I’m assuming that there will be posts to follow with the usual chorus of ‘oh, poor Islam, why is everyone oppressing the Muslims’, but I personally think this legislation is a step in the right direction.
It’s called integration. Maybe a little common sense too, which seems hard to come by in some other parts of the world. Nice to see the Dutch taking a stand.
[quote]November 17, 2006
Holland proposes burka ban
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) - The Dutch government said Friday it would outlaw full-length veils like the Muslim burka and other face-concealing apparel in public places, marking this once-tolerant country’s latest about-face on questions of culture and assimilation in Europe.
The Netherlands, once considered one of Europe’s most welcoming countries for immigrants and asylum seekers, is deeply divided over government moves to stem the tide of new arrivals and compel them to adopt Dutch ways.
A Muslim leader denounced the proposal as “a big law for a small problem,” in a country where as few as 30 women wear burkas, and the mayor of Amsterdam warned that giving the issue too much attention could backfire.
Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk said the ban was to promote security.
“The cabinet finds it undesirable that face-covering clothing, including the burka, is worn in public places for reasons of public order, security and protection of citizens,” Verdonk said in a statement.
“From a security standpoint, people should always be recognizable and from the standpoint of integration, we think people should be able to communicate with one another,” Verdonk told national broadcaster NOS.
She said the ban would include not only the tent-like burka but full-face helmets and ski masks.
The announcement came after the final meeting of Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende’s cabinet before national elections Wednesday.
It appeared meant to stake a claim for the right-wing vote and to consolidate the alliance between Balkenende’s Christian Democrats and the free-market Liberal party, which has taken the lead on tightening immigration laws.
If it is re-elected and keeps its promise, a new centre-right Dutch government would go farther than any other in Europe in legislating restrictions on traditional Muslim dress.
The issue has resonance throughout Europe. Former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw recently caused a stir by saying he wants Muslim women to abandon the full-face veil, a view endorsed by Prime Minister Tony Blair. In France, the centre-right’s leading presidential candidate Nicolas Sarkozy has championed tougher immigration laws that critics say amount to an appeal to far-right voters.
Germany, which has a large Muslim immigrant community, bans teachers in public schools from wearing head scarves. In Belgium, one mayor banned burkas, but there is no general ban in force across the country.
The Netherlands’ opposition Labour party called the announcement a political ploy.
“A general ban is way out of line, and I’m very much worried that in the Muslim community many people will see this as Islam-bashing,” Labour legislator Jeroen Dijsselbloem told The Associated Press.
Ayhan Tonca, who heads a Dutch Muslim organization, dismissed the proposal as an overreaction. “This is a big law for a small problem,” he said, adding that as few as 30 women in the Netherlands wear burkas.
He also said the security argument did not stand up. “I do not think people who have bad things in their minds would wear a burka,” he said.
Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen, also of the Liberal party, agreed the burka was bad for integration and communication, but he did not advocate a ban.
“You can’t speak with each other if you can’t see each other,” he said. But, “in practice, it’s rarely seen,” and the longer the discussion goes on, the more people will wear it.
A burka ban has long been on the political agenda. Last December, in a parliament debate it became clear a majority of the 150-member legislature would support a ban. But an advisory panel warned any law targeting Muslim dress would violate the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.
The proposal was the latest move by mainstream parties to co-opt what were once the policies of the nationalist fringe.
In the last three years, the Netherlands has tightened immigration requirements, deported thousands of asylum-seekers and opened detention centres for those being processed. It also has given more muscle to the police and intelligence services to act against suspected Islamic extremists.
Everyone must learn to speak Dutch, and Muslim clerics must mind what they say in their Friday sermons for fear of deportation.
A look at legislation and the debate over wearing veils in Europe
(AP) - Legislation and the debate over the wearing of veils and burkas in European countries:
Netherlands - The government has announced plans for legislation banning full-length veils in public places and other clothing that covers the face. It based the order on security concerns, saying people should be recognizable. Muslim leaders said the proposed ban could be unconstitutional.
Britain - Former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw recently caused a stir by saying he wants Muslim women to abandon the full-face veil, a view endorsed by Prime Minister Tony Blair. A Muslim teaching assistant in England was later suspended from her job for refusing to remove a veil that left only her eyes visible.
France - Home to the largest population of Muslims in western Europe, France passed a law in 2004 banning Islamic head scarves, as well as Jewish skullcaps and large Christian crosses, in public schools. The government said it wanted to uphold its secular foundations.
Italy - Has a law requiring people to keep their faces visible in public, dating to Italy’s crackdown on domestic terrorism decades ago. A Vatican official this week cited Italy’s law in arguing that immigrants must follow the laws of their host countries, including any bans on face-covering.
Belgium - The mayor of Maaseik banned burkas in 2004, but there is no general ban across the country. The Maaseik mayor, Jan Creemers, said it “scared many people” when six women in the town of 24,000 started wearing burkas in public years before.
Germany - The country, with a large Muslim immigrant community, has a law banning teachers in public schools from wearing head scarves. Last month, a Turkish-born legislator urged Muslim women in Germany to take off their head scarves; her party said she later received death threats.
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Double post…