by VANESSA WATSON
A CONTROVERSIAL Bill seeking to ban the burqa and veils in public was introduced in the NSW Upper House last week by Christian Democrats Party MP the Rev Fred Nile.
The Bill, which has been adjourned until September, would impose a $550 fine on any person wearing a face covering in public.
Any person who forced another to wear such covering, such as a woman's husband, male relatives or a religious leader, could be fined $1100.
Mr Nile said the burqa, a head-to-toe garment that has an opening for the eyes, oppressed women and could be used to disguise terrorists or criminals.
The proposed law, which would not exempt a person from a fine on grounds of religious beliefs, has sparked outrage in Muslim communities.
Amina Ghafoor, of Punchbowl, who wears the burqa, said she would defy the ban if it became law.
"I wouldn't uphold that law," she said. "If I got a fine, I would fight that too.
"The burqa is part of my way of expressing that I am a Muslim. With the proposal, this freedom is being stripped away from me."
Mrs Ghafoor said she was regularly harassed by members of the public about her burqa and was hesitant to leave her home without her husband.
A Padstow mother-of-four, who asked to remain anonymous, said she felt under attack by the proposal and had stopped wearing her hijab as a result.
"The women who wear the hijab (a head scarf or veil), we're also copping the backlash," she said.
"I feel like I'm frowned upon, I get threats, people throw things at me."
Uthman Badar of the Islamic political party Hizb ut-Tahrir Australia said if passed, the Bill would amount to religious persecution.
"Historically, that never leads to anything but negative consequences for social harmony," he said.
"There's an assumption there that females are being forced to wear this.
"We know within the community that that's not the case."
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