The Controversial Muslim Veils

© BBC

With the recent veil bans that the parliaments of Italy and France have agreed on discussion has entailed. As of today, at least 27 women in France have been fined for wearing a burqa, Italy passed a "draft law" August 2 to prevent the use of this Muslim veils, and the British government, as well as other European countries, is also considering the approval of  some variation of this laws (New York Times). Have this countries gone a step too far by prohibiting the use of a full face veil?

In some Muslim countries -such as Pakistan or Afghanistan-, the use of a veil is no longer mandatory by law, but most women still wear a veil of some sort, the Muslim culture has remained highly unchanged by law. These women wear veils, maybe not willfully, they simply have to wear it to be able to lead a normal life in these countries, people are not used to seeing a woman on the streets with no veil on and Muslim culture punishes not using not a veil if not by means of physical torture, by affecting the reputation of the family, and men do not want to be seen as weak (Women in World History).

I believe that banning this tradition may put the French and Italian governments in a tricky position, since this is not the only tradition that has a controversial background, and though they are not banning the religion itself, it could be perceived as a direct attack to it. Changes in culture are to be gradual, and it is hard to think about changing the way people behave overnight, but governments must continue working to give these women the rights they deserve. 

Works Cited

New York Times. "Muslim Veiling News." New York Times. Web. <http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/subjects/m/muslim_veiling/index.html>.

Asser, Martin. "BBC NEWS | Middle East | Why Muslim Women Wear the Veil." BBC News - Home. Web. 24 Aug. 2011. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5411320.stm>.

Women in World History. "Historical Perspectives On Islamic Dress Essay (Women in World History Curriculum)." Women In World History Curriculum. Web. 24 Aug. 2011. <http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/essay-01.html>.