While national law does not mandate the jilbab, local regulations (Perda) and social pressure in workplaces and schools have led to mandatory veiling in many areas.
: Wearing a jilbab has shifted from being a symbol of resistance against secular regimes (pre-1998) to a mainstream cultural standard. For many young women, it is now considered a primary attribute of being an Indonesian woman . While national law does not mandate the jilbab,
This pressure is particularly acute for women from mixed-religious or secular-nationalist families. Choosing to wear the jilbab can be a liberating act of defiance against a family that prefers modernity. Conversely, choosing not to wear it in a devout environment can feel like a daily act of courage against peer judgment. The resulting anxiety can lead to what sociologists call “performative piety”—wearing the headscarf not out of conviction, but to avoid social friction. This undermines the very sincerity that Islamic teaching (and the concept of akhwat ) seeks to cultivate. This pressure is particularly acute for women from