The Intersections of Islamophobia and Sexism Against Muslim Women: The Case of Emela Mujanović’

In this episode, LLM student Marlene Kulmus speaks to Ðermana Kurić, a research associate at the BILQIS project at the Irish Centre for Human Rights and former adviser on combatting racism, xenophobia and discrimination, about the intersections of Islamophobia and sexism and its impact on Muslim women’s access to justice.

The conversation centres around the case of Emela Mujanović, a Bosniak Muslim woman and member of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina who was denied the ability to wear her headscarf with her uniform and has faced adverse and discriminatory treatment since she started wearing her headscarf. This includes being prevented from advancing through the military ranks, facing intrusion to her privacy, and even being transferred to barrack located 90km away from her place of residence and her family. She has sought various legal avenues over the past thirteen years, including a case before the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and culminating in a case brought before the European Court of Human Rights, and has faced setbacks in the form of rulings which uphold the ban.

Ðermana Kurić provides the insightful framework of intersectionality, a concept coined within academia by Kimberlé Crenshaw, and explains how this applies to the experiences of discrimination many Muslim women face. She further gives relevant background information into the regional context of this case, taking place in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The conversation is based on a lecture given by Ðermana Kurić at the Irish Centre for Human Rights, titled: ‘Exploring Intersectionality: Headscarf in the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina’, which was part of a lecture series on Gender and Human Rights. She has also explored this topic in some of her academic works, including her article: ‘Blaming Muslim Women: Intersectionality and the Headscarf in the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina’, published in 2023.

This podcast episode was produced by Gráinne McGrath, the team of CELT Recording Studio, and Marlene Kulmus. Intro Music: 'Smarties Intro -FMA Podcast Suggestions' by Birds for Scale (Attribution - ShareAlike 4.0 international License). Outro Music 'Smarties Outro -FMA Podcast Suggestions' by Birds for Scale (Attribution - ShareAlike 4.0 international License).