France: Senate votes for Muslim face veil ban
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- Nadrzędna kategoria: Guardian
- Kategoria: Polityka i obyczaje
Controversial bill sails through upper house of parliament after having already been passed by the Assemblée nationale in July
- Lizzy Davies in Paris
- guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 14 September 2010
The French Senate voted almost unanimously to ban face-covering Islamic veils in public, clearing the final legislative hurdle for a bill whose supporters have been accused of stigmatising the country's Muslim population.
With 246 votes for and just one against, the bill sailed through the upper house of parliament after having already been passed by the Assemblée nationale in July. Barring a last-minute challenge from critics who believe it is unconstitutional, the ban should come into effect in spring of next year.
"The full veil dissolves a person's identity in that of a community. It calls into question the French model of integration, founded on the acceptance of our society's values," said justice minister Michèle Alliot-Marie, presenting the law to the Senate. Living with one's face uncovered, she added, was "a question of dignity and equality".
A blanket ban which goes far further than initial proposals to prevent women from wearing niqabs or burqas in public services such as hospitals and buses, the law passed will make it illegal for anyone to cover their face – with certain exceptions – anywhere in public in France.
After six months of "mediation" and a period during which police are likely to be given detailed instructions on how to apply the law, the first penalties are expected to be seen early next year. They will consist of fines of €150 for those found wearing a face-covering veil as well as, or instead of, a "citizenship course".
Delivered on a non-systematic, case-by-case basis, the penalties will be much harsher for anyone found to be forcing a woman to wear a niqab or burqa. They could be charged up to €30,000 and/or a year in prison.
Supporters of the ban – including Nicolas Sarkozy, who has said the full Islamic veil "is not welcome" on French soil – say it is a move made primarily in defence of women's rights and secularism.
Critics of the ban, however, have argued that the law affects a tiny minority – 2,000 women at most – and is expected by many to stir tensions and reinforce marginalisation among some of the country's five to six million Muslims.
The Parti Socialiste (PS) said it would have preferred to see a more moderate ban. It has also reiterated legal warnings that France, already in the firing line from Brussels over its Roma crackdown, could face being reprimanded by the European court of human rights.
bar: blokować
burqa: burka
dissolve: unieważniać
niqab: nikab
reiterate: wielokrotnie powtarzać
stir: pobudzać
tension: napięcie
unanimously: jednogłośnie
