By Shaykh Suleiman Hani
Switzerland SVP voted (52-48) to ban the niqab, a ruling which seems to only impact the 30-50 niqabi women in the country. The agenda is far more dangerous than just this one law. This issue, similar to the minaret ban in 2009, speaks volumes about the significant Swiss population who are anti-Islamic liberals who desire a “freedom of religion” with limitations for Muslims. The ridiculous justifications for banning niqab are: 1) it’s forced upon women, 2) it doesn’t assimilate well with Swiss culture, and 3) covering part of the face is a security concern.
As for the first reason, that’s preposterous and unsubstantiated. Women wear hijab and niqab by choice, and the issues within any family using social “force” or pressure are never dealt with by banning it for all women. In other words, women who choose to wear niqab for religious reasons can no longer do so because some Swiss perceive all Muslim women as oppressed? The issues of actual forced matters in Swiss families are never treated with bans, they’re treated by holding family members accountable in *actual* cases of abuse. That’s what courts are for.
As for reason 2: don’t claim freedom of religion and culture if you can’t liberally accept diversity. This is clearly an issue with immigrants and specifically Muslims.
As for reason 3: then perhaps face masks should also be banned? Niqabis are actually advised by scholars to comply with security personnel at times to remove their niqab for identification, but to prevent them from wearing it anywhere in society should be exposed for what it truly is: secular and liberal values in Switzerland are not truly liberal, and Muslims are not welcome with their diverse beliefs.
As for Muslims who don’t believe the niqab to be a religious obligation, it’s still of great significance to defend those who believe it to be obligatory. We defend it because of its valid (but minor) stance within Islamic law, as well as because the niqab ban is an attack on freedom of religion. Although it may not seem likely now, the banning of the niqab may one day lead to the banning of the hijab, particularly when many nations are more “liberalized.”