Muslim women in a region of Switzerland face large fines for wearing a full-face veil after a ban on burqas and niqabs came into effect last week.
A Swiss woman who converted to Islam and a French-Algerian businessman have already been fined for defying the Ticino canton law, Swiss Info reports. The pair were publicly protesting the ban.
The Italian-speaking region, which is predominantly Roman Catholic, voted in favour of the controversial law in 2013. It allows police to hand out fines of nearly £8,000, according to the Daily Telegraph.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
No exceptions will be made for tourists and the Saudi Arabian embassy has already warned Muslim women travelling to the region to respect the law.
Amnesty International described the vote as a "black day for human rights in Ticino" and a recent report accused European governments of "pandering to prejudice" by supporting bans on Islamic dress.
It follows a similar move in France, which in 2011 became the first European country to outlaw the full-face veil. Though hugely controversial, the law was upheld by the European Court of Human Rights.
The veil has become a divisive issue across Europe, with those in favour of a ban arguing that it is oppressive to women and creates a barrier between them and the rest of society.
But human rights organisations describe such laws as religious discrimination and many Muslim women argue it is patronising and offensive to say they are not free to make their own choices.
"It's as if the female, as an adult individual, is obviously ill-equipped to make such decisions on her own," says columnist Faraz Talat.
-
Minnesota's legal system buckles under Trump's ICE surgeIN THE SPOTLIGHT Mass arrests and chaotic administration have pushed Twin Cities courts to the brink as lawyers and judges alike struggle to keep pace with ICE’s activity
-
Big-time money squabbles: the conflict over California’s proposed billionaire taxTalking Points Californians worth more than $1.1 billion would pay a one-time 5% tax
-
‘The West needs people’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Epstein files topple law CEO, roil UK governmentSpeed Read Peter Mandelson, Britain’s former ambassador to the US, is caught up in the scandal
-
Iran and US prepare to meet after skirmishesSpeed Read The incident comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East
-
Israel retrieves final hostage’s body from GazaSpeed Read The 24-year-old police officer was killed during the initial Hamas attack
-
China’s Xi targets top general in growing purgeSpeed Read Zhang Youxia is being investigated over ‘grave violations’ of the law
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
