Hijab Ban: 5 countries where wearing face veil is a criminal offense

Hijab Ban: 5 countries where face veil is a criminal offense

These places all have some form of ban on Islamic coverings worn by Muslim women.

A country in Europe called the Netherlands is the latest place to ban a face veil, thus making it a criminal offense.

According to this law, anyone found wearing the burqa - which covers the entire face and body - and the niqab - which covers only the face in public places will be subject to a fine of 405 euros, or about $472.

In light of this new law, we take a look at five countries where wearing a face veil is a criminal offense. In no particular order, they are:

Switzerland

A ban was placed on full-face veils like the burqa on July 1, 2016. Following the new law, Muslim women in Ticino, an Italian-speaking region in southern Switzerland, faced a fined of 9,200 euros.

Despite the initial criticism, a recent online poll run by the newspapers Le Matin Dimanche and SonntagsZeitung has shown that majority of Swiss want a nationwide ban on face veils in public places.

The survey was done on 1,167 people.  60% said they would "certainly" vote for the ban,  16% would "without doubt" vote for it, 20% voted against it while 3% had no view.

Belgium

In 2011, Belgium placed a ban on face-covering veils. Based on this law, anyone with a veil or clothing that obscure people's faces in public places have a penalty of a seven-day jail term or a fine of 1,378 euro.

 

Spain

Reportedly, some parts of the Catalonia region, in northeastern Spain, have laws against face-covering veils. These laws were contested and overturned in 2013 by Spain's Supreme Court. According to the court,  "it limits religious freedom". Some areas still observe the ban.

ALSO READ: Indonesian University bans burqa-wearing students from graduating

France

The French county made history by becoming the first European country to ban face-covering in public places. This happened in April 2011. This law states that women who go against the law will be fined 150 euro while anyone who forces a woman to cover her face will pay a fine of 30,000 euro.

Chad

Unlike the rest of the countries on this list, Chad only banned face-covering veils two days after two suic*de bomb attacks in June 2015.

Following the attack,  the prime minister, Kalzeube Pahimi Deubet called for burqas to be burnt. The penalty is an arrest or a jail sentence.

Cameroon also has a ban on face-covering veils for security reasons.

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