Asieh Belhaj is an Algerian immigrant woman living in Italy who spontaneously tries to defend the hijab of Muslim women in Italy through her spontaneous actions and involvement in elections and humanitarian activities.
According to Pak Sahafat News Agency, quoted by Anatoly Asieh Belhaj is an Algerian immigrant woman in Italy who has not given in to any pressure in her fight for Muslim women and against racism, and recently won the first and largest veiled queen contest in Europe with the slogan “Be a queen with a veil … Be a role model”.
In an interview with the Anatolian News Agency, the Muslim woman recounts her struggles for Muslim women in a European country with a predominantly Catholic Christian population. She moved to Italy about 16 years ago after marrying an Algerian living in Italy, instead of in the tribal region of central Algeria.
The beginning of the struggle against Islamophobia
According to Belhaj, after immigrating to Italy, she was shocked to face many challenges such as different languages, cultures and religions.
She added: I tried to learn the Italian language and get acquainted with the culture of the community in which I live, and little by little I realized that Italian society had a hard time accepting a veiled woman; while the idea was that the European community is open and I will not have a problem with the hijab.
Belhaj said: But I was surprised that the society in which I live does not have much information about Islam and veiled women, and of course the reason was the media’s attack on Islam, especially veiled women.
She continued: It was here that I began my struggle for Islam and Muslim women in Italy; because I was prejudiced against my religion and identity and tried to change the thoughts that the media had injected into society against the hijab.
The Algerian lady stating that she has been working as a lawyer for about 6 years at the Belluno Mosque in the Veneto region of northeastern Italy, said: During this time I was in contact with local associations representing the mosque, especially when I had learned the Italian language in its entirety, and since culture is the key to identity in any community, it was able to help me achieve my goal.
Belhaj says: During her contacts with Muslim women in Italy and even with the Church, Islam has always been at the center of her debates to provide a clearer picture of religion.
Regarding the political struggle and participation in the Italian regional elections, Belhaj explained that she was the first veiled woman to enter the race: My idea stems from the assumption that change is not achieved by criticism and shouting; it is achieved by working in the field.
Stating that at first she refused to enter politics, said: After practicing law and contacting Italian associations, it was decided that I would run in the election and run for the Veneto Regional Council in 2020.
Belhaj says: Although she failed to win a seat on the list of independent candidates for the “Ventue we Want”; But her mere candidacy in the election has been influential in the non-Muslim community by chanting slogans in defense of the Muslim lady’s hijab.
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The entry of the veiled lady into the arena of politics
She says: I was the first veiled Muslim woman to run in the local elections in Veneto, and this led to a lot of criticism, attacks and threats from racists and extremists on my Facebook page, and I was even threatened that I would be killed if I did not leave Italy.
Belhaj, stating that with the slogan of need, is the mother of invention, tried to compile a book about hijab, said: I published a book about hijab and Muslim women in Italian in 2019, entitled “beyond hijab from foreign woman to citizen”.
According to the activist, the purpose of the book was to provide an opportunity for Muslim women to talk about themselves; because unfortunately, every time the issue of hijab and Muslim women is raised, others and not veiled women are given the opportunity to speak.
According to Belhaj, this has created a major problem in the transmission of Muslim women’s ideas and the hijab in general.
She says about her book: In this book, an attempt has been made to go beyond the hijab of a Muslim woman; because usually about a veiled woman, only her hijab is discussed; but this book tries to remove the stereotypes about a veiled lady; because a Muslim woman is a worker, activist, researcher and even a politician.
According to her, this book also deals with the integration of Muslim women in non-Islamic society so that they do not lose their religion and identity.
Belhaj says she recently translated her book into Arabic in Algeria, which was published by Baskara Publishing House in the southeast of the country.
A few weeks ago, Belhaj, a human rights activist, launched a contest for veiled women in Italy with the slogan “Be the queen with the hijab … Be a role model”, which was widely reported on social media and even in the Italian media. She emphasized that the initiative was aimed at supporting Muslim girls in the face of the challenges facing Italian and European society at large.
Belhaj said that certain criteria were considered by the jury, including the criterion of commitment for the competition, so that a Muslim girl could be a role model and establish the idea of hijab in its true sense.
According to her, the big celebration of the winners in the Cinizalo Balsamo area of Milan was held on June 4, and the top ten women were awarded prizes, and the grand prize for the first person was an Umrah trip at all costs.
New attacks against the Hijab Queen contest
Belhaj believes that the hijab contest has become very popular in Italian newspapers and websites, and has been covered on television channels such as former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s Channel 5, which has led to new extremist attacks on the contest.
She said that he had lost his Facebook account due to the Queen Hijab contest, adding that she had complained to the Algerian judiciary but had not received any results.
According to official data released in 2017, the number of Muslims in Italian society is about 1.7 million, which is equivalent to 3.1 percent of the total population.