Burka ban

Cork councillor urges ban on burkas

LOUISE ROSEINGRAVE

A CORK councillor has called for a ban on burkas, balaclavas or other any clothing that masks identity, on the grounds of public safety.

Cllr Joe O’Callaghan (FG) said now was the time to deal with the issue as those affected are a “tiny minority”. His comments were rejected by, among others, Ali Selim, of the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland, who described the proposal as “unnecessary”.

Mr O’Callaghan proposed a motion to Cork City Council, calling on Minister for Justice Alan Shatter to ban burkas and give gardaí powers to order youths to remove their hoodies.

“I knew this would cause controversy but I live in a free country and if I have an opinion I will express it. I’m doing it now because I feel now is the time to address this issue, not in five years’ time,” he said. The councillor said burkas, along with balaclavas and hoodies, have become unacceptable in public places for reasons of “public safety and common sense” following recent riots in London.

He added the burka had no place in modern Irish society.

“Wearing a burka is an affront to women in this day and age and this view has been endorsed by one of our local Muslim leaders in Cork. I fail to accept that anyone with any cop-on would like to wrap themselves in what looks like a curtain all day,” Mr O’Callaghan said.

He endorsed the introduction of an Irish law making it obligatory not to cover one’s identity in public.

Mr Selim said the councillor was placing the burka, which has religious significance, in the same context as the hoodie, which has a criminal context.

“How many women has he talked to? And if some women choose to dress this way, why is he imposing a different way of clothing upon them?” Mr Selim said. “Ireland is a society with a good understanding of religion. There are lots of traditions shared between Irish society and Muslim communities. We should aim to unite on friendly ground, not aim to cause conflict among members of the same society.”

I fail to accept that anyone with any cop-on would like to wrap themselves in what looks like a curtain all day,” Mr O’Callaghan said.

He endorsed the introduction of an Irish law making it obligatory not to cover one’s identity in public.

Mr Selim said the councillor was placing the burka, which has religious significance...[/qoute]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the burka cultural rather than religious? I see plenty of Muslim women not wearing burkas.

We have discarded the fixed costumes of our forefathers; every one must still dress like other people, but the fashion may change once or twice a year.
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we are eager for improvement in politics, in education, even in morals, though in this last our idea of improvement chiefly consists in persuading or forcing other people to be as good as ourselves.
It is not progress that we object to; on the contrary, we flatter ourselves that we are the most progressive people who ever lived. It is individuality that we war against: we should think we had done wonders if we had made ourselves all alike; forgetting that the unlikeness of one person to another is generally the first thing which draws the attention of either to the imperfection of his own type, and the superiority of another, or the possibility, by combining the advantages of both, of producing something better than either.
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Politics stink—and not just bad politics. All politics stink. Even democracy stinks. Imagine if our clothes were selected by the majority of shoppers, which would be teenage girls. I’d be standing here with my midriff exposed. Imagine deciding what’s for dinner by family secret ballot. I’ve got three kids and three dogs in my family. We’d be having Fruit Loops and rotten meat.

A man would be ridiculous who should appear in public with a suit of clothes quite different from those which are commonly worn,

Divorced mother Hind Ahmas, 32, a mother-of-three, was fined 120 euros (£104) by the court.

Before the hearing she said she was hoping a fine would be imposed, to enable her to challenge it.

"Without a condemnation I can't move forward. There has to be this sanction with a fine so that I can take this to the European Court of Human Rights. It's imperative that there's a sanction," she said.


Najate Nait Ali was fined 80 euros.


They become the first of 91 women stopped by French police to be handed a fine.