Category Archives: Women

City of Stockholm pays compensation to woman thrown off training course for wearing headscarf

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The City of Stockholm is to pay 35,000 kronor ($4,500) in compensation to a woman who was forced to leave a municipal training course for wearing a long headscarf.

The course was aimed at helping people secure jobs in the cleaning business. But when the woman arrived at class the first day she was told that prospective employers would not accept the way she dressed. As a result, the woman’s name was struck off the list of course participants.

The incident, which occurred in April 2008, was reported to the Equality Ombudsman (Diskrimineringsombudsmannen – DO). The ombudsman elected to sue the city on grounds of discrimination but on Thursday the two sides were able to reach an out of court settlement.

“Ethnic and religious diversity are part of today’s Swedish labour market. Employers are bound by law to prevent religious discrimination and unions have a key role to play in driving this issue,” said ombudsman Katri Linna in a statement announcing the compensation agreement

The Local, 26 June 2010

Tory MP to present Private Members Bill against veil

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Philip HolloboneA Kettering MP who has led calls to ban Muslim women from wearing the burka in Britain is to ask Parliament to restrict its use.

Philip Hollobone, Conservative MP for Kettering, will present his Private Members Face Coverings (Regulation) Bill in the House of Commons on Wednesday in the wake of a Council of Europe ruling saying no bans should be imposed. MPs from 47 countries voted that outlawing the hijab would deny women the right to cover their faces even if they genuinely want to.

Mr Hollobone, who previously likened wearing the garment to “going around with a paper bag over your head“, said: “The ruling clearly demonstrates that members of the council of the EU are out of touch with popular opinion.

“What they said does leave open the possibility of restrictions on the wearing of burkas for security and other reasons – it doesn’t forbid any measure. If motorcyclists have to take their helmet off when they go into shops and banks the same rules should apply to people wearing the burka.”

A private member’s bill is a proposed law introduced by a backbench MP for the House of Commons to debate but does not automatically become law if MPs vote in its favour.

Inam Khan, chairman of the Kettering Muslim Association, said: “This has never been an issue in Kettering. There are only two females in the entire population of 35,000 here who wear the hijab. I don’t understand why it has become an issue, especially when there are such serious other issues affecting the country.

“You will never, ever speak to anybody who works in a bank or a shop or a newsagent in Kettering who has had an issue with this.”

Northamptonshire Evening Telegraph, 25 June 2010

Express attacks ‘Eurocrats’ for defending right to wear the veil

Posted on by Bob Pitt

You Can't Ban the BurkhaEurope backed the burkha yesterday by ruling that the controversial Muslim veils should not be banned.

MPs from 47 countries voted unanimously that outlawing the full-face veils would deny women “who genuinely and freely desire to do so” the right to cover their faces.

The Council of Europe’s resolution is not binding on members of the group, which includes all European countries except Belarus, as well as Turkey. But the vote by the human rights group threatens to torpedo bans planned in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain as it could open governments up to costly legal battles.

Last night the ruling was condemned as “out of touch”. UKIP leader Lord Pearson said: “This vote just highlights the disconnection between the appointed politicians of the Council of Europe and the peoples of Europe. They refused to represent the people’s wishes, preferring to hold them in contempt.”

Tory MP Philip Hollobone said: “It just goes to show how out of touch European politicians are with popular opinion. I have no doubt that the majority of the British public are against the wearing of the burkha and the full-face niqab veil.”

The Council of Europe also branded the Swiss bigots for their ban on the construction of Islamic minarets. Last year Switzerland banned the building of the minarets – towers used to call Muslims to prayer – after a nationwide referendum. Politicians claimed the minarets represent militant Islam.

Daily Express, 24 June 2010

See also ENGAGE, 24 June 2010

European MPs vote against bans on veils and minarets

Posted on by Bob Pitt

MPs from 47 countries have unanimously voted against a general ban on the wearing of the burka in public.

The Parliamentary Assembly of Europe’s human rights watchdog, the Council of Europe, passed a resolution warning that if governments imposed such a ban they would be denying women “who genuinely and freely desire to do so” their right to cover their faces.

The resolution was part of a report on Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia, which also called on European governments to work to educate Muslim women, their families and communities on their human rights and to encourage them to take part in “public and professional life”.

It also called on Switzerland to repeal as soon as possible its general ban on the construction of minarets, which it described as discriminatory.

Associated Press, 23 June 2010

See also Swissinfo, 23 June 2010

Spanish Senate calls for nationwide ban on veil

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The Spanish Senate on Wednesday approved a motion urging Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero’s government to ban Islamic all-body veils in public places.

The government needed to take legal measures against the niqab, which covers the entire body except for the eyes, and against the burqa, which hides even the eyes, the motion said.

It was approved with the narrow majority of 131 votes against 129, with two conservative parties backing it, while Zapatero’s Socialists and others voted against.

Spain should outlaw “any usage, custom or discriminatory practice that limits the freedom of women,” said the document, which was drafted by the main conservative opposition People’s Party (PP).

The Socialists, on the other hand, argued that the use of all-body veils was best opposed through education and by using the current legislation, which already prohibits people with covered faces from entering public buildings.

Eight Spanish municipalities, located mainly in the north-eastern region of Catalonia, have outlawed or are planning to outlaw all-body veils in public places. The Senate is now seeking a nationwide ban.

Critics say the Spanish debate on the burqa and niqab is only political point-scoring, because all-body veils are rare in the country.

DPA, 23 June 2010

France veil ban bill goes to parliament July 6

Posted on by Bob Pitt

French lawmakers will begin on July 6 to debate a government proposal to ban the Muslim full-face veil from public spaces, a minister said on Tuesday.

The lower house National Assembly will read the bill before it passes to the Senate in September and it could be adopted into law soon after, said Henri de Raincourt, the minister for parliamentary relations.

AFP, 22 June 2010

Australia: right-wing bigot introduces veil ban bill

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Christian Democratic Party MP Fred Nile has succeeded in introducing a bill to ban the wearing of the burqa in the NSW Upper House. Mr Nile introduced his private member’s bill, seeking to ban the wearing of the burqa and other face veils in public, shortly after 8pm (AEST) on Tuesday.

Last month, a debate on the same bill was voted down by the NSW Upper House.

Greens MP John Kaye said only the four Greens MPs and Family First MP Gordon Moyes voted against introducing the bill on Tuesday. “Last month the coalition and the government did the right thing and said no, they would not allow the Upper House to be home to this kind of racist dog whistling,” Mr Kaye told AAP on Tuesday. “This time they caved in.”

Mr Kaye said Mr Nile’s bill has opened the door to a “dangerous and divisive attack on one of NSW’s communities”.

“Letting loose the ugly bigotry that lies behind this bill will only encourage hostility to the Muslim community,” he said. “While no woman should be forced to wear a burqa or any other form of clothing, this absurd bill will do nothing to enhance the rights of women.”

The bill has been adjourned until September 2010.

AAP, 23 June 2010

See also Sydney Morning Herald, 23 June 2010

Mother and daughter left ‘heartbroken’ by vicious race assault

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Racists launched a vicious attack on a Muslim woman who was struck on the head and almost had her headscarf torn off. They also hurled racial abuse at the mother and her young daughter as they walked through the city.

The shocking assault has been condemned by the city’s Muslim community, along with religious leaders across Exeter. Hayat Kaddouri Roddy, of Polsloe Road, Exeter, has spoken of the frightening attack in which she describes her attackers as “animals”.

The 37-year-old was with her 13-year-old daughter Huda when the assault happened in Edmund Street, in the St David’s area of Exeter, close to the subway, at around 12.30pm on Tuesday. Both were wearing hijab head-dresses, and Hayat also had on a traditional Muslim jilbab – a long dress.

Moroccan-born Hayat, who has lived in the UK for 17 years and in Exeter for several years, and her daughter were stopped by two teenagers, a boy and girl aged around 17 to 18, who refused to let them pass. They racially abused the woman before a man aged around 27 joined in the attack.

Police are investigating the incident and are appealing for witnesses to contact them.

Hayat said: “This couple stopped us and said they weren’t going to let us pass. They said ‘you don’t belong to this country’. I kept really calm and there was a man behind me and I told him the couple wouldn’t let me pass.

“I thought maybe he would be supportive and help but all of a sudden, he stopped next to me and hit me on the head and tried to pull off my headscarf. He didn’t manage to pull it off completely but he really pulled it hard. And he was saying nasty words to me.”

Express & Echo, 17 June 2010

Via London Muslim

France criticised over discrimination against Muslims

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Racial profiling and some politicians exploiting racial and xenophobic stereotypes persist in France despite progress in fighting discrimination, a Council of Europe report said Tuesday.

The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) issued its fourth report on France with positive comments on the country’s High Authority against Discrimination and for Equality (HALDE) for “its key and growing role in the fight against racism”.

However, “while there had been improvements in certain areas, some issues gave rise for concern, such as minorities’ perception of the police, prejudice against Muslims and the tone of the immigration debate,” said Nils Muiznieks, chair of ECRI, the Council’s independent human rights body.

Many racial acts go unreported and for those that are referred to authorities there is a low conviction rate, the report said. “The police frequently resort to racial profiling and take law enforcement decisions on the basis of racial, ethnic or religious stereotypes” rather than individual behaviour, it said.

In the political arena, the report noted that most politicians condemn openly racial comments and race-related acts, but that there are some who exploit the issue. In relation to immigration, “there is widespread suspicion that non-citizens engage in fraud to obtain residence permits and access to rights,” the report said.

Regarding Muslims, part of French society doubts their willingness and ability to “respect French values”. “The debate on the prohibition of the niqab (the face-covering veil) has increased feelings of discrimination among Muslims and may result in further excluding some Muslim women from society,” the report said about the government’s considering a ban on Muslim women wearing the full veil in public.

Problems of discrimination on the grounds of race, religion, nationality or ethnic origin persists in access to employment, education, housing, and goods and services, the report added.

Middle East Online, 16 June 2010