In my country, segregation of sexes is still very much alive in the Muslim society. I don't know what it's like in KL but it was practiced (lightly) in my school. I never had the nerve to question it because I believed I was not educated enough in Islamic philosophy to do any disputing -although I never understood how standing next to a boy could fuel any physical urges.
Mustafa Akyol makes a great point on how people easily confuse tradition with the core beliefs of Islam. The lines are beyond blurred here in Malaysia and nobody gets to say anything lest they end up on the front page of a newspaper declaring defiance of a fatwa.
To say that I've struggled with my faith would be putting it lightly. I maybe steering off topic a little bit here but the education system imposes a very straightforward kind of thinking which unfortunately gives no room for young Malaysian Muslims to debate or contradict our textbooks' version of Islam. I believe that religion is very personal and subjective. Ideologies should be open for interpretation and examination, not shoved into our throats with hopes that we'll continue preaching what has been blindly taught to us.
If you disagree with anything I've had to say, I respect that. I didn't write this to force my beliefs on anyone. You are your own person; you don't need a 19 year old to tell you what you should or shouldn't believe. The video is a 17 minute talk but if you've read this until the end you might be interested in what he has to say.
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