Muslim women help non-Muslims try the hijab

(1 Feb 2017) LEADIN:
Muslim women have been promoting the headscarf for World Hijab Day.
They have been helping non-Muslims to try the head covering as a means of supporting religious tolerance.

STORY-LINE:
Proudly wearing their headscarves, woman in Sarajevo are marking World Hijab Day.
A group of young Muslims have organised this event to support religious tolerance.
They're helping non-Muslims to try the traditional headscarf and through that understand Islam a little bit better.
The woman are also on hand to answer any questions from curious members of the public.
Mirzeta Naser is one of organisers of this event and feels it is her "duty" to wear a headscarf.
"I am proud of my hijab and of my faith and especially of my God who has instilled the desire to wear the hijab in my heart," she says.
"My message for the world is that Islam is a peaceful, tolerant religion and that nobody should fear the hijab because at this time it protects the woman."
Not all Muslim women wear the headscarf - some do not believe it is a requirement of Islam.
World Hijab Day was founded by New Yorker Nazama Khan in 2013 and has since attracted interest from Muslims and non-Muslims in more than 140 countries across the world.
The idea behind it is to counteract the widespread perception that Muslim women wear headscarf because they are oppressed and forced by men to stay away from the rest of society.
Dijana Majstorovic is a non-Muslim who is taking the opportunity to try the hijab.
"Religion and politics are two different things, but they are being mixed now and politicians are assigning blame to entire groups of people of specific nationalities or religious backgrounds or people who dress differently," she says.
The square where today's hijab-wearing session is taking place is in the old town, an area popular with tourists.
It means the headscarf is being is being brought to the attention of a diverse range of women.
"The only difference between them and Muslims is that Muslims observe Islam," says another of the event organisers, Almedina Musinbegovic.
World Hijab Day has thousands of volunteers worldwide and more than ambassadors from over 45 countries.

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