Australian senator demands burka ban in country

2010-07-18

Australian liberal senator Cory Bernardi has urged the country to follow the lead of France and ban the burka, describing it as "the most public symbol of fundamentalist Islam".

According to the Courier Mail, in an internet blog, Bernardi said that there were supporters of fundamentalist Islam who wanted to impose sharia, or Islamic law, in Australia.

"This is a system where women are considered as second class citizens and homosexuals can be hanged,' then why then are there defenders of what I consider the most public symbol of fundamentalist Islam in Australia - the face-covering veil?" he asded.

"We need to stop the expansion of fundamentalist Islam in Australia lest we lose the foundation, the essence, the very culture of our great nation," he added.

The comments come after France's lower house voted overwhelmingly to ban the wearing of face-covering veils in public. Similar laws are pending in Belgium, Spain and some Italian municipalities.

In Britain, However, the Government has ruled out the possibilities that it will not follow France by introducing a law banning women from wearing the facial veil or 'burka'.

Source:ANI