I would rather no one wore a niqab. I would rather that no woman had effectively to disappear, from a young age, because that is the norm in her family. I would rather that no one had to go through the discomfort and social awkwardness of dealing with a woman whose face you cannot see. I would rather that Islam be purged of the niqab and all its permutations.
Those who defend the right of women to wear the niqab under the banner of religious freedom gloss over the fact that this “freedom” is often dictated by social pressure. Those who oppose it under the banner of secularism and the oppressive nature of the niqab are making their own assumptions about Muslim women’s motivations.
The debate about the veil is not about religious freedom. It is about civil liberty proscribed by practicality – a liberty that entails that no woman should be told what to wear, except where this choice actually infringes on someone else’s rights.
When it comes to matters of security, identification, and other legal matters it is highly reasonable that a woman be asked to show her face. All further legislation on the matter should be rooted in freedom of choice.
I believe the Government should be more robust in determining the guidelines. No manner of dress should be compulsory. Girls in schools should not be forced to wear religious dress when they are too young to question it. In hospitals, the concern that patients should be able to see health‑care professionals’ faces is a valid one. A lot of the arguments against the niqab are valid, but I am not sure that they call for a ban.
In France, a ban on veils in public places has done nothing but provide a state sanction for prejudice. The most visible target is women who cover their faces.
A crackdown on the niqab might be seen as the hallmark of a nation that stands up for its principles, but is in fact the opposite. As Dan Hodges wrote in the Telegraph this week: this is Britain, and in Britain you should be allowed to wear what you want.
The response to this, of course, is: but what about those woman who can’t wear what they want because they are being coerced into wearing the niqab? The answer is, unless you can look into every woman’s heart and know her motivations, this is a risk we will have to tolerate.
