Clarification coming

Quebec justice minister says government will publish rules surrounding religious neutraility bill

In light of the escalating debate surrounding Quebec’s religious neutrality bill, the government will publish the rules on how it will be applied, the province’s justice minister said Sunday.

Stephanie Vallee said the decision to publish the document, which was originally intended only for administrators, was made in order to fully inform the public on the controversial legislation.

In a lengthy interview with The Canadian Press, Vallee said she was stunned by the intense reaction to Bill 62, which requires anyone giving or receiving state services to do so with an uncovered face.

Opponents have called the bill an attack on Muslim women, and municipal politicians have said it’s unfair to ask bus drivers or library workers to decide who gets services.

The premiers of Alberta and Ontario have denounced the bill and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said governments shouldn’t tell women what they can and can’t wear.

On Sunday, Vallee called for calm and stressed the need to “reposition the law in its context.”

She noted that most members of Quebec’s legislature agree with the principle behind the bill.

“I must admit that the interpretation we’ve heard is quite particular, because we were concerned throughout the bill with preserving balance and especially preserving individual freedoms,” she said.

An Angus Reid poll published in early October showed that 87 per cent of Quebecers support the bill’s objectives.

Vallee says she’ll publish the rules this week that will explain exactly when, where and how people will have to show their faces when using services, which include public transportation or hospitals.

The bill does, however, allow reasonable accommodations on a case-by-base basis and is not coercive, meaning there are no penalties or fines attached to it.