tips. They think they’re trying to empower us. The former leader of the Commons, Jack Straw, claimed that
community relations would be improved if they ditched the veil; former prime minister David Cameron
commented that Muslim women were “traditionally submissive”.
Both white male politicians faced a backlash from the very Muslim women they thought they were
liberating from enslavement.
In October 2018, the UN criticised France for violating women’s rights, stating that rather than protecting
women with the country’s ban on clothing that concealed faces, its consequence would be to confine them
to their homes and marginalise them.
And just three days ago, the Partial Ban on Face-Covering Clothing Act, or burqa ban, came into force in
the Netherlands. This law not only prohibits women from wearing face coverings such as burqas and niqabs
on public transportation, in government buildings or at health and education institutions, but also outlaws
anyone wearing full-face helmets, ski masks and balaclavas in the same places.
Muslim women wear a burqa as a symbol of their religious belief and religious freedom, in the same way
that a Sikh would wear a turban. Veils (mantillas) are worn by some devout Catholic women in the UK and
are a common sight in Spain and other Catholic countries in Europe. The problem is that the burqa ban is
unworkable.
Dutch police and transport companies have expressed a reluctance to enforce it. The police have stated that
the ban is not a priority, so will not be able to respond within the usual half hour timeframe. The Dutch
government now insists that the “partial ban doesn’t target any religion and that people are free to dress
how they want”.
There are many Muslim women in prominent positions who have overcome
societal preconceptions to pursue their goals, which is testament to their
fortitude
The reality of trying to impose a ban on what women wear proves that without the common will of the
people, prejudicial laws such as the burqa ban are ineffectual. To restrict what people can wear based on
their religious beliefs is a violation of human rights. Liberal western democracies cannot promote freedom
of choice and expression on the one hand if they try and restrict what clothes people wear with the other.
The main question frequently asked about my veil (or hijab) is, “Is the veil really a choice, or is it a symbol of
oppression?” People have every right to ask and as Muslim women we should respond in a way that helps
others understand, not see questions as a challenge.
Let us not fool ourselves; without doubt, there are women who live in family units where they are forced to
wear the veil. But there are people of all colours, cultures and religions who have husbands or wives who
dictate what they should wear, what they should do and to whom they may speak. Controlling relationships
are not just a Muslim issue.
At primary school, a teacher decided to both impose the burden of representation on my young shoulders
and question my Britishness when she informed my class that they should feel “privileged to have me as a
classmate” because it would “widen their horizons”.
There are many powerful Muslim women in prominent positions who have overcome societal
preconceptions to pursue their goals, which is testament to their fortitude. And there are tens of thousands
of hijab-wearing Muslim women who will never have power but also challenge preconceptions when they