Male suspect in terror hunt wore veil to escape capture... reason enough to discourage the wearing of veils?

Question

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,170-2395178,00.html

In UK if someone...particularly a male is seen to be wearing an obvious disguise he will likely be stopped by the police, a bad false beard or a bad wig etc because people will be suspicious and think he is up to something.

Answer 1

I bet he wore clothes, too. Should that be reason enough to discourage wearing them too? Then there would be no pockets to hide things like guns and bombs in. There also would be no mistaking the girls from the boys, either.

Answer 2

The veil has been a issue of dispute by the west for many years now, but the plain and simple fact is the west are not (on the whole) the ones wearing the veil. If freedom and equality for all are the foundations of democracy, then why such unprecedented commotion on the wearing of the veil when i see people dressed in full length bunny costumes and far more outlandish gear out there? Is modesty worth less today than extravagance? Could the fundamentalist be right and all this represents is an a further attack upon Muslim liberties? Or is it, as i fear, another freedom we should posses being eroded away? ever since the war on terrorism, people as a whole have had there rights bent, fractured or simply taken away. Fighting fire with fire has gotten us the deaths of jean Charles de Menezies, the further alienation of Muslims and the fundamentalists, and places like Guantanamo bay and the secret terrorist holding cells which the CIA admit having.These places strip an unconvicted individual of every scrap of dignity and liberty they ever possessed, and leave them to spend the rest of their days in a place where they may spend the rest of their lives being interrogated for a crime they may not have committed, and the veil represents a further step towards a future where a person may never be charged with a crime and will still disappear and end up a numbered statistic. Whether you believe me or not, ask yourselves this question and try to answer it as honestly as possible :would a white londoner have been asked to remove her veil?

Answer 3

I'm amazed that so many answers turned it into religious intolerance. I do not see it as that at all. This is our society and they are, actually, a newer addition as a group. Our society demands certain things... if I want a drivers license, I have to get my picture taken. Religion is left completely out of that, as it is a secular gov't law. Freedom of Religion is there to protect your religion, without making laws to respect any religion over another (in America).

As for this man wearing a veil.... I wonder what his comrades think of him using a woman's clothing in order to get away? Is this viewed as weak? I wouldn't consider this person "martyr" material, comparing him to others of his kind... if, in fact, he is a terrorist.

As for outlawing the wearing of veils completely, I have mixed feelings on it. I don't believe in taking away a religious freedom in that sense... But, I also know that if our laws pushed it to be done, first we would be encouraging more fighting from them (martyrs would attack in force then) and, they would simply find other ways, as many here pointed out. There are ways to disguise yourself.

This would be a tough decision for anyone to make. No one in politics (except for a few) wants to appear to be intolerant of anothers personal beliefs, but we also do not want to tolerate how people use their religions to harm others. It's a very delicate matter, that's for sure.

Answer 4

No. The likelihood of abuse is not sufficient to discourage a tradition that is, of itself, innocuous. More reasonable is a question like: Should Khalsa Sikhs be allowed to wear the kirpan, or ceremonial dagger, in public, including at school? Veils, in themselves, don't cause harm, but pointed weapons can be dangerous.

Answer 5

And then there is always the case where the person wore a ski mask so outlaw them. Then they wore a Halloween mask so outlaw them. Then they wore a stocking so outlaw panty hose. Then they wore clown makeup so outlaw clowns. This is ridiculous. Why should an outward appearance of someones belief be discouraged because someone took advantage of it? Next thing you know, we will all have to leave DNA trails to enter a building.

Answer 6

I'd say thats reasons enough to ban veil wearing, imagine being stopped by a police officer and your driver's permit requested, how is he to verify thats you in the photo?
Ofcourse, you couldn't be wearing a ski mask whilst driving or going to the bank for that matter. But with a veil, now thats another situation altogether.

Answer 7

dumb fool. There has been numerous cases of people using other disguises and nobody bat an eyelid. Someone caught using a muslim attire and the whole world suddenly has an opinion.

I suggest that this Christian Zealots start to dress their nuns in polka dot bikinis for that matter. You see, I fear that the next criminal may be lurking under the disguise of a habit.

Answer 8

Burkas should be outlawed in all countries outside of the Middle East. For our safety !!!

Answer 9

Sounds like poor policing to me. Criminals disguise themselves, this is not a new concept.

Answer 10

what if he shaved his hairs on face, hand and feet and put fake hairs and dressed like catholic sisters? what would happen? will the authorities forbid catholic sisters to cover their hairs ?

it's never a reason to attack someone's faith. rather should fight against crime in a decent way. dont commit crime against religious to discourage crime of society.