Updated on
Summary
A proposed ban in Quebecs public service against the niqab, a veil worn by some Muslim women, stirred up a fierce debate this week in the mostly French-speaking Canadian province and protests were also carried out regarding this issue. Bill 94 sets out guidelines for dealing with the reasonable accommodation of minorities, including restricting women wearing a full face veil, or niqab, from receiving government services. Louise Beaudoin, the Parti Qubcois immigration critic, said she has no idea what the Liberal government's intentions are, but points out that an earlier attempt to codify reasonable accommodations was abandoned in the face of opposition. Facing daily demands for a broad public inquiry into allegations of collusion and corruption in the construction industry, favouritism in handing out subsidized daycare places, and suggestions of kickbacks to his Quebec Liberal Party, premier might have seen Bill 94 as a way to win back public favour. An Angus Reid poll conducted shortly after the bill was introduced indicated 95 per cent of Quebecers and 80 per cent of all Canadians supported requiring women in niqabs to lift their veils. In March, the premier judged the niqab bill so important that he joined Justice Minister Kathleen Weil, its sponsor, and Immigration Minister Yolande James at a news conference to explain it. The Canadian Muslim Federation branded the proposed law Islamophobic and discriminatory, calling the niqab a choice, just like dyed blue hair or piercings.
