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| Europe |
| Public Transport Sector against Burqa Ban |
| 2008-02-09 |
| The public transport sector says the government is saddling it with the responsibility of tackling face-covering clothing, such as burqas or niqabs. The cabinet decided Friday that wearing burqas and other forms of face-covering clothing in trams, buses and metros must be banned. The public transport companies are requested to include the ban in their codes of conduct in the months ahead. If they refuse, the cabinet will force them via "other regulations", Home Affairs Minister Guusje ter Horst said after Friday's week cabinet meeting. Public transport companies sector organisation Mobis does not want the burqa to be excluded. Mobis fears violent incidents if for example a bus-driver refused to take someone wearing a burqa. Mobis says the cabinet is passing on the responsibility for the ban to the sector. Mobis chairman Maarten van Eeghen also says burqas form no social security problem in his view. The cabinet originally only wanted to ban burqas at schools and for civil servants. The Christian democrats (CDA), the biggest government party, also wanted a ban on public transport. The ban at schools and for civil servants, like the ban in public transport, with not be laid down in legislation but via codes of conduct. A general ban on wearing the burqa in public places would according to the cabinet be in conflict with the constitutional freedom of religion. The opposition conservatives (VVD) and Party for Freedom (PVV) say a general ban would be constitutionally allowed. PVV leader Geert Wilders argued that "you cannot participate in Dutch society walking around like a penguin." Radio programme Stand.nl presented the statement Friday: "A burqa ban in public transport is useful." Among those responding, 70 percent agreed. |
| Posted by:tipper |