Burqa plan divides UMP

Proposals to ban Muslim women from wearing the burqa have divided France’s ruling centre-right party, underlining the difficulties of legislating on personal life and religious belief.

Whilst the wearing of the veil is condemned almost universally by the French political class as an unwelcome sign of the spread of radical Islam and a challenge to the values of the Republic, the question of whether to impose an outright ban on the wearing of the burqa has divided the UMP.

ESO: Background information: French minister calls for ban on burka http://www.europeansources.info/record/french-minister-calls-for-ban-on-burka/

France24, 12.1.10: Prime minister in favour of banning the burqa http://www.france24.com/en/20100112-france-fillon-favour-banning-burqa-islam-france-politics

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