THE HAGUE (AFP)
A right-wing anti-Islam Dutch politician on Thursday submitted a new draft law to ban women from wearing burqas in public places after an earlier attempt stalled.
In letter to parliament, Geert Wilders, who heads the Freedom Party which has nine of the 150 seats in the lower house, wrote that "the burqa and the niqab is a symbol of the oppression of women" and is "in defiance of the democratic constitutional state".
The burqa is an Islamic veil covering the entire face and body and a mesh screen to see through, while the niqab is a veil covering the face but leaving the eye area clear.
It is not known how many women in the Netherlands wear the face veils but estimates are a few dozen.
Nearly two years ago, in October 2005 a majority of the Dutch parliament voted in favor of a motion by Wilders to ban burqas in public places.
However, the then minister of integration, hardliner Rita Verdonk, never crafted a law for a burqa ban after an advisory committee said such a ban could be unconstitutional because it violated the right to equal treatment for all residents of the country.
Now Wilders, known for his harsh anti-Islam rhetoric, has submitted his own law proposal and hopes the parliament will agree. It is unlikely that he will get another majority as the elections of November 2006 put an end to a centre-right majority in parliament that backed the plans.
Wilders wants to ban specifically burqas and niqabs in public places including stations, stadiums, shops, restaurants, museums, hospitals, cars driving on the public roads and public transports. He proposes a maximum sentence of 12 days in jail or a fine of 4,619 dollars (3,350 euros).
If the law is passed it would be a world first. No national government has yet banned the use of face veils in public places although some Belgian municipalities, including Antwerp, have introduced local bans.
In his proposal Wilders also cites Turkey and France. Turkey bans the wearing of veils and head scarves in public buildings while France has banned the use of obvious religious symbols like Islamic head scarves and veils in government buildings including schools and hospitals. |
