4 May 2012. Ghent seminar on empirical face veil research (May 9). (Saïla Ouald Chaib, Strasbourg Observers)
10 February 2012. Banning the burqa and the European identity crisis. (Mauits Berger, Jurist)
31 January 2012. EU: Dutch government implements ban on face-covering clothing. (eGov Monitor)
28 October 2011. Breaking the law by just stepping out. (Angelique Chrisafis -Guardian News & Media Ltd, Gulf News)
22 September 2011. France court fines two women for wearing niqab, or full-face veil, in first action since ban took effect. (Angelique Chrisafis, The Guardian.co.uk)
22 September 2011. Muslim women flout French ban of veil. (Elaine Ganley, Associated Press via The Deseret News)
29 August 2011. Islamic Headscarves, Religious Pluralism, and Secular Human Rights. (Paper by Zachary Calo, Valparaiso School of Law, posted to SSRN)
17 August 2011. French businessman pays Belgium face veil fines. (Ben Deighton and Elizabeth Piper, Reuters)
August 2011. Barnett v. Meer: The laws against veiling go beyond France. (Carolyn Barnett, Policymic)
21 July 2011. EU rights body blasts veil ban. (Onislam.com)
20 July 2011. Banning burqa and niqab will lead to further discrimination says human-rights body. (Cillian Donnelly, New Europe)
20 July 2011. European rights official attacks burqa bans. (AFP, France 24 International News)
20 July 2011. French EU Minister: Europe 'abandoning naivité for constructive realism.' (EurActive.com)
20 July 2011. Penalising women who wear the burqa does not liberate them.
(Thomas Hammarberg, Commissioner.cws.coe)
23 July 2011 - "Burqa ban" takes effect in Belgium
11 April 2011 - Full-face veil ban takes effect in France
11 April 2011 and ongoing - France
Entries through 9 June 2011
"Nul ne peut, dans l’espace public, porter une tenue destinée à dissimuler son visage."* France has become the first Euopean country to ban the wearing of full-face veils in public. The law was drawn without reference to religion and bans any kind of face covering in public, but it is widely understood as a "burqa ban," affecting primarily Muslim women. French officials have asserted that the full veil — the burqa (full body covering) or the niqab (face veil) — is worn by an estimated 2000 Muslim women in France. The controversial ban, passed by the French parliament in October 2010, has taken effect Monday, 11 April 2011.
The law permits anyone refusing to lift the face veil for an identity check to be taken to a police station where attempts would be made to persuade them to remove the covering. Penalties for failing to comply will be fines of up to 150 euros (215 USD) and "re-education classes." Other more severe penalties (up to 30,000 euros, or about $43,000) are aimed at those who "through threats, violence, constraint, abuse of authority or power for reason of their gender" would force others to hide their faces in public. If the person coerced is a minor, the fines double, and a prison sentence of up to two years is possible.
Some news items below:
June and beyond
- British couple challenge French veil ban (Asian Image)
22 April and beyond
- Burqa, niqab ban makes sense (Cody Gorman, The Daily Targum [Rutgers])
- Women's right to freedom of choice: Commentary on the niqab ban (Hebah Ahmed, The WIP.net)
- France's Islamic veil ban stirs passionate response worldwide (Michael Saba, CNN)
- Is the ban on the veil justified? (Dr. Tariq Rahman, The International Herald Tribune)
- Debating the veil (Sébstien Doubinsky, The Hindu Arts Magazine)
- The secular Talibans in France -- Are they any better? (Dr. Habib Siddiqui, Countercurrents.org)
- Burqa ban too much (does not take into account faith, beliefs) (Trent Smith, Highlander Opinions UC Riverside)
- France's bogus 'burqa ban' (Timothy Spangler, US and UK)
14 - 21 April
- The burka ban part 4: The perils of multiculturalism (by "laïcité" in Feminism v Patriarchy blog)
- With burqa ban, France attacks all faiths (Ahlul Bayt News Agency)
- Debating the niqab - symbol of freedom or oppression? (Kristen Thompson, Metro Vancouver)
- So whose liberty, equality, fraternity is really at stake? (A week into France's burka ban and the country is more divided than ever.) (Henry Samuel, The Telegraph)
- France behind the veil (Paola Totaro)
12-13 April
- France’s veil ban: Liberté, égalité, fraternité? (Debate, The Washington Post)
- Would the burqa ban stand up at the European Court? (Joshua Rozenberg, guardian.co.uk)
- Muslim women bring their voices to the veil debate (Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA Today)
- Council of Europe encouraging religious freedom dialogue (euronews)
- U.S. backs right to wear religious attire (AFP)
- Facing down a burqa ban (Jennifer Fermino, The New York Post)
- Women detained at veil protest in France (Kim Wilsher, Los Angeles Times)
10-11 April
- French women wear veils in public to protest ban (NDTV)
- France's veil ban goes into effect on Monday (Lisa Bryant, Voice of America)
- Banning the burqa: An assault on freedom (Brendan O'Neill, Spiked-Online.com)
- French full veil ban comes into force (Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty)
- Banning the burka (some women already have their eyes on the European Court of Human Rights) (Gavin Hewitt, BBC News)
- For life, liberty and the burqa: Muslim women defy France's ban on full-face veils (Dheepthis Namasivayam, The Herald Sun)
- France to Become First European Country to Ban Burqa (Alyssa Newcomb, ABC News)
- French police arrest burqa ban protesters (Niki Cook, CNN)
- French burqa ban comes into effect (Dave Clark, Sydney Morning Herald)
- French veil curbs come into force (Hugh Schofield, BBC News)
- Defying France's full veil ban (Al Jazeera)
- French police arrest burqa ban protesters as law comes into force (Irish Times)
- France wakes up to a burka ban as Sarkozy unveils a new era (The Independent)
- Leading article: A divisive move that Sarkozy may regret (The Independent)
- French full veil ban goes into force (Brian Love, Jon Boyle, Reuters)
- France to begin enforcing full veil ban Monday (CTV News, Canada)
- 'I will go out in my full veil and fight' (Kim Willsher, New Zealand Herald)
- French police arrest burqa ban protesters (Niki Cook, CNN International)
- Veiled agendas (Maureen Usmani, The International Herald Tribune)