By IRNA,
London : The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC), warned Tuesday that a vote in favour of a veil ban in France will herald a “new era of state-sponsored Islamophobia and anti-Muslim racism.”
“Since the banning of headscarves in French schools in 2004, increasing numbers of young French Muslim women have already been forced to forfeit their right to education and work,” said IHCR chair Massoud Shadjareh.
“The constant and increasing attacks on French Muslims are making them feel increasingly insecure. Nobody anywhere should be forced to choose between practicing their faith and remaining in their own country,” Shadjareh said.
The parliamentary vote on the ban on the public wearing of the Islamic full veil would need to be ratified by the French Senate in September before taking effect next year.
In a statement obtained by IRNA, Shadjareh warned that the passage is “likely increase pressure on some of the most vulnerable and deprived people in French society, as a direct result of the policies being pursued by the government of a supposedly liberal and democratic country.”
“In the name of defending ‘French values’, the Sarkozy government is depriving its own citizens of their fundamental human rights. The country is now on the brink of new era of state-sponsored Islamophobia and anti-Muslim racism.”