WUNRN
FRANCE - NATIONAL ASSEMBLY LOWER
HOUSE VOTES
OVERWHELMINGLY FOR BURQA BAN -
SENATE YET TO VOTE
French
parliament on Tuesday voted in favor of a bill to totally ban the wearing of
full face-covering veils in public spaces.
The lower house of the National Assembly voted an overwhelming 335 for the bill
and only one against.
Socialist and Communist deputies abstained from voting.
The bill gives six months to Muslim women to adapt, after which it will be
illegal to cover faces in public places like streets, parks, shops, or on
public transport.
Wearing a niqab or burqa will be carry a fine of $190. Men forcing women to
cover themselves are most heavily punished, with a penalty of up to $38,000 and
one year in jail.
France has about 5 million to 6 million Muslims, out of which analysts say only
1,900 wear the full veil. According to Amnesty International’s expert on
discrimination in Europe, “A complete ban on the covering of the face would
violate the rights to freedom of expression and religion.”
The bill is not yet law, as it still has to pass the senate in September and
the text will be examined by the Constitutional Council.
The European court of human rights, which protects religious freedoms, might
also have a say in this, as similar laws are pending in Belgium, Spain, and
some Italian municipalities.
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