Muslim women's full-face veil and garment banned in Denmark

Denmark has become the latest European country to ban all garments that cover the face including Muslim womens burqa and niqab.

The Danish lawmakers on Thursday, May 31, 2018, approved the law after 75 lawmakers out of 105 voted in favour of the bill that prohibits covering of faces in the public.

According to the Guardian, the government said the ban is not aimed at any religion and does not ban headscarves, turbans or the traditional Jewish skull cap.

The law which has reportedly become known as 'burqa ban' will come into force on Wednesday, August 1, 2018.

The justice minister, Søren Pape Poulsen, said it would be up to police officers to use their common sense when they see people violating the law.

Anyone who violates the law risks a fine of 1,000 kroner. Repeat offenders could be fined up to 10,000 kroner or jailed for up to six months.

However, Human Rights Activists in Denmark have raised their voice against the law saying every woman should be free to dress as they please.

Gauri van Gulik, Amnesty International’s Director, says “All women should be free to dress as they please and to wear clothing that expresses their identity or beliefs. This ban will have a particularly negative impact on Muslim women who choose to wear the niqab or burqa.

“While some specific restrictions on the wearing of full-face veils for the purposes of public safety may be legitimate, this blanket ban is neither necessary nor proportionate and violates the rights to freedom of expression and religion.

“If the intention of this law was to protect women’s rights, it fails abjectly. Instead, the law criminalises women for their choice of clothing and in so doing flies in the face of those freedoms Denmark purports to uphold.”

Austria, France and Belgium have also banned full-face veils and garments that cover every part of the body.