Posted on 10/18/2006 6:27:49 AM PDT by Valin
Rome, 18 Oct. (AKI) - The majority of Muslim leaders in Italy voiced support Wednesday for prime minister Romano Prodi who said that Muslim immigrant women should not hide their faces behind a veil. The president of Italy's largest Muslim group, the Union of Islamic Communities in Italy (UCOII) said he agreed with the premier's words. "The niqab (a veil which reveals only the eyes) is against Italian law," said Mohammed Nur Dachan. "We perfectly agree with the premier," he added, warning however that no confusion should be made between the niqab and the hijab, which doesn't cover the face and should not be banned. On Tuesday, Prodi told Reuters: "You can't cover your face. If you have a veil, fine, but you must be seen." "It is not how you dress but if you are hidden or not," Prodi added. In the interview, the Italian premier was asked about comments by former British foreign minister Jack Straw, the leader of the House of Commons, who sparked a major debate in the UK and Europe after stating that full veils made relations "more difficult."
The deputy leader of another leading Muslim group in Italy, the Islamic Religious Community (COREIS), Yahya Pallavicini, also said he agreed with Prodi. "Prodi did well in clearly stating his views. The niqab has nothing to do with our socio-cultural context and does not correspond with the doctrine of Islam."
Under Italian law, the face cannot be covered in public for security reasons, and that applies to balaclavas and motorcycle helmets too. However, contrary to France, no law in Italy bans symbols of faith from public places.
Both UCOII and COREIS are in a government-appointed body on Muslim affairs, the Consulta Islamica.
Abd al-Hamid Shaari, the president of the Institute of Islamic culture in Milan's controversial viale Jenner mosque, at the center of a number of investigations into Islamic fundamentalism however disagreed with the premier and said "a woman should be allowed to wear whatever she wants if it poses no obstacle to her identification."
Ever since stepping into office last May, the centre-left government of Romano Prodi has sought to distance its immigration policies from the ones of the previous conservative government which passed harsh laws aimed at cracking down on illegal migrants and took a hard line on integration issues - top concerns for conservative voters in Italy.
The new government has indeed drafted a reform now being discussed by Parliament to halve the number of years required to apply for Italian citizenship from today's ten to five.
On Tuesday, Prodi told Reuters that "the right-wing policy was to close their eyes and let immigrants come in, (but) be very restrictive in theory. My policy is let us guide immigration, guarantee immigrants their rights and try to be realstic about this flow of people."
While approving an amnesty for over 350,000 illegal immigrants already living and working in Italy, the government is however also seeking European Union help to patrol the Mediterranean to curb increasing illegal migration flows into Italy.
Islam is today the second main religion after Catholicism in the country. Muslims are estimated to be approximately 700,000.
Overall, Italy today has over 2.6 million legal immigrants according to the official statistics agency ISTAT. Almost half of them - over 1.3 million - are women and the majority hail from Eastern and Central Europe.
Data on illegal immigration varies hugely and Catholic charity Caritas, which carries out annual surveys on illegal flows on behalf of the foreign ministry, says exact estimates are impossible, citing data ranging from half a million to a million.
Foreigners illegally residing in Italy also mostly hail from Central and Eastern Europe, Caritas says.
Up until the early 1990s the majority migrated from North Africa, and in particular from Morocco and Tunisia, but in the past decade most foreigners arrive from Central Europe, in particular Romania and Bulgaria, where a visa to enter Italy is not required and travel costs are significantly lower.
First the UK. Now Italy. Is the tide finally turning in Europe? I'll believe it when they start sending them home.
Next?
Muslim immigrant women should not hide their faces behind a veil.
I dunno about that. The majority I've seen are pretty taxing on the eyes. I think the body bag and mask is the way to go. There's a reason their men turn to beasts of the field.
Owl_Eagle
If what I just wrote made you sad or angry,
it was probably just a joke.
Wait. In Italy covering the face is AGAINST the law? They're kidding, right?
Meanwhile, you can't cover your face but you can still walk around like you're a bubble in your hajib.
My suburb has some gorgeous women wearing hair coverings.
Why should I care if a woman wants to wear the hajib? I mean I think it's silly, but......
We can't understand it here because it's not so prevalent but since they have been living closer to it for years it may be a worry that's been playing on the public's minds for awhile...
I'll need some photos before I can accept that statement.
Owl_Eagle
If what I just wrote made you sad or angry,
it was probably just a joke.
The real question is:
when will the tide turn in the USA?
?
No, I don't care and I don't think such things should be illegal (is Italy really banning face-coverings?). But yes, it is "silly.
is Italy really banning face-coverings?
I guess so. And that's a good thing. If for no other reason than it'll tick off the islamists...not that, they need much to get them going. A change of wind direction will do it.
It certainly is. Any other Western countries that would like to join in are welcome to come to the party.
The Italians have joined the veil debate.
A quick education:
Hijab: covers the hair, neck and possibly bosom.
Niqab: covers the hair and lower part of the face.
Burka: covers all the face except a very small area for the eyes.
There are Muslim groups who are speaking out against niqab and burkas.
Yes to Hijab, No to Niqaab. The sinister and the smiling faces of Islam
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