Ross B. Taylor
Fanned by national anxiety over the recent terror
alerts, the ‘Ban the Burka’ issue is
once again causing deep resentment and concern within our community. Last week
this issue reached our national parliament with the Speaker of the House of
Representatives, Bronwyn Bishop banning the Burka
from being worn in the open viewing gallery. It was a silly and poorly managed decision.
A very simple way of resolving the hysterical debate
over the use of the Burka (or Niqab), by predominately Muslim women,
in Australia is to stop talking about it.
This entire debate has been incorrectly centred on the use
of the Burka, rather than about the issue
of having one’s face uncovered in security areas such as banks and airports.
What has been forgotten in this debate is that the vast
majority of Muslim women in our region either dress ‘Western’ style or wear a Hijab - a colourful and comfortable head
scarf that covers the head but leaves the face fully exposed. The Hijab is the preferred head-dress for
most of the 205 million Indonesian Muslim women to our north. The Burka is used by a very small minority
of women in both Indonesia and Australia, and that is about the extent of the
problem: Very small.
We should also acknowledge is that in this uncertain
world in which we now all live, it is not unreasonable for authorities and
business owners (such as banks and pharmacies perhaps) to request that people
entering their premises be asked to wear clothing that would allow for facial identification.
Entering a FIA (Facial Identification
Area) as I call it, would apply to those who wear bike helmets, balaclavas’ and
of course the Burka or Niqab which hides the face and prevents any
chance of identification.
People who do not wish to have their face filmed by CCTV
for security reasons need to make a choice of either not entering the facility,
or wear clothing that allows facial identification. In the case of Muslim
head-dress, a Hijab or similar head
scarves would overcome this problem.
The creation of FIA’s should be at the discretion of the
business owner or, in the case of government controlled buildings such as
airports, the appropriate authorities.
The focus should not be on ‘banning the Burka’ as the
choice of what people wear is up to them. The focus needs to simply be on
people who enter a FIA needing to have their face visible for security reasons.
For the vast majority of motor bike riders and young
dudes who like to wear a balaclava, the choice is simple: Remove the head cover
as you enter a FIA, or in the case of Muslim women, take the lead from their
Indonesian cousins and wear a Hijab, Shayia or al-Amira attire that covers the
head and shoulders if necessary, but leaves the face open to view.
And for anyone in Australia who does not wish to allow
their face to be viewed by security cameras then don’t enter such ‘security’ places.
Our individual rights should always be a high priority for
our government, but in a society like that which we all enjoy here in
Australia, it is sometimes necessary to support rules that are for the security
and safety of the wider community and that can be done without removing
people’s choice as to what they wear in public areas.
Just ask our Prime Minister about his choice of
beachwear?
October 2014.
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