Canadian province of Quebec has passed a controversial law that bars people from wearing face coverings when giving or receiving a public service. The provincial Liberal government’s Bill 62 on religious neutrality was passed on Wednesday in Quebec’s National Assembly.
“We are just saying that for reasons linked to communication, identification and safety, public services should be given and received with an open face,” Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard told reporters. “We are in a free and democratic society. You speak to me, I should see your face, and you should see mine. It’s as simple as that.”
Initially aimed only at provincial services, the Liberals widened the law’s scope in August to embody municipal services, including public transit and subsidized housing offices.
The law prohibits public workers — including doctors, teachers and daycare employees — as well as those receiving a service from the government from covering their faces. The Liberals, who hold a majority in provincial parliament, voted in favour of the bill, while all the other parties voted against.
The two main opposition parties, the Parti Québécois and Coalition Avenir Québec, have argued the legislation doesn’t go far enough, while civil rights advocates and Muslim groups argue it discriminates against religious minorities.
While the niqab and burka are not mentioned in the legislation, Quebec Justice Minister Stéphanie Vallée said earlier this week the bill aims to clearly establish the “neutrality of the state.”
Religion and identity became a key issue in the last election after the Parti Québécois put forward a contentious proposal for a charter of values, which would have banned public servants from wearing obvious religious symbols.
Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, who is in the middle of a municipal election campaign, has been an outspoken critic of the bill, accusing the provincial government of overstepping its jurisdiction and ignoring his city’s multicultural character.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government does not interfere with provincial laws, but will work to ensure the rights of all Canadians are respected. “I will continue to work to ensure that all Canadians are protected by the charter, while respecting the choices that different parliamentarians can make at different levels,” he said. “Yet here at the federal level, we stand up for the rights of all Canadians.”
In 2011, Canada’s former Conservative government banned Muslim women wearing the burka during citizenship ceremonies. The federal appeals court found the ban was unlawful during a case in 2015 that involved a woman who had shown her face to officials during her citizenship test, but refused to attend the ceremony because she would be forced to take off her coverings. After taking the matter to the supreme court to press its case, the government ban was reversed because it was found to restrict freedom of religion, a core Canadian value
Nicole Filion, coordinator of the Ligue des droits et libertés, a human-rights defence group, warned that the Quebec law will “have a discriminatory effect on religious groups who are targeted, in particular women.”
Eve Torres, Quebec representative of the National Council of Canadian Muslims, said the law infringes on religious freedom and will almost certainly be challenged in court. “After the January attack (in which six worshippers were killed in a Quebec City mosque), in a context with the growth of the extreme right, I think the government has a responsibility to protect this minority and not marginalize people who already face discrimination, who already have trouble finding jobs and housing,” Torres said. “It creates a climate where people are again excluded.”
A survey last year found that three per cent of Canadian Muslim women wear the niqab. One Quebec researcher has estimated that fewer than 100 Quebec women wear the garment, which covers the face except for the eyes.
Quebec is the first jurisdiction in North America with a law prohibiting women who wear the niqab or burka from receiving public services.
In the US the right to wear facial coverings is protected by the First Amendment in the Constitution that guarantees freedom of religion and expression.
In 2011, Canada’s former government banned Muslim women wearing the burka during citizenship ceremonies. The federal appeals court found the ban was unlawful during a case in 2015 that involved a woman who had shown her face to officials during her citizenship test but refused to attend the ceremony because she would be forced to take off her coverings
France banned the face-covering garments in all public places in 2011, and Belgium and Austria have followed suit. In the Netherlands, women cannot wear the full veil in schools, hospitals and on public transportation.
Several towns in Italy have local bans on face-covering veils. The north-western town of Novara is one of several local authorities to have already brought in rules to deter public use of the Islamic veil. In the Lombardy region, a burka ban was agreed in December 2015 and came into effect in January 2016.
Though there are no plans for a national ban in Spain, in 2010 Barcelona announced a ban on full Islamic face-veils in some public spaces such as municipal offices, public markets and libraries.
There is no ban on Islamic dress in the UK, but schools are allowed to decide their own dress code after a 2007 directive which followed several high-profile court cases.
Russia’s Stavropol region has a ban on hijabs – the first of its kind imposed by a region in the Russian federation. The ruling was upheld by Russia’s Supreme Court in July 2013.
Late 2009, Swiss Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said a face-veil ban should be considered if more Muslim women begin wearing them, adding that the veils made her feel “uncomfortable”.
Last February German lawmakers proposed a law to prohibit women from wearing full-face veils in public institutions. The Bavarian government introduced a bill to ban the burqa and niqab in schools, universities, polling stations and government offices.
The Danish ruling coalition parties have expressed their support for the ban. The liberal Venstre Party, the senior member of the ruling coalition, has announced its support for the ban in public places following a party meeting early this month.
Bulgaria’s parliament banned face veils last year. Chad in northern Central Africa implemented a ban following two terrorist attacks by Nigerian militant Islamist group Boko Haram that killed 20 in 2015. The prime minister said the veil was used as a “camouflage” by militants and said the security forces will burn all full-face veils sold in markets.
The capital of China’s western Xinjiang region has banned the wearing of Islamic veils and robes in public in 2014.
