as making all those pretty girls wear trousers for a month.
Today I made a special trip to check your report.
Not a knee to be seen!
Are the other big department stores doing the same to their staff?
LikeLike