[Angus]

Originally Posted by Shasown

Good the hear that compromise is still highly evident on the forum.
How about on the street in buses and trains etc if a woman wished to wear a burqa then she can.

However if it is required to be removed for genuine reasons of security. At airports, banks etc then she has to remove it in order to use that place.

Incidentally if it is simply for security and because terrorists may use it as a disguise are you also going to call for the removal of sunglasses, beards, false hairpieces, liquid latex etc as they have all been used by terrorists and criminals for years.

If the burka is banned in public then shouldnt hoods etc always be down, caps etc not be allowed to be worn? I would say more people are wrongly intimidated by youths wearing clothes that hide their identity rather than some female doing a darth vader impersonation because she or her family feel that her face may bring out feelings of lust in a man.

Sunglasses, wigs, latex etc certainly DISGUISE people's appearance but the burkha completely annihilates all evidence of identity, so to use those as an example is frankly ridiculous. Furthermore, I disagree that the burkha should be allowed on public transport or in any public buildings which are closed environments. Compromise is not a one way street - what some FMs seem to be demanding is that, once again, we must submit to other people's cultural norms even if we may find them offensive, abhorrent or downright dangerous. No-one dragged anyone to this country kicking and screaming, they came voluntarily, and they should have the commonsense and courtesy to comply with the laws, rules and regulations the rest of us have to abide by.

I am also totally fed up with MEN being so blase about this truly abhorrent visual sign of female oppression. I will say it again - no man would ever submit to such an indignity.