“It is not usual” to wear a burqa, but “it is a tradition for some,” remarked imam Abu Sayed.
The community will comply with the approved laws but emphasized that religious practice should remain free. “Each religion has its traditions and Muslims have theirs,” he added.
Rana Taslim Uddin, a community leader for Bangladesh in Lisbon, noted that Muslims’ reactions will depend on the final wording of the legislation.
“It cannot be something against Muslims. If it’s about the face and covering it for security reasons, that’s fine. Other countries do it without causing issues,” he explained.
However, if the law “imposes a dress code” for Muslim women, Rana Taslim Uddin warned that this could constitute a violation of Islamic law.
Religious norms require “the practice of not showing female forms,” with “loose clothing,” and this is something all Muslims will want to maintain, he warned.
Regarding the use of burqa or face-covering veil, Rana Taslim Uddin expressed understanding of the Portuguese lawmakers’ decision.
“There is a security issue that makes sense for the Government to be aware of,” he emphasized.
The PSD, IL, and CDS-PP approved today, in general terms, the Chega party’s bill aiming to prohibit the use of burqa in public spaces, citing women’s rights and security concerns.
The initiative received supportive votes from Chega, PSD, IL, and CDS-PP, while PS, Livre, BE, and PCP voted against, and PAN and JPP abstained.
While IL and CDS-PP voiced support for Chega’s project to “ban face-covering in public spaces, with certain exceptions,” PSD expressed its openness to “making this journey” but argued that “the presented text can and should be improved at the specialty level.”
The PS argued that care is needed in drafting laws, in a context where the far-right aims “to direct hate” against a “specific target,” in this case, the Muslim community. PCP and BE opposed the proposal, while Livre accused Chega of presenting a deliberately “poorly made” project and therefore did not want to engage in this debate.
With this initiative, Chega proposes that “clothing intended to conceal or obstruct the face should be prohibited in public spaces,” with some exceptions. In the debate’s opening, Chega’s leader specified that the goal is to prohibit “women from wearing burqa in Portugal” and particularly addressed immigrants.
“Whoever comes to Portugal, from wherever, with whatever customs or religion, must above all comply with, respect, and enforce the customs of this country and the values of this country,” stated André Ventura.
