Latvia Trying To Ban The Burqa In Response To Influx Of Refugees

We haven't heard much about burqa bans- at least not for quite some years- but Latvia is hoping to join France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, The Netherlands, Russia, Syria, Chad, Cameroon, Senegal in banning the full face veil in public.  This article on Bustle explains the degree to which they are banned in those countries.

If the government approves, that is, Latvia might finally be going through with it.

Latvia will introduce a ban on the traditional Islamic clothes that cover the face when in public, Latvian Justice Minister Dzintars Rasnacs said on Monday.

"Such a ban will be introduced. The respective draft decision has been already worked out. We chose out of two concepts," the minister told the local LNT television.

"The first is to ban wearing clothes covering face only in certain places, including the state or educational ones. The second is to ban wearing burqa in all public places. The second concept was finally approved," he said.

The ban is yet to be approved by the Latvian government, Rasnacs said. "This ban is needed not to ensure public order and security, but to protect Latvia’s cultural values, our common public and cultural space, and each individual," the politician said.

One of the main reasons is a result of the influx of Muslim refugees.

Estonia and Lithuania are also considering the ban, but not without controversy.  As expected.

Burqa-Clad Woman Asked To Remove Veil- Violence Ensues In Paris

Anything fully covering the face in public- including Islamic niqabs and burqas, not hijabs which show the face- are banned in France. It's the law. And yet there are those who refuse to comply. The arrest in a Paris suburb of a 21-year-old Muslim convert who allegedly tried to strangle a police officer after the cop told his burqa-clad wife to remove her veil has spawned the typical violence in Paris banlieues including Trappes.

There's been the usual mob violence including stone throwing and setting cars on fire, and the denial of guilt. We can probably expect more of the same in the days to come.

More here.

Catalonia To Ban Burqas and Other Face Coverings

Catalonia has decided to "control' the wearing of burqas, along with masks and helmets, in public places "for reasons of public safety".  Spain actually reversed its ban in March 2013.

Not sure what "control" means, and whether it's an actual ban, but the government was very clear in stating that this had nothing to do with religion.

Catalonia has a large Muslim population- 20% in the city of Lérida, where they were having problems with Muslims targeting dogs.

More here, on the pending burqa ban.

Supreme Court Overturns Spanish City's Ban On Burqas

Lleida (aka Lérida), in Catalonia, Spain, is approximately 20% Muslim. It's the same city that in 2011 was having a problem with dogs turning up poisoned.  Lérida was also the first town in Spain to ban the full face veil (burqa and niqab) in public buildings, in 2010. But only a few short years later, the ban was just reversed by Spain's Supreme Court:

.... citing religious freedom and saying the city’s argument of security concerns was unfounded.

In its ruling, dated Feb. 14 and made public on Thursday, the court said the ban could increase discrimination, rather than help eliminate it, as it may force some women to stay at home and therefore not integrate at all into Spanish society.

The city, known as Lleida in the Catalan language and Lerida in Spanish, had argued that immigrants would struggle to integrate if they used the veil. The city also said the custom would disturb the local culture and create security problems.

The Watani Liberty and Justice Association has been lobbying for 3 years to lift the ban, and it looks like they finally prevailed.

I have said this many times, but there is no place for the full face veil in Western lands. Women who wear burqas or niqabs aren't about to integrate into Western society anyway.  And according to some religious authorities in the Muslim world, the veil is not even a necessity.  Saudi cleric Sheikh Ahmed Bin Qassim al-Ghamdi claims woman need not cover the face or arms, and an Al-Azhar scholar, Sheikh Mustapha Mohamed Rashedat, actually said the hijab is not an Islamic duty since it's not even mentioned in the Quran.

Muslims and Others Balk At Proposed Dutch Burqa Ban

As expected, the response to the planned Dutch burqa ban  has not been positive.  But it's not just the Muslim community that has balked at the prospect of freeing women from the shackles of oppression, the usual liberal, PC suspects, have also chimed in.  You know, the ones who claim that banning the face veil is infringing upon a woman's religious freedom, whereas the opposite is true.  Most women are forced to wear the burqa or niqab by their controlling husbands, furthermore, it's a cultural not a religious prescript. Nowhere in the Quran is it mentioned that a woman must wear a burqa. So much for the 'freedom of religion' argument.

According to Aydin Akkaya, chairman for some Dutch Turkish organization (IOT), the ban would seriously affect the quality of life for burqa-wearing women.

“Women who currently only venture outside, or are allowed to go outside, wearing a burqa, will from now on stay home,”

"Allowed" is the operative word here. It's hard to believe that in the Netherlands, in the 21st century, there are women who are forced to go outside in full burqa regalia, and who will be forced to remain at home if the ban goes into effect.

Then you have the lefties perspective:

Green Left Party MP Tofik Dibi says he doesn’t understand why the government attaches such importance to the ban in the midst of an economic crisis: “Why track and fine a handful of people with a burqa, when people are deeply worried about their future and that of their children?”

I'm still trying to figure out what a burqa ban has to do with an economic crisis, but it seems to be a common concern with other political parties, like the social conservative, but centre-left Christian Union party that also criticized the ban.

Arie Slob, the parliamentary leader of the small Christian Union party, also questioned the ban’s wisdom at a time of deep budget cuts: “The way the government of Mark Rutte tackles the crisis: by banning burqas. That’s not going to do the job.”

You'd think women, of all people, would applaud the ban, but not so.  Leyla Çakir of Al Nisa (a Muslim women's group) is dead set against it.

“Self-determination is our top priority. Some women may now well decide to wear a burqa in defiance of the ban, but a number of women are now likely not to leave their home any longer.”

Okay, then those defying the ban will be fined and some will stay at home.  Those are choices too. It's not as if the Dutch are banning the hijab (head scarf), which is mentioned in the Quran, and would be a religious freedom issue. They're banning a non-prescribed symbol of oppression, but most importantly something that could pose a criminal threat or hazard to others. And since the burqa isn't the only face covering that is being banned, they shouldn't take offense. But, as always they do.

Source: Radio Netherlands

The Netherlands To Ban Muslim Face Veils In 2013

The Netherlands, one of the most liberal, progressive countries in the world- where prostitution is legal and drugs, like marijuana, are tolerated- has decided to join France in banning Muslim face veils. As of next year, anything that covers the face, like burqas and niqabs, will be verboten in public. 

There are approximately 1 million Muslims in a country that has a population of 17 million, and they've been pretty much left to their own devices. Because of the Netherlands's lax and permissive attitude towards everything, there are an abundance of mosques, some of which preach radical Islam. I can't imagine they're going to be very happy about the decision. Remember Theo Van Gogh, the Dutch filmmaker who was slaughtered like an animal in 2004 by a 26-year-old Dutch Islamist of Moroccan heritage because he was offended by the short film "Submission" that Van Gogh and Ayaan Hirsi Ali  had produced?   He was shot eight times, his throat slit, and then Mohammed Bouyeri rammed a five page note to Van Gogh's body with a knife.  All because "Submission" dared broach the subject of abuse against women in Islam. 

Written in Dutch, the bloody letter called Hirsi Ali an “infidel fundamentalist” who “terrorizes Islam” and “marches with the soldiers of evil.” With her “hostilities,” she “unleashed a boomerang and it’s just a matter of time before this boomerang will seal your destiny.” In capital letters it said: “AYAAN HIRSI ALI, YOU WILL SMASH YOURSELF ON ISLAM!” The letter ended with a kind of chant: “I know for sure that you, O America, are going to meet with disaster. I know for sure that you, O Europe, are going to meet with disaster. I know for sure that you, O Holland, are going to meet with disaster.”

The face veil isn't the only thing on the chopping block. According to Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Verhagen, motorcycle helmets and balaclavas (those ski masks that criminals like to wear) will also be banned in places they shouldn't be worn, like stores, so they're hoping it won't be seen as a religious ban aimed at Muslims. The interior affairs ministry said,

“People should be able to look at each other’s faces and recognize each other when they meet.”

The ban should only affect around 100 to 400 or so women, since the headscarf is more commonly worn than the niqab or burqa.

If someone is caught with their face covered, they could face a fine of up to $510.00, that's if the law is approved. The ban won't affect the use of a face veil in a church or mosque, or on airplanes. Nor will Santa Clauses or Halloween costumes be banned.