Debate to ban Muslim face veil underway in Netherlands

A proposed law on the limited ban of face veil predominantly worn by Muslim women is underway in the Netherlands.

According to reports, the bill set to pass in parliament outlaws face coverings in government buildings, hospitals, schools and on public transportation.

In the Netherlands, only a few hundred Muslim women wear concealing full-face coverings, but successive governments have still sought to ban the garments, following the example of other European countries such as France and Belgium.

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Interior Minister Ronald Plasterk called the legislation “religion-neutral”, but conceded the debate about people wearing veils on Dutch streets had played a major role in the proposal.

Fatma Koser Kaya of the centrist D66 party, an opponent of the legislation says the law is unnecessary; “What are we banning today?” she asked. “This is symbolic lawmaking … because in practice it already happens.”

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