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| Veils harm equal rights - Harman | |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Wearing a full face veil harms women's participation in society and effectively bars them from becoming an MP, minister Harriet Harman has said. | |
| Ms Harman, who is standing for Labour's deputy leadership, said: "How can you stand as an MP when men's faces are on posters, and voters can't see yours?" | |
| "If you want equality, you have to be in society, not hidden away from it," she told the New Stateman magazine. | |
| "The veil is an obstacle to women's participation on equal terms." | |
| The constitutional affiars minister was speaking the week after Jack Straw sparked controversy when he said he would prefer Muslim women not to wear veils which cover the face. | |
| Race equality boss Trevor Phillips said the comments were "completely right". | |
| Mr Phillips, who heads the Commission for Racial Equality, said Mr Straw had the right to ask a woman to remove her veil at constituency meetings, and the woman had the right to refuse. | |
| The Commons leader's remarks prompted much debate and were criticised by some Muslim groups. | |
| "This is not a matter of public policy, it's a question of social etiquette and manners," Mr Phillips said. | "This is not a matter of public policy, it's a question of social etiquette and manners," Mr Phillips said. |
| I think it's perfectly reasonable for him to say: 'Would you mind not making me feel uncomfortable' in this particular case Trevor Phillips | I think it's perfectly reasonable for him to say: 'Would you mind not making me feel uncomfortable' in this particular case Trevor Phillips |
| Mr Straw, whose Blackburn constituency is about 30% Muslim, said he thought community relations were not improved by women wearing veils covering their faces, as they were "a visible statement of separation". | Mr Straw, whose Blackburn constituency is about 30% Muslim, said he thought community relations were not improved by women wearing veils covering their faces, as they were "a visible statement of separation". |
| He said he now asked women to remove full-face veils when they come to meet him at his regular constituency surgery. | He said he now asked women to remove full-face veils when they come to meet him at his regular constituency surgery. |
| Mr Phillips said: "I think it's perfectly reasonable for him to say 'would you mind not making me feel uncomfortable' in this particular case - as long as it's understood the answer to that can be 'no'." | Mr Phillips said: "I think it's perfectly reasonable for him to say 'would you mind not making me feel uncomfortable' in this particular case - as long as it's understood the answer to that can be 'no'." |
| "Whether there should be social pressure to make the wearing of the veil unacceptable is, in my view, a separate question to that," he told the House of Commons Education and Skills Committee. | "Whether there should be social pressure to make the wearing of the veil unacceptable is, in my view, a separate question to that," he told the House of Commons Education and Skills Committee. |
| Veils in schools | Veils in schools |
| "I go with those that say this has also got to be a matter for negotiation - it can't be prescriptive. You can't tell people what to wear." | "I go with those that say this has also got to be a matter for negotiation - it can't be prescriptive. You can't tell people what to wear." |
| Both Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor Gordon Brown have backed Mr Straw for raising the debate. But the Islamic Human Rights Commission said he was selectively discriminating. | Both Prime Minister Tony Blair and Chancellor Gordon Brown have backed Mr Straw for raising the debate. But the Islamic Human Rights Commission said he was selectively discriminating. |
| Mr Phillips was also asked about whether full-face veils should be allowed in the classroom, where face to face communication was important. | Mr Phillips was also asked about whether full-face veils should be allowed in the classroom, where face to face communication was important. |
| He told MPs it was not a decision that should be left to the teacher. | He told MPs it was not a decision that should be left to the teacher. |
| "If that's raised it should be as a matter of school policy," he said. | "If that's raised it should be as a matter of school policy," he said. |
| "If I were the head teacher in that school, I would probably say that veils should not be worn in the classroom." | "If I were the head teacher in that school, I would probably say that veils should not be worn in the classroom." |