Thread: Women who wear burkhas and niqabs on street in France face f

Women who wear burkhas and niqabs on the street in France face fines of £750

By Peter Allen
Last updated at 8:55 PM on 07th January 2010

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Women who wear Islamic veils in public will be liable to a fine of more than £700 under strict new laws being formulated in France.

The amount could be doubled for Muslim men who force their wives or other female members of their family to cover their faces.

Jean-Francois Cope, president of Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling UMP Party in the French parliament, said the new legislation was intended to protect the 'dignity' and 'security' of women.



He is set to file the draft law in the National Assembly after Mr Sarkozy said veils are 'not welcome' as they intimidate and alienate non-Muslims, especially in a secular country like France.




A woman wears a burqa as she walks up the stairs outside the municipal library in Roncin northern France

'We want a ban in public areas,' said Mr Cope, making clear that the veil would not be allowed in public buildings, nor on the streets of France, as it encourages extremism.

Mr Cope said: 'The wearing of the burkha will be subject to a fine, probably of the 4th class, which is to say 750 euros.'


The law is being drafted by UMP Party President Jean-Francois Cope

He said the fine would apply to 'all people on the public street whose face is entirely covered'.

The terms 'burkha' and 'niqab' often are used interchangeably in France.


The former refers to a full-body covering worn largely in Afghanistan with only a mesh screen over the eyes, whereas the latter is a full-body veil, often in black, with slits for the eyes.

A parliamentary inquiry into the wearing of all-body burkhas and niqabs is due to publish its recommendations next month.

In earlier debates Mr Cope said: 'Permanently masking one's face in public spaces is not an expression of individual liberty. It's a negation of oneself, a negation of others, a negation of social life.'

But he conceded that a complete ban faced certain legal obstacles, including a possible challenge before the European Court of Human Rights on the grounds that it limits religious freedom.

The burkha is a full-body covering worn largely in Afghanistan with a mesh screen over the eyes, and the niqab is a full-body veil with slits for the eyes.

President Sarkozy has called them 'a sign of subservience and debasement that imprison women', saying they are 'not welcome in France'.

The country's immigration minister Eric Besson has also described them as 'an affront to national identity'.

France - home to more than five million Muslims, the largest population in Europe - passed a law forbidding veils and other religious symbols in schools in 2004.

The latest move to outlaw such garments comes as a national identity debate rages between those defending multiculturalism, and those who believe France is being overrun by foreign cultures.

Despite the controversy, a recent police report revealed that only around 400 women across the Channel wore veils, which are common in Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia but not in the North African countries where most Muslim immigrants to France came from.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldne ... -700.html#

Way to go France!

...veils are 'not welcome' as they intimidate and alienate non-Muslims, especially in a secular country like France.

Yes, and how can you be espousing freedom, when people are following Sharia Law, and walking around hidden from view. This is a possible terrorist threat, as well as a way to hide in plain sight. Commit crimes and walk around covered completely so that no one can identify you. If we allow the extremism of some multiculturalism to control our laws and how we live in society, we will have no cohesive society at all. Not every culture is one to follow, since some do follow unacceptable practices to humanity (genital mutilation, certain other allowable horrors).

People rush to come to the United States, but do people rush to anywhere else in the World?

Psalm 91

Good for France! I guess we will be dealing with this problem real soon.