By 
I recently read about the United Nations’ decision on France’s ‘burqa ban’ and felt that it was not justified; it did not fully take into account the security concerns, social integration, secularism and female empowerment issues that surround the burqa and niqab.
In September 2010, France through an act of Parliament banned the wearing of face-covering headgear, including masks, helmets, balaclavas, niqabs, face-concealing burqas and other veils covering the face in public places, except under specified circumstances. During the bill’s preparation the grand mufti of the Paris Mosque stated in Parliament that the niqab was not prescribed in Islam.
The law was then challenged in the European Human Rights Court; it was upheld in July 2014. In October 2018, the United Nations decided that the ‘burqa ban’ ‘violated’ the human rights of two women who were fined for fully concealing their faces in public. The committee declared: ‘The French law disproportionately harmed the petitioners’ right to manifest their religious beliefs’. The UN has requested that France reviews its law although their decision is non-binding. Apparently, the UN believes that the ‘religious rights’ of a very small minority of niqab wearing women should trump the security concerns of millions of people, national secularity and the empowerment of females.
The burqa and niqab fully conceal the identity of the wearer, only the eyes can be seen and sometimes even these are hidden behind a mesh. One cannot even tell if a man or woman is beneath, can the sex of a person be determined by just casually observing the eyes?
In recent times, the world bore witness to horrific crimes in France; Charlie Hebdo, Bataclan and Nice’s Bastille Day massacres among others. There was no familiarity or grievance between the victims and murderers; people left their homes without a care in the world, for work, fun and celebration. Could they have predicted that monsters in human covering pumped with irrational hate and rage would have viciously taken their lives? For what? France continues to suffer from attacks such as these where random people are murdered who had absolutely no personal grievance with the attackers.
France is home to pockets of extremists and fanatics of all type, as is the rest of Europe which is very easily accessible via bus, train or plane. Many French citizens fought with ISIS in Syria and for ISIS in Europe and many returned radicalized and damaged. Cunning people have used the burqa as concealment to carry out crimes including suicide bombings, robbery, sexual assault and murder. In August, burqa clad suicide bombers killed at least 29 people in Afghanistan, in another incident in 2017 a NATO patrol was targeted then there were the suicide bombings in Chad and Pakistan among other countries where the bombers concealed their identities using the burqa.
Due to security concerns, several countries have fully or partially banned the wearing of face concealing garments in the public sphere. The ban had more to do with the fact that the identities of wearers are concealed rather than an attack on religious freedom. Presently in Egypt, a Muslim majority country, lawmakers are considering a ban on the burqa in public spaces due to security concerns. If this law takes effect I wonder if the UN would consider it a violation of human rights and restrictions being placed on the manifestation of religious beliefs.
In France and other countries where the niqab was banned people are still free to manifest their religious beliefs. The Hijab which identifies millions of women worldwide as belonging to the Muslim faith was not banned. Other religious groups are also free to wear their garments; saris, turbans, kippah etc; even the very conservative nun’s habit does not hide the wearer’s identity like the rest.
The UN committee further stated, ‘rather than protecting fully veiled women, could have the opposite effect of ”confining them to their homes’’…’ In the first place, many women who wear full Islamic face covering often face severe social restrictions imposed upon them by their families and communities, just look at the lives these women lead in a few countries where the niqab and burqa are common.
France is not a historically speaking, niqab wearing nation. How does the niqab help its wearers to socially integrate and feel a sense of belonging especially in new environments when others cannot determine whether the person under the niqab is male or female; young or old. When you cannot discern a smile or grimace; observe body language or facial expression. All of these are part of the communication process.
What great personal loss does a niqab wearing woman suffers if she shows her face and instead wears a hijab in public? Is the loss so great that it should supersede security concerns and state secularism (Law of 1905 which separated Church from State)? In reality, what full concealment does is to ban women from full participation and interaction in diverse situations and with people from various backgrounds.
Worldwide, the human rights of millions of women continue to be violated. They are restricted from making decisions for themselves, independent travelling, choosing their own clothing and even not being able to have a say in who they marry among other human rights violations. Recently, Saudi Arabia ‘allowed’ women to drive but what followed was the arrest of several women’s rights activists; in many places barbaric ‘honour killings’ are not taken seriously for example, only last year in Jordan did lawmakers correct a legal loophole which allowed light sentences (as little as six months) for men who killed female relatives in the name of ‘family honour’; then there are child marriages and trafficking.
How many women have been forced to wear the niqab and other garments? Clothing has been used as a weapon to oppress women for centuries. In Syria, ISIS forced women to wear the niqab, many Iranian women were arrested and some received prison sentences for removing their hijabs and all over the world women are blamed for sexual assaults committed on them, they are told that they dress ‘provocatively’ and to cover up.
Long before the burqa and niqab issue France cemented it secularism which addressed all religious beliefs encroaching on public spaces and places such as the school. Given the very real issue of crime and living in a world with fanatics, extremists and others bent on criminality I do not find it so unreasonable that countries would want to be able to identify people in public.
Women and girls in all countries of the world need to be empowered to realize their full potential, to not see themselves as the inferior sex, to not be ashamed of their gender and sexuality, to not be oppressed by archaic and harmful religious and social norms, to let their voices be heard and their opinions resonate and to be the change-makers of today.
My article was published in the Kaieteur news as a Letter to the Editor.
There are many YouTube videos with diverse views on the niqab and burqa and the arguments are very well presented; some are for or against and others present both sides to this issue. However, I personally feel that the niqab and burqu restrict the freedom of women, pose as a barrier to social interaction and exclude them from full societal participation.
