Why is the 'jilbab' still forbidden?

From Republika

My sister, who is a junior high school student in East Jakarta, is being treated unfairly by the school management. It started when she had to take national exams, which requires a recent photograph. The simple act of taking a photograph became a problem when school management required pictures of the students without headdress. My sister, who wears a jilbab (Islamic head dress for women), also had to abide by the regulation. The reason given was: "It is a requirement made by the authorities."

The authorities threatened to withhold my sister's certificate if she refused to take off her jilbab for the photo.

It is not the first time a woman has been asked to remove her jilbab. In a country that prides itself on being at the forefront of Ketuhanan Yang Maha Esa (belief in one God) worship, why is this kind of religious discrimination still happening?

Schools teach us about the freedom of worship which is guaranteed by the 1945 Constitution. But isn't forbidding someone from wearing Islamic headdress when taking a passport-sized photograph a violation of the Constitution? I suggest the school examine its requirements on making photographs for the exams.

BOWO PRASETYO

Jakarta