Besson said he believed a formal ban on veils that cover the face and body seemed to him “unavoidable,” with a ban in public services as a minimum step.
Whether such veils are banned or not, he said he intends to personally move forward to ensure that women wearing such veils and seeking French nationality or residence cards are denied.
“I want the wearing of the full veil to be systematically considered as proof of insufficient integration into French society, creating an obstacle to gaining (French) nationality,” he said.
He said he would advise prefects, the highest state representative in the various French regions, that the wearing of such veils is a motive for not delivering 10-year residence cards.
Latest Updates: burqa RSS
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johnpi
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johnpi
French ruling party to seek ban on Burqa in January, newspaper reports.
While a law prohibiting the garment completely might be difficult, the group might seek a ban on the burqua in the state’s civil service, in public buildings and on streets, the newspaper said.
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johnpi
Burqas disappear from a Pakistani city.
In Mingora, the main city of Swat Valley:
“When the Taliban fled, our burqas went with them,” said Shahin Begum, 40, an elementary school teacher, who returned to work on Aug. 1.
Women were the main targets of the Taliban’s morals police, and once that rigid rule was imposed their lives froze. They were barred from going to traditional women’s shopping areas, and anyone who worked in a public place, including hospitals, was required to wear a burqa, a sacklike, head-to-toe garment with netting over the eyes.
The burqa is traditional for many women in tribal, conservative western Pakistan. But here in the Swat Valley and its ethnically mixed hill towns north of the capital, Islamabad, women are relatively more open, and for many the outfit felt clumsy and confining.
“I felt like I was out of air,” said Zaida Bibi, a maid in a green shawl with flowers.
Now, she said, it still feels like a delicious act of revenge to walk into Cheena Market, a maze of glittering glass stalls full of cosmetics, dresses and shoes that was forbidden under the Taliban, where she was shopping Sunday.
“It’s a free, light feeling,” she said as she chose gifts for Id al-Fitr, a major Muslim holiday, which was celebrated this week.
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Fatemeh
Fatemeh Fakhraie writes about the Chesler vs. Wolf ridiculousness:
What’s most interesting about this “debate” is that neither women have qualifications that make their opinions hold weight. Phyllis “Feminist Hawk” Chelser is a notorious Islamophobe, and Naomi’s experience with the veil came from putting on Pakistani clothing (“shalwar kameez”) in Morocco. Uh-huh.
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thabet
At least some in Danish politics seem to have kept their sense of perspective:
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thabet
A mere 367 Muslim women may bring down the Fifth Republic.
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johnpi
Sarkozy’s comments against the burqa are eliciting voices of protest from various places in the Muslim world, here and here for example.
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plimfix
The Daily Express, a newspaper renowned for his quality journalism and moderate views (howls of derisive laughter), has decided to launch a campaign to ban the burkha in Britain. In the light of its previous coverage of ‘Muslim issues’, one might be forgiven for seeing this as part of much wider campaign to stamp all over Muslims. Among those supporting the call is our old friend, Douglas Murray.
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Fatemeh
This week on MMW, we examined the commodification of the burqa, the politics of lust in the Malaysian fatwa against tomboys, pondered gender at the MANA conference, reprimanded the Egyptian media for its coverage of the murder of two women, and linked up a storm.
Also, I write about Busta Rhymes and his latest musical gaffe.
