COLOMBO - Religious tensions and a government ban on covering the face since the Easter Sunday suicide attacks have forced conservative Muslim women in Sri Lanka to shun veils, head scarves and long r
obes in public.
On Monday the Sri Lanka government banned women from covering their face in public, bringing it into line with a number of European countries, including France, Denmark and Belgium. "This is not the time to argue about rights. Two hundred and fifty people have died, 500 wounded," Reffai told AFP. "Let emotions go down. Let us talk about this leisurely."
"We can't take a position," the cardinal told AFP. "We don't know what is at the base and behind this strategy... But the Muslim clerics themselves wanted it.""When people cover their faces, we don't know who is behind that veil," he said. "Even criminals could use these clothing to conceal their identity, so it is a good move to ban this."Most Sri Lankan Muslim women practice a liberal form of Islam and do not cover their faces in public.
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