France will start enforcing a ban next month on full Islamic face veils, officials said, meaning any veiled woman can be summoned to a police station and asked to remove her face-covering or pay a fine.
PARIS:Francewill start enforcing a ban next month on full Islamic face veils, officials said, meaning any veiled woman can be summoned to a police station and asked to remove her face-covering or pay a fine.
Officials say the law is mainly symbolic and police will not call in every veiled woman they see to avoid stigmatising Muslims. But a Paris imam said forcing veiled women to present themselves at a police station would be just as uncomfortable.
When France passed the ban on full face veils last year, Muslim leaders voiced concern that it could lead to veiled Muslim women being unfairly treated by police or singled out for harassment.
"My gut reaction is to say this is all a bit clumsy," said Moussa Niambele, the imam of a mosque in Paris.
The ban forbids wearing any garment concealing the face in a public space, namely the street, public transport, shops, schools, courtrooms, hospitals and government buildings. From April 11, police are instructed to summon veil-wearers to a station, where they will be asked to remove the garment for "identification" and leave it off. If the wearer refuses to remove it they will be fined up to $208.
Officials say the law is mainly symbolic and police will not call in every veiled woman they see to avoid stigmatising Muslims. But a Paris imam said forcing veiled women to present themselves at a police station would be just as uncomfortable.
When France passed the ban on full face veils last year, Muslim leaders voiced concern that it could lead to veiled Muslim women being unfairly treated by police or singled out for harassment.
"My gut reaction is to say this is all a bit clumsy," said Moussa Niambele, the imam of a mosque in Paris.
The ban forbids wearing any garment concealing the face in a public space, namely the street, public transport, shops, schools, courtrooms, hospitals and government buildings. From April 11, police are instructed to summon veil-wearers to a station, where they will be asked to remove the garment for "identification" and leave it off. If the wearer refuses to remove it they will be fined up to $208.
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