EU human rights watchdog condemns burka bans

12 April 2012

The EU today warned governments against banning the wearing of burkas in public, saying it would infringe the human rights of women who want to wear a face veil.

The Parliamentary Assembly of Europe's human rights watchdog, the Council of Europe, passed a resolution saying women "who genuinely and freely desire to do so" should be allowed to cover their faces.

However, the Assembly left the door open for targeted laws against the burka, pointing out that legal restrictions may be justified "for security purposes, or where the public or professional functions of individuals require their religious neutrality, or that their face can be seen".

The vote came in Strasbourg amid continuing debate in France over efforts to introduce a general burka ban.

The Muslim Council of Britain has attacked President Nicolas Sarkozy as "patronising and offensive" after he declared: "The burka is not a sign of religion, it is a sign of subservience. We cannot accept to have in our country women who are prisoners behind netting, cut off from all social life, deprived of identity."

Belgium's lower house of parliament has already voted unanimously for such a ban. If unamended by the upper house it would be the first of its kind in Europe, introducing into the country's criminal code a prohibition of "clothing that hides the face" in public places.

Today's resolution, approved by national MPs from 47 countries on the human rights body, acknowledged that face veils were often perceived as "a symbol of the subjugation of women to men" but said a ban would impede the rights of women freely wishing to cover up.

However, they added: "No woman should be compelled to wear religious apparel by her community or family. Any act of oppression, sequestration or violence constitutes a crime that must be punished by law."

The resolution was part of a report on Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia, which also called on European governments to work to educate Muslim women, their families and communities on their human rights and to encourage them to take part in "public and professional life".

It also called on Switzerland to repeal as soon as possible its general ban on the construction of minarets, which it described as discriminatory.

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