According to opinion polls, the majority of Germans are in favor of banning the burqa and other forms of clothing that completely cover the face in public places.
As reported by "Russkaya Germaniya", another 20% are "rather" in favor of banning face-covering clothing in public places than against. Every eighth resident of the country (12%) rejects the ban, and 14% have no specific opinion on the matter.
Discussions about the right of Muslim women to walk in Germany in the niqab, burqa, or burka have been ongoing for at least the last five years. They became particularly heated in 2016 after a series of high-profile attacks carried out in Europe by Muslim immigrants.
At that time, conservative Thomas de Maizière, who was then Minister of the Interior, was skeptical about the prospects of a ban, while Julia Klöckner, one of the deputy chairpersons of the Christian Democratic Union, quite consistently advocated for the introduction of such restrictive measures. Klöckner still believes that clothing that completely covers the face has no place in Germany: "The niqab does not correspond to Germany's liberal legal system and contradicts the declared principle of equality between men and women."
Since April 2017, it has been banned in Germany to wear headgear that covers the face in public service. In addition, the law requires a woman to show her face if law enforcement agencies are trying to establish her identity: the police have the right to force a woman to uncover her face. Changes were also made to traffic rules: it is not allowed to drive with a covered face, as the driver's face must be recognizable when recorded by radar.
In the Netherlands, violators of the ban face a fine of up to 400 euros, in France and Austria – up to 150 euros. Over the eight years of the ban in France, sanctions were imposed about two thousand times, and several principled violators received fines over 50 times. The UN Human Rights Commission, chaired by an Egyptian, called for the ban to be lifted, but the French government paid no attention to this recommendation.
However, it cannot be said that the ban on wearing the niqab in France has reduced the problems of religious radicalization: all the bloodiest crimes of Islamists were committed already in the era of the law. A new ideological dispute worrying the French public this time concerns the "burkini" – full-body swimsuits worn by religious Muslim women to visit pools and beaches.
Regarding headgear that helps cover faces, there is no unity in Europe: for example, in Austria this spring, it was banned for preschool girls to wear the hijab – a Muslim scarf that covers the hair but leaves the face exposed. In Germany, there are no uniform rules even for adults: in a number of federal states, courts have made decisions banning the wearing of the scarf in public service, but higher courts usually overturned them, citing the freedom of religion that prevails in the Federal Republic according to the Basic Law.
If there is talk of bans that the majority of the country's population would support, they would concern the niqab, burqa, burka, and chador. The niqab is a head covering that leaves only the eyes exposed. The burqa is a floor-length robe that conceals the figure, worn together with a chachvan, a net of tightly woven horsehair covering the face – it is worn under the burqa. The burka is an Afghan version of the burqa with a "built-in" chachvan, and the chador is a long loose cloak or covering that conceals the figure: the chador is thrown over clothing and may sometimes also cover the face.