A/HRC/43/48/Add.2 45. The Office for National Unity and Reconciliation, the Select Committee of Parliament and other stakeholders have made similar recommendations on the urgent need to review and reform the current curriculum and education system in order to develop a more inclusive system. The Special Rapporteur is of the opinion that serious investment in the education of young people is essential, and the school curriculum should be designed to include human rights education and information on various religions and beliefs to promote respect for the right to freedom of religion or belief and other human rights. E. Rights of women and gender-based discrimination 46. In Sri Lanka, women’s experiences of ethno-religious hostilities are no less than those experienced by men. Religious minority women risk double victimization at community and personal levels due to the patriarchal structure of the society and in policies. 47. The Special Rapporteur heard an account of a Tamil Hindu woman married to a Sinhalese Buddhist man. Her husband insisted on her converting to Buddhism and threatened to kill their daughter if she did not comply with his demand. She reported her case to the police but she received no support and remained in great fear of her life. He also heard about an attack against four girls from the Assemblies of God community by a mob of 60 men with the professed intention to rape them. This further illustrates the additional vulnerability of religious minority women and girls. 48. Widows face challenges of getting remarried especially when community members worry that they may convert, either willingly or not, to another religion. Meanwhile, Muslim women are excluded from the Marriage Registration Ordinance, 33 which means that there is no option for Muslims to opt in or out of the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act of 1951. The Act allows for polygamy, and with regard to claiming maintenance and asking for a divorce, it places the burden of proof upon the wife to provide a “valid and sufficient reason” and “grounds for divorce”. By contrast, a Muslim man is not required to give a reason to divorce a woman. Furthermore, these matters are addressed in Quazi courts, where women are not permitted to be judges. However, some of these challenges are addressed in the amendments of 2019 to the Act, negotiated between the Government and the Muslim Ulema Council. 34 Polygamy was restricted by providing the first wife the option of divorce and the legal marriage age was raised to 18 years. However, there was no agreement to appoint women as judges in the Quazi courts. Rulings of the Quazi courts may be appealed in the secular appellate system but there are serious issues about access to justice. Moreover, the Marriage Registration Ordinance and the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act, which cannot be challenged in court as per the provisions of the Constitution of 1978, need updating to ensure gender equality. 49. After the Easter bombings, the Government proclaimed under emergency regulations a ban on face covering in public places. This has led to a rise in intolerance towards those who observe religious dress codes, especially Muslim women in public institutions such as hospitals, schools and public transport. Some people stop Muslim women and girls with the hijab or abaya that do not include facial covering from entering hospitals or exam halls, or make verbal insults in workplaces. 50. Many Muslim women reported being harassed on the street and refused service at government agencies and private businesses when wearing a headscarf, even with their faces visible.35 The Ministry of Public Administration and Disaster Management issued a circular entitled “Ensuring security in the office premises of the Government”, establishing a restrictive dress code for public sector employees and for visitors to government offices. The code requires women to wear one of two types of sari, in effect banning forms of dress typically worn by Muslim and Tamil women. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka ruled that the circular violated a range of fundamental rights, having established no rational relation between the banned forms of dress and security issues, and requested it be 33 34 35 10 See www.commonlii.org/lk/legis/consol_act/m131146.pdf. For a list of amendments, see https://mplreformsdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2019/11/joint-cabinetmemorandum-on-mmda-2019.pdf. See www.crisisgroup.org/asia/south-asia/sri-lanka/302-after-sri-lankas-easter-bombings-reducingrisks-future-violence.