Banning the veil is an attack on women’s liberty
sir – The ban on full-face coverings, including Muslim veils, has come into force in Austria (report, October 2) even though statistics indicate that only a minority of Muslim women wear the full-face veil.
As a Muslim I fully support the removal of a face covering in situations where security might be in question. We know that on one occasion, the Holy Prophet of Islam allowed his wife to reveal her face when he was concerned that her identity as his wife might be questioned.
However, as a woman it appals me that male politicians are determining what women can and cannot wear. It appals me that Austrian police are allowed to use force to make people show their faces and can impose fines.
The poster in your article shows that the law prohibits the wearing of surgical face masks, scarves covering the face, and clown masks “under certain conditions”. I look forward to hearing how many clowns or surgeons are stopped.
I also wonder how the Austrian public will feel this winter if their scarves are forcibly removed from their faces by the police.
This attack on a minority of Muslim women is an attack on the freedom of all women to dress as they please. As Westerners, we condemn the behaviour of extremist Muslim societies that dictate how women should dress. Why are we allowing laws in our Western democracies to do exactly the same? Sarah Waseem
Worcester Park, Surrey