SWISS MP CALLS FOR HIJABS TO BE BANNED FROM PASSPORT PHOTOGRAPHS

ASwiss MP has called for hijabs to be banned from passport pictures saying it is unfair that caps and hair bands are not allowed in the images, Mail Online reported. Current guidelines in Switzerland allow women to wear a hijab in a passport photograph for reasons of faith - so long as their face is identifiable.

However, the laws also state that hair bands and caps are forbidden from the pictures.

The official guidelines by the Swiss federal police state: ‘Head coverings are in principle unacceptable... exceptions are only made for medical or religious reasons.

‘In those cases the face must be visible... and there should not be shadows on the face.’

But now Swiss MP Walter Wobmann has spoke out and criticised the laws, saying that it is unfair women can wear hijabs while other garments are banned.

He told Swiss newspaper Blick: ‘It is unacceptable that you can wear a hijab in a photo but not a cap.

‘This is not a question of religious freedom but of equal treatment.’

Wobmann, from the Swiss People’s Party, is a right wing politician, who has previously campaigned against women wearing the burqa.

Now he says he plans to discuss the issue with the federal government and could then pursue campaigning for a total ban.

Different countries around the world have differing rules on whether hijabs are allowed in passport photos.

In the UK, a head covering is allowed on passport pictures, as long as it is for a religious reason.

The law in the U.S. is similar but an additional letter is needed stating the head covering is for religious purposes.

In Australia, head covering must be plain in colour and worn in a way so they do not cover the bottom of the chin or the top of the forehead.