LLEIDA, Spain – The full council of Lleida’s city hall has approved the new Civic and Coexistence Ordinance, which prohibits wearing items that fully conceal the face, such as the burka or niqab. Favourable votes from the municipal government of the PSC, Junts and Vox allowed the regulation, described by the council itself as feminist, to move forward, with fines of between 400 and 750 euros envisaged. The government headed by socialist mayor Félix Larrosa defends that the measure aims to prevent a woman from disappearing under this type of clothing.
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In addition to the ban on wearing the full veil in the city, the municipal regulation also includes a prohibition on going naked in the street. In the case of the burka or niqab, exceptions are envisaged in places of worship or other spaces where these garments are permitted. The mayor defended that the rule had been agreed with Islamists, who, he explained, had assured them that the Koran, the holy book of Islam, does not establish that women must cover themselves. The PP voted against this point, considering that the regulation does not prohibit these items but rather permits and regulates them. The ordinance also did not receive the support of ERC and the Comúdelleida, which criticised the punitive vision of the text.
As stated in the approved civic ordinance, in the case of the burka, covered in article 12, on the grounds of guaranteeing social interaction in the usual terms proper to a free and democratic society, it is prohibited to wear any item of clothing, garment or other attire that conceals the face in public spaces. The city hall also wants to launch a Socio-Educational Intervention Plan to raise awareness about the use of the veil, based on fundamental rights, gender equality, respect for cultural diversity and the right of every woman to decide freely.
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Nevertheless, the burka ban drew criticism within the government when Larrosa presented the measure, specifically from Sumar ministers, because they considered the proposal racist. However, the Catalan government and other members of the central executive declined to criticise the measure.
