National Post (National Edition)
MERKEL CALLS FOR BAN ON 'FULL VEIL'
‘We show our faces,’ says German leader
BERLIN • German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who last year opened the door to nearly one million mostly Muslim migrants, called Tuesday for a widespread ban on “full-veil” Islamic coverings.
Speaking to a cheering conference of her centreright Christian Democratic Union, Merkel — launching a bid for a fourth term in elections next year — used her strongest language yet to back a proposal by conservative elements in her party.
The plan would make it a regulatory offence for women to cover their faces in courtrooms, administrative buildings and schools, as well as while driving or attending demonstrations.
“We show our faces,” Merkel, 62, said in an 80-minute speech in the western city of Essen.
“Full-face covering is not appropriate with us — it should be banned.”
The call echoes proposals in France and other European nations to put restrictions on full-face coverings such as the burka or other Islamic traditions for women such as the niqab, which shows only the eyes.
Merkel has previously decried full Muslim veils as a hindrance to migrant assimilation into Germany society. But her words at the party conference — reaffirming her as its candidate and leader — seemed aimed to appease her internal party critics who have charged her with recklessly opening the door to hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers fleeing war.
Merkel has since taken steps to stem the tide, including negotiating a deal with Turkey earlier this year to block migrants from crossing into Europe.
On Tuesday, she reiterated that she would attempt to thwart any new wave of refugees — many seeking to reach the West from warravaged places such as Syria and Iraq.
“A situation like the one in the late summer of 2015 cannot, should not and must not be repeated,” she said. “That was and is our, and my, declared political aim.”
At the same time, she said she wants Germany to be a tolerant, diverse country that’s open to the world, including the global economy, and compassionate toward people truly in need of shelter.
Merkel’s speech put her publicly in line with the full party leadership’s draft resolution for the convention, which says: “We reject full covering. We want to ban it using all legal possibilities, just as we do for underage marriage.”
After more than a year in which the chancellor has faced unprecedented criticism for her open-borders position on refugees, Merkel told delegates she thought hard about whether to run again and it wasn’t “a trivial decision.
Looking ahead to federal elections due next fall, she positioned herself and her party as pillars of stability in a region buffeted by a rise in populist movements aiming to displace established parties.
“The world hasn’t become stronger in 2016, but weaker and less certain,” Merkel said.
With no obvious successor in her party and international standing built up over more than a decade, Merkel still has political capital. That didn’t prevent several critics from taking the floor to criticize her for driving voters to the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany.
“A big segment of core voters have been put off,” said party member Christine ArltPalmer. “This is terrain that we won’t win back.”
Other nations in Europe including France and the Netherlands have already instituted partial burka bans.
Over the summer, the French beach town of Cannes recently banned the so-called burkini, a swimsuit that covers a woman’s body and head. Several other French coastal towns followed suit, with seven municipalities banning the swim wear or planning to do so.