Ban the burqa in Britain? No way!
Under David Cameron鈥檚 leadership the Conservative party has taken great pains to rebrand itself as a multicultural, more socially liberal party. However, there will always be individuals that will let this front down, and most recently this has been done through the comments of Philip Hollobone, MP for Kettering.
to The Telegraph, Hollobone used a Commons debate on International Women鈥檚 day to state: ''I seriously think that a ban on wearing the burqa in public should be considered.'' He reveals he realized 鈥渉ow inappropriate and, frankly, offensive, it is for people to wear this apparel in the 21st century'', when he stumbled across a burqa鈥檇 woman in a park. For a start, the context for this 鈥榬evelation鈥� seems to suggest how little exposure Mr Hollobone has to Britain鈥檚 veiled Muslim population, making one wonder how informed his judgment of the burqa can be. However, it is his suggestion that the burqa should be banned because he, and others, find it offensive that is his mistake.
Freedom of expression and freedom of worship help form the bedrock of a free, open and tolerant society. For Hollobone to say, therefore, that the burqa 鈥済oes against the British way of life鈥� is at best absurd, and at worst rather worrying.
By choosing International Women鈥檚 Day to highlight his opposition to the more restrictive forms of Islam, Hollobone may have believed he was championing women鈥檚 rights. However, his ill-thought plan to ban the burqa would cause more harm than good, by attacking a visible symptom of an illiberal movement and not the roots. Making it illegal to wear the burqa in public would do nothing to change the opinion of those who believe it is essential for women to remain covered, and would simply see women confined to the walls of their homes.
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