It has become a given in Sri Lanka that women cannot leave the house without putting on clothes which are deemed ‘appropriate’ in the sense that they do not give men a reason to stare. Women are constantly judged by the length of their skirts and the fit of their shirts. The deeper the neckline, the deeper the cracks in her so called sociologically created moral compass. Or so it goes. Some believe that women should wear clothes that do not bare much so as to preserve what they consider to be the integrity of a woman. Others see a woman’s right to dress as she wishes as an integral factor in her empowerment. How do men in particular perceive a woman depending on what she is dressed in? And is it fair to formulate judgments about an individual solely based on what they choose to wear? 

Moiz Mushin 

Yes I would make judgments of women wearing and think differently of a girl wearing a short skirt or anything what is half naked. The question I would like to argue which is “What mother would let her daughter wear such a short skirt?” The fear for overly unprotected young groups may be well-meant. With the culture fetishizing girls at younger ages, girls are trained to self-objectify and see themselves as sexual matters, rather to be looked at. A laundry list of problems can come from consuming over one’s look: eating illnesses, unhappiness, low self-worth. Who wouldn’t want to spare her daughter from these struggles? These dress codes fall short of being legally helpful. What we fail to reflect when applying limits on skirt length and the tightness of pants is the girls themselves think not just their clothes, but their thoughts, feelings, potential sexuality and self-image.If a girl dressed in an inappropriate manner and walks in a street, every male person’s eye will be on this particular girl who passes the street. There can be good men as well as bad men, we cannot trust no one these days, the world today is like raping a 5 or 6 year old kid. As my conclusion, God has created every girl beautiful, so if they attire something fully clad that can make her more beautiful and protected. 

Nikila Deegayu Egalahewa 

Judging people on what they wear has become a sort of norm in the world we live in today. You see a girl wearing a mini skirt and you automatically think “Oh look at her, she’s brought up wrong.” Or “she’s just taunting people to come after her”. It's due to this wrong mindset that women who wear these types of clothing are perceived in the wrong way. So YES, women do get judged by what they wear and NO it’s not right, but if changing mindsets were that easy then globalization would have been a thing of the past. 

Malik Hussain 

It is a shame that we live in a society where victim shaming is a common occurrence. I regularly see women on the road being harassed for what they wear. Even most policemen don't take harassment charges seriously unless the victim is someone well connected. About a week ago, I read in the papers that a member of the Central Provincial council got into some trouble in Singapore for groping a woman in an elevator. It doesn't really do our country’s reputation any favours when elected representatives behave in such a manner. 

Sunil Embulgamage 

I allow my daughter to wear what she pleases but as a father, I cannot help but worry about what goes through the minds of crude men who no doubt make judgments and treat her as an object based on what she is wearing. In an ideal world, women should not be thought of in a certain way based on what they wear but we live in reality and here, like it or not, they are. 

By Upeksha Hettiarachchi