French government forwarded a bill that prohibits wearing any form of clothing to hide the face in public. President Nicolas Sarkozy strongly believes it is against the fundamental right of citizenship the country observes. A full covering of the face, he reiterated, is a threat to the values of human dignity. “Citizenship has to be lived in an uncovered face. There can therefore absolutely no solution other than a ban in all places.”
Although they are not directly addressed in the bill, Muslim women obviously are no exception. There are around 5 million women living in the country, only 2,000 wear burka or niqab. Sarkozy stressed the ban is not a form of discrimination and disrespect for a particular religion. Justice Minister Michèle Alliot-Marie argues the prohibition has already been practiced in some Islamic countries even in Mecca.However, in a statement presented in Reauter’s blog, this is not the case. Niqabs are allowed in Mecca.
“Those who breach the ban will be fined 150 euros (£129) or sent on a course to learn the values of French citizenship. Those who force someone to cover their face because of their sex will be jailed for a year and fined 15,000 euros (£12,900),” cites Telegraph.
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