A popular adage says, “when you go to Rome, behave like the Romans." This one phrase has stuck with most people in different walks of life but not Major Fatima Isaacs, a South African military officer.
She was criminally indicted in June 2018 for not complying with military guidelines by wearing a scarf beneath her military beret while in uniform.
But in January of 2020, all charges against her were dropped by a military court in Cape Town. She was permitted to wear a tight black wrap beneath her beret provided it didn’t cover her ears.
This ruling, however, was only peculiar to Major Isaacs and did not apply to other female Muslim military officers. This prompted her to mount a case in South Africa’s equality court over regulations restricting religious wears.
Only this week, the military announced that it had made amendment to its dress policy and now allows headscarves to be part of the uniform for female Muslim officers. This was made known to the public on Thursday 28, by Mafi Mgobozi, the spokesman for the South African Defence Force (SANDF).
With this announcement, the Legal Resources Centre representating Major Isaacs had tweeted too that it’ll be withdrawing the case at the equality court.
So in the end, it’s a win-win situation for both parties. And you necessarily don’t have to behave like the Romans when in Rome.
