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【Share】Feature: France's burqa ban takes effect amid criticisms
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Helene, a 33-year-old French woman converted to Islam, decided to put on a burqa covering her entire body except the eyes and hands five years ago after being married to an Algerian. To Helene, a former secretary, wearing a burqa did not change much of her daily life. She stopped working but continued going out with her family and shopping with friends. But as a law banning burqa in public places came into force on Monday, things will change. "I don't know why they approved such law. If they do that to protect republican principles and women dignity as they said, they are wrong as forcing a woman to remove her burqa will violate her freedom of choice and then principles of equality and fraternity," said Helene, who refused to give her full name. "It's my personal choice. Why won't they respect it? I'm not locked up with the burqa, on the contrary, I felt good and free. They had to understand that and stop stigmatizing Muslims," she added with a firm tone. According to figures of the Interior Ministry, about 1,900 Muslim women are wearing the burqa across France, which has the biggest Muslim community in the European Union. Under the burqa ban, women who insist on putting a full-face veil in administrations, hospitals and parks are subject to a fine of 150 euros (217 U.S. dollars) or a forced citizenship lesson. Men forcing their wives to wear the burqa will have to pay a 30,000-euro (43,287-dollar) fine, and may face one year in prison. Khadija Hawich, a Moroccan housewife beamed with joy as she found a way to bypass the ban. "The compromise is so simple, I'll wear the headscarf and put on a mask. Nobody, neither the law, can oblige me to remove it. If the police ask about it (the mask), I'll tell them I want to protect myself from pollution and viruses and I'm free to do so," the mother of two kids told Xinhua. "If the police want to make sure the identity of a woman with a burqa, they have to seek out other means without violating individual rights and freedom," she added. To Rachid Nekkaz, a French businessman, the solution consisted in setting up a 100-million-euro (144-million-dollar) fund to help Muslim women pay any fines they may get for wearing the full veil. He has set up an association called Hands Off My Constitution, which he said regarded banning the veil in the street as unconstitutional, although it did not oppose to such a ban in closed public places. "I am for the banning of the burqa in closed public spaces, like banks and supermarkets. But I cannot accept that the fear of Islam or fundamentalism would reduce our constitutional liberties in the street," Nekkaz said. "The law must be changed so that women can dress freely and in respect of others," he added. Amid Islamism concerns, the right-wing government has pressed for a law preventing women from wearing the full-face veil in public places across the country. Officials said the ban is a measure to preserve security and to guarantee human rights but critics fear the law will stigmatize Muslims and fuel racism, as the move was also regarded as an attempt to appease voters ahead of the presidential elections next year. "It is just a racist decision against Islam. Why don't they make a law against women who are almost naked and exhibit their bodies in public?" asked Abdelatif Mahjoub, an Algerian taxi driver. "France is supposed to be the land of freedom and human rights so it has to respect that. Everyone has the right to wear as he wants," he added. France is the second European country after Belgium to ban the wearing of a veil. Before this ban was passed in October, France, home to about 5 million Muslims, already banned Muslim headscarves and other religious symbols in schools. |
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