Concerns for Sri Lanka’s Muslim community over ‘racist’ plans to ban burqa

 A Sri Lankan shop worker puts burqa on a mannequin at his garment shop in Colombo, Sri Lanka,

Credit: Shutterstock /Shutterstock 

The Sri Lankan government has been accused of harbouring a "racist" agenda against Muslims over plans to ban the veil on grounds of national security.

Sarath Weerasekera, the Sri Lankan security minister, announced on Saturday that he had signed an order for cabinet approval that would outlaw the garment.

Controversially, Mr Weerasekera equated the veil with Islamic extremism. "The burqa has a direct impact on national security…it is a sign of religious extremism that came about recently. We will definitely ban it," he said.

It was not immediately clear whether the ban only targeted the burqa, which covers the face and eyes, or other face coverings such as the niqab. 

The Sri Lankan government temporarily banned the burqa in 2019 after Islamic State supporters killed 250 people in a suicide bombing. 

 Sri Lankan Muslim woman (R) wearing a veil on a road side in Colombo, Sri Lanka,

Credit: Shutterstock/Shutterstock

In an interview with the Telegraph, Ali Sabry, the Sri Lankan justice minister, said the ban would apply to the niqab, which covers the face but not the eyes. 

Mr Sabry, the government’s only Muslim minister, added that it in his opinion, banning the face veil was “not a breach of fundamental rights.”

“I don’t see why people are calling it the burqa ban because it’s basically covering the face in a manner which prevents the identification of a person. That’s the concept behind it,” said Mr Sabry. “It’s not only the niqab, but even the full faced helmet is also banned. And that is for security reasons."

Campaigners have been outraged by the move, which they say unfairly targets Sri Lanka’s small Muslim community, which makes up around ten per cent of the country.

The Sri Lankan government, headed by President Gotabhya Rajapaksa with his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime Minister, has been continuously accused of fanning anti-minority sentiments and placating extremist Buddhist monks.

Shreen Suhoor, a Sri Lankan women’s rights activist said that the burqa ban was “part of the government’s racist politics.”

“They have to show that they are punishing the Muslims. it’s part of the Rajapaksa’s election politics and they continuously have been doing it – the president got elected on anti-Muslim rhetoric, the parliament got elected on anti-Muslim rhetoric and again the provincial council elections is being talked about – and here we go again,” said Ms Suhoor.

“The ban has nothing to do with countering Islamic extremism, it has to do with settling with the Sinhala-Buddhist extremism. This is to show the Muslim community is being punished again,” said Ms Suhoor.

The proposals, which were submitted on Friday, require the approval of both the Sri Lankan parliament and cabinet before they are passed into law.