A roadshow planned by the PAS-ruled Kelantan state government to teach women to dress in "proper Muslim attire" has been criticised by a minister as "ridiculous and embarassing", reports said today.

"I had to take a breather ... I found the idea by the Kelantan government simply ridiculous," Women and Family Development Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times .

Northern Kelantan state is embarking on a RM60,000 roadshow next month to educate women on what it says is correct Muslim dress.

"The objective is to show Muslim women how they should be dressed," said Kelantan Information, Women, Youth, Sports and Consumer Affairs Chairman Abdullah Ya'kub.

The state government had distributed about 1,000 posters depicting "the proper attire for Muslim women" to heads of government departments, he said.

Channel money for education

Typical attire for many Muslim women in Malaysia consists of a headscarf and a traditional two-piece dress known as the 'baju kurung'.

"There are many single mothers in Kelantan who are very poor and cannot feed their children," said Shahrizat.

"This is another example on how superficial the state government is, and having the road show instead of helping people who are in need is another of its ridiculous ideas," she said.

"The state government should stop patronising the women there and if they want to spend money, it should be channelled to education or to create new job opportunities for the women in the state," she said, adding that she was embarassed by the planned road show.

PAS, which rules the states of Kelantan and Terengganu, wants to turn Malaysia into a state governed by Islamic syariah law. - AFP