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Banning the burka is an accelerating trend

By Russell Grenning - posted Thursday, 14 June 2018


In May, 2016, The Telegraph (UK) published a revealing article headed "Why West Africa's Muslim-majority states are banning the burqa".

It cited a summit in December 2015 of all fifteen members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) which formally endorsed a ban on "clothing that prevents the clear identification of persons". That means that fifteen countries with a total Muslim population in excess of 181 million are pledged to supporting a ban on the burka and niqab.

This drastic action was in response to the brutal ravages of the blood-stained Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram.

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Chad, which has about a 55% majority Muslim population, banned the full-face veil in June, 2015 following suicide bomb attacks in the capital that killed dozens of people. Their Prime Minister described the veil as "camouflage" for terrorists.

Senegal, which is 95% Muslim, enforced the ban in November, 2015 citing national security concerns. Niger, 80% Muslim, was next to impose a ban in its southern regions bordering on Boko Haram's main killing ground in Nigeria while Cameroon also imposed a ban in the country's region with a majority Muslim population.

As The Telegraph noted, "In total, these three countries (Senegal, Niger and Cameroon) are home to 36 million Muslims. Yet there was scarcely any public opposition to the ban and the prohibition has largely been observed and enforced, at least in urban areas where the security forces are present."

Morocco, bordering the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean in northern Africa recognises the Sunni Islam faith as its official state religion and the country is virtually one hundred per cent Islamist yet in January, 2917, authorities announced a total ban on the sale, production and importation of the face veils and gave retailers only forty-eight hours to destroy their stocks of the garments. Again, according to the government, this was inspired by "security concerns".

In Australia, the only public opinion poll to test whether or not full face veils should be banned scored a big 57% in favour in August, 2017, 31% against and 12% undecided in a total of 2,832 people polled by Sky News/ReachTEL but the government has firmly resisted any moves to ban the burka and niqab.

The first attempt at trying to secure a ban was as far back as 2002 following the Moscow theatre hostage crisis when NSW MP Fred Nile asked the then State Police Minister if a ban would be introduced for full-body coverings similar to those worn by the Chechen Muslim terrorists. The answer was a very firm no. He unsuccessfully introduced legislation in 2010 and 2014 to criminalise the wearing of any face covering which prevented the identification of the wearer.

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In 2010, Senator Corey Bernardi wrote an article calling for a ban on face covering in public while then Senator Jacqui Lambie announced plans to introduce legislation to ban the burka in 2014. This was introduced in February, 2017 but went nowhere.

It has been suggested that a total ban on face veils would be problematic given that Section 116 of the Constitution prohibits the Federal Government from making any law "prohibiting the free exercise of religion".

However, despite both the Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader refusing to support any ban, there have been some careful but limited moves towards denying the legitimacy of wearing the burka or niqab in certain defined circumstances – for example, in September, 2011 the NSW Government passed the Identification Legislation Amendment Act which requires a person to remove a face covering if asked to do so by a state official.

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About the Author

Russell Grenning is a retired political adviser and journalist who began his career at the ABC in 1968 and subsequently worked for the then Brisbane afternoon daily, The Telegraph and later as a columnist for The Courier Mail and The Australian.

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