Paki police ask women to cover heads, keep low profile in public

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) -- The capital's police chief urged women to cover their heads, dress simply and refrain from laughing loudly in public to avoid attracting criminals and trouble makers, a newspaper reported Monday.

Women and girls should keep a low profile to keep any would-be criminals away, said Nasir Durrani, according to the Urdu-language newspaper The Jang.

"Keep a serious and stern expression on your faces when you go to the market, parks and other public places," The Jang quoted Durrani as telling students of a women's college in the capital, Islamabad. Decent clothing, including a head covering, is also a natural defense for a woman, he said.

In Pakistan, where the army took power last year, there has been a growing influence of Islamic parties. In some parts of the Northwest Frontier Province, which borders Afghanistan, there has been a growing Taliban movement espousing the same strict brand of Islamic law adhered to by Afghanistan's Taliban rulers.

In Afghanistan, women are not allowed to work, girls older than 8 may not attend school, and women in public must wear a burqa, or a head-to-toe shroud that veils their face. They also must only travel with a male relative.
 

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