imposition of dress codes

The Islamic Veil across Europe

Publication Date: 
September 22, 2011
Source: 
BBC
French girls in headscarves protesting in Strasbourg 1 Sep '04. Headscarves are allowed at French universities, but not schools.


Countries across Europe have wrestled with the issue of the Muslim veil - in various forms such as the body-covering burka and , which covers the face apart from the eyes.

The debate takes in religious freedom, female equality, secular traditions and even fears of terrorism.

The veil issue is part of a wider debate about multiculturalism in Europe, as many politicians argue that there needs to be a greater effort to assimilate ethnic and religious minorities.

France: With the burqa ban women are 'effectively under house arrest'

Publication Date: 
September 19, 2011
Source: 
The Guardian
Hind Ahmas, one of 2 French women facing a fine for wearing the niqab in a town near Paris. Photo: Magali Delporte/the Guardian


Since France introduced its burqa ban in April there have been violent attacks on women wearing the niqab and, this week, the first fines could be handed down. But a legal challenge to this hard line may yet expose the French state as a laughing stock.

Hind Ahmas walks into a brasserie in the north Paris suburb of Aulnay-sous-Bois. Jaws drop, shoulders tighten and a look of disgust ripples across the faces of haggard men sipping coffee at the bar.

United Arab Emirates: Cross-dressing women targeted in Dubai campaign

Publication Date: 
June 1, 2011
Source: 
The National


Police are launching a campaign against cross-dressing women. The Government says boyat - loosely translated as tomboys - are indulging in a dangerous practice. Officials from the police and the Community Development Authority said yesterday they would work together on plans to combat boyat.

France: Full-face veils outlawed as France spells out controversial niqab ban

Publication Date: 
March 3, 2011
Source: 
The Guardian
A woman in a niqab walks with a child in the Tuileries, in Paris, France. Photograph: Horacio Villalobos/EPA


From Saudi tourists window-shopping on the Champs-Élysées to Muslim women in a departure lounge at Charles de Gaulle airport or the few young French converts on suburban estates, any woman who steps outside in France wearing a veil that covers her face will be breaking the law from next month.