Denmark Bans Wearing Islamic Full-Face Veils as Burqas And Niqabs in Public With Up to $1,568 Fee for Violation
Denmark joined some other European countries on Thursday by banning garments that cover the face in public, including the niqab or burqa. It was passed in a 75-30 vote with 74 absentees.
Source:Â Mads Claus Rasmussen/AFP/Getty Images
Burqa Ban
Danish Parliament voted Thursday to ban garments covering the face in public places: effectively outlawing the burqa and niqab, coverings worn by some Muslim women.
The bill was presented by Denmark’s center-right governing coalition. It received 75 votes from members of parliament in favor of the ban and 30 votes in opposition. Another 74 members of parliament were absent for the vote.
Starting from the August 1, when the law will come into force, violation of the new regulation will cost 1,000 kroner ($156) for first-time offenders and up to 10,000 kroner ($1,568) by the fourth violation.
Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said in 2010 that “the burqa and the niqab do not have their place in the Danish society. They symbolize a conception of the woman and of the humanity to which we are fundamentally opposed and that we want to fight in the Danish society,” according to the Library of Congress.
The critics of the new law say this rule violated the freedom of choice for women who should free to decide what to wear.
“All women should be free to dress as they please and to wear clothing that expresses their identity or beliefs,” said Amnesty International’s Europe Director Gauri van Gulik following the vote in Denmark.
Source:Â AP
The ban is the latest in a series to be approved by European lawmakers. A ban on wearing the full-face veil in public went into force in France in 2011. Restrictions on full-face veils are also in place in Belgium, Austria and parts of Switzerland, while other European countries have debated the issue.
Widely known as the “Burqa Ban,” the measure is perceived by critics as targeting Muslim women who choose to cover themselves with the burqa, a head to toe garment, or the niqab, a cloth covering the face.
Source: ABC news
Human rights campaigners say the law will have particularly negative consequences for Muslim women, limiting their identity and freedom.
The government also says the ban is not aimed at any religion and does not ban headscarves, turbans or the traditional Jewish skull cap, the Associated Press reported.
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