The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has slammed rule changes to enforce a strict dress code for government employees in a bid to curtail personal freedom of women.

In a statement today (January 3), the largest opposition party condemned the changes "made to interfere with the individual freedom and personal freedom of women employees working in certain sectors."

"These rules directly infringe on the rights of every citizen to equality, non-discrimination, and the protection of individual liberty guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of the the Maldives," it stated.

The MDP said that although state institutions are supposed to protect such rights, it is now becoming apparent that these institutions are now using force to monitor women's "appearance".

The party argued that the length of dress and hair color of the female employees were not criteria by which their performance could be judged and that it was discrimination against women, in the name of professionalism.

"The fact that such a rule is not applied to political appointees, and employees in independent institutions and government companies, but only to female employees belonging to the civil service, shows that this is not about employee ethics, but a formal discriminatory policy," the statement read.

The MDP added that it is a great insult to place the responsibility of maintaining morality on women and to show that maintaining society's moral standards is only related to women's dress.

"The purpose of such strict rules is to deny job promotions or punish women based on their dress and appearance. This is a dangerous attempt to isolate women from the workplace and exclude them from running the country," it stated.

The party called for the new rule changes to be repealed and urged state institutions not to do anything that would degrade women and violate their rights.

Under the amended regulations publicized last week, the length of dresses and tops for women is strictly measured; they must not be shorter than two inches above the knee. The rules also specify that all clothing, including trousers and jackets, must be made of "office-appropriate" fabric.