“Muslim veils can be outlawed from school classrooms, head teachers were told last night. The Government’s legal chief confirmed that the full-face niqab can be justifiably ruled out on the grounds of school uniform policy.
“Lord Falconer, a Cabinet minister, said that this also included other Islamic religious garments such as the full-length jilbab gown. He claimed that common sense rather than concerns about human rights should govern what pupils wear to school.”
A leader in the Express applauds Lord Falconer’s position:
“This is a very welcome development. For, while wearing the veil is a matter of personal choice – and accepted in our country which is famed for its tolerance – there are times when it is obvious that this Muslim symbol clashes with the British way. Sometimes it as simple as being able to see the faces of our fellow citizens as we go about our daily business. The school classroom is one such area, the courtroom is another.
“There are times when members of the Muslim community go too far and the Daily Express is not afraid to say so. The setting up of Islamic courts applying Sharia law is one such example.
“The Lord Chancellor has now made it possible for schools to say ‘No’ to the veil. Head teachers have been told that common sense does not conflict with human rights. In other words, they have been given the green light to just say ‘No’ when the occasion demands it.”
“Imagine if Mayor Bloomberg invited a Muslim cleric from Egypt known for his advocacy of female genital mutilation, wife-beating, ‘martyrdom’ bombings in Israel and Iraq, and the murder of homosexuals and converts from Islam to be an honored guest of the city. New Yorkers would naturally rebel against the mayor, who would certainly survive politically. But what if he did something even more brazen and perverse: invite the cleric back. Surely, it couldn’t happen here. But it did happen in London last year under the aegis of left-wing mayor, Ken Livingstone. Livingstone considers Yusuf al-Qaradawi (the cleric’s name) a huggable, ‘moderate’ liaison between East and West. Anyone arguing otherwise Livingstone accuses of xenophobia or – a ridiculous term now gaining traction in the United Kingdom – ‘Islamophobia’.”
“In my many conversations with like-minded people about the threat that radical Islam poses to the British way of life – and, indeed, to European civilisation – we frequently end by despairingly agreeing that the West seems intent on committing political and cultural suicide. When we look starkly at the demographic statistics, the wimpishness of our Establishment in the face of the threat, the perversions perpetrated by political correctness and our own passivity, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that within a couple of generations, Islam will be in control in Europe….
A bus company in Edinburgh has sparked anger over rules requiring drivers to ask Muslim women wearing the veil to show their faces. Religious groups and unions said the rules introduced by Lothian Buses to catch potential fare cheats were unnecessary. Passengers have been told to lift their veils or produce a passport or driving licence when boarding. The company said the rules brought them into line with airport security.
The construction of minarets in Switzerland looks sets to go to a nationwide vote after a group of rightwing politicians launched a campaign calling for a ban. The country’s Muslim community says it is stunned by what it sees as an “Islamophobic” move, which it warns will undermine already fragile relations. Those behind a people’s initiative, who include members of the county’s biggest political party, the Swiss People’s Party, have until November 2008 to raise the 100,000 signatures required to force a ballot.
THE HAGUE – Freedom Party PVV faction leader Geert Wilders is arguing that all Islamic schools in the Netherlands should be shut down immediately. He says this measure is necessary in order to “protect children against the spread of Islamic doctrine.”