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April 18, 2006

Holland: Muslim Alderman Condemns Women In Burkas

The problem which Holland appears to be having with burkas, the all-enveloping costumes which only allow a small aperture for the woman inside to peer through, is causing more controversy again, and this time from a Muslim, the Social Affairs Alderman of Amsterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb (pictured, below right). Mr Aboutaleb is a member of Amsterdam's Labour Party (PvdA).

News from Expatica states that the Alderman, who was born in Morocco in 1961, gave an interview to the magazine Opzij. In this interview, he stated that women who choose to wear the burka are hindering their ability to gain work, and should not automatically gain welfare benefits.

We already reported in October that in the city of Utrecht, the City Council voted to withhold benefit payments for women who wore the burka, as they were effectively making themselves unemployable. The decision came after two women who received 550 Euros ($671 US) a month in unemployment benefits, had stated that they did not bother to go to job interviews any more, as they were never offered work.

A spokesperson for Utrecht City Council said the women were educated and spoke good Dutch, but were not being deprived of all their welfare payments. Only 10% of their benefits were withheld. The Times stated that the city of Utrecht based its decision on the Work and Social Security Act. This states that somebody receiving welfare should not act in a way to prevent themselves getting work.

Now Alderman Aboutaleb has suggested that the rule in Utrecht should be universally applied and it appears he does not mean to see benefits reduced by a mere 10%. Aboutaleb said he was averse to the notion of burka-wearing, but said government had to expect citizens to take reponsibility. He stated to the magazine: "Nobody wants a an employee in a burka. In that case, I say: off with the burka and apply for work. If you don't want to do that, that's fine, but then you don't get a benefit payment."

He was making the statement in a response to the recent incident, which we reported earlier, in which a woman who refused to shake hands with men at the college she wished to attend in Amersfoort. She said Islam forbade a woman having physical contact with any male above the age of 12. The national Commission for Equal Treatment upheld the woman's appeal, ruling that the college was wrong to bar her from classes.

Aboutaleb said that such a women should perhaps reconsider her position. He said: "She has to realise her behaviour is building enormous obstacles for her in almost every situation. This woman must recognise that she is sidelining herself and that she runs the risk of being turned down for a job more often."

The issue of burkas being worn in public has caused parliamentary controversy. The right wing MP Geert Wilders suggested that burkas should not be worn in public places. The immigration minister, Rita Verdonk ("Iron Rita") introduced a bill to this effect in parliament, and on December 21, the parliament voted to approve the banning of burkas in public places. Instead of rushing the bill into law, parliament announced that the measure would be subjected to judicial reviews first.

In January, the BBC announced that the Dutch government would be anouncing the results of their legal review "soon". Since then, the issue has disappeared from the media's eye.

There are only 50 women in Holland who wear the burka, and no country in Europe has national laws banning them outright. However, as we reported in September, burkas are forbidden in the Belgium Flemish towns of Ghent, Antwerp, Sint-Truden, Lebbeke and Maaseik. In Masseik, where only six people woe the burka regularly, five complied with the ruling, which was brought about as children cried and were upset at the sight of women who looked like walking black tents.

The only woman who refused to comply with the Masseik ban, and also refused to pay fines imposed, was the wife of Khalid Bouloudou. Her husband, a pastry chef from Morocco was indicted for being part of a group which was held responsible for a series of bombings at Casablanca on 16 May 2003 which killed 45 people.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at April 18, 2006 8:06 PM

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