Harassed and placed under investigation by religious authorities -- activist Maryam Lee is a highly controversial figure in Malaysia after speaking out about her decision to stop wearing the hijab

Harassed and placed under investigation by religious authorities -- activist Maryam Lee is a highly controversial figure in Malaysia.

Her crime?

Speaking out about her decision to stop wearing the hijab and criticising what she sees as institutional patriarchy in Islam.

Most in Muslim-majority Malaysia follow a moderate form of the religion and wearing a headscarf, known locally as a "tudung" and used to cover the head and neck, is not mandatory.

But experts says the nation has become more conservative in recent years and today most Muslim women wear one.

Maryam, who was made to wear a headscarf from the age of nine, says she realised in her mid-20s that she was conforming to a social expectation rather than a religious requirement and decided to remove it.

Maryam, who was made to wear a headscarf from the age of nine, says she realised in her mid-20s that she was conforming to a social expectation rather than a religious requirement and decided to remove it

"All my life, I had been told that (wearing the headscarf) is mandatory and if I don't wear it, it's sinful. And then I found out that it actually wasn't, so I felt very cheated -- like all your life you've been told one thing, and it turns out to be a lie," she explains.

It was a difficult personal decision but when she went public, detailing her story in her book "Unveiling Choice", she faced a vitriolic backlash and death threats.

Malaysia's religious affairs minister expressed concern and she was hauled in for questioning under a law against insulting Islam -- the country has a dual-track legal system, with Muslim citizens subject to sharia laws in certain areas.

Maryam believes officials were concerned she was encouraging other women to "de-hijab", but insists this is not the case.

- 'Jail of society's expectation' -

"I'm not telling women what to think, I'm asking them to revisit certain assumptions and certain theories that have been taught to them over the years," the 28-year-old says.

"Even without legal criminalisation, women are facing social criminalisation when they want to take [the hijab] off," she warns adding that women like her are in a "jail of society's expectation".

Muslim women in Malaysia, which is more than 60 percent Muslim but is also home to large ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities, wear a headscarf that covers the hair and chest, though it is not legally required

To mark the release of her book, which she describes as a story of resistance against patriarchy in religion and wider society, she took part in a talk called "Malay Women and De-Hijabbing" which fuelled the furore against her.

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