Sarkozy backs Hijab ban

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Sarkozy backs Hijab ban

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22 April,2010 11:25 am

French President Nicolas Sarkozy endorsed a full ban on the Muslim Hijab, as his government draws up a law to prohibit the garment in public spaces. Sarkozy sid the veil hurts the dignity of women and is not acceptable in French society. The proposal has attracted both fierce criticism and praise in the home of the largest Muslim community in the 27-member European Union; almost 10 percent of France's 62 million population is Muslim. Most French voters back a ban, polls have shown, but legal experts have warned that it could violate the Constitution. Many feminists from France's poor, multi-ethnic suburbs have spoken out in support of a ban, saying it could help young women who did not want to wear the veil but were forced to do so by their partners or families. Others, however, see the ban as part of a rising hostility against Islam and its symbols, and argue that many Muslim women actually want to cover up.