In March 2021, Sri Lanka’s Public Security Minister Sarath Weerasekara signed a cabinet order banning the burqa—the veil that covers a Muslim woman’s face. He cited “national security” as the motivation behind the ban, saying that wearing the burqa “is a sign of religious extremism”. The ban requires parliamentary approval before it comes into force, but a similar ban was imposed in 2019 following several explosions at churches and hotels, which resulted in more than 250 deaths.

HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE BURQA

The burqa is worn by millions of women around the world as a sign of devotion to Islam. Islam promotes modesty, and many Muslims consider the burqa essential for this reason.

Preventing Muslim women from wearing the burqa is a violation of their basic human rights. Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that “everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion” and article 19 states that “everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression”.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Ahmed Shaheed, tweeted “burqa bans are incompatible with [international] law guarantees of the right to manifest one’s religion or belief and of freedom of expression”. Saad Kahttak, Pakistan’s ambassador, also tweeted that the ban would “only serve injury to the feelings of ordinary Sri Lankan Muslims and Muslims across the globe”.

The move comes during Covid-19. Weerasekara said that “there will be no prohibition to wear face masks to prevent the COVID-19 virus”. This statement appears to undermine the supposed objective behind banning the burqa as a person could as easily conceal their identity behind a face mask as a burqa. It begs the question, why is covering the face acceptable for limiting the spread of a disease but unacceptable when someone is expressing their religion?

SRI LANKA’S HISTORY OF HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES

Muslims are approximately 9% of Sri Lanka’s population and are a marginalised minority. As a result of Covid-19, the Sri Lankan government imposed a burial ban on people who died from coronavirus supposedly to avoid “contaminat[ing] ground water”. However, there is no scientific evidence to support this restriction. Those bodies not buried were cremated. In Islam, cremation is not permitted; the body must be buried after death. The burial ban has caused anguish to the Muslim community.

Another example of how the Sri Lankan government is targeting the minority community is through the introduction of The Prevention of Terrorism Regulations No. 01 of 2021. This regulation allows authorities to detain anyone for up to two years, without trial, if “‘by words either spoken or intended to be read or by signs or by visible representations’ causes the commission of violence or ‘religious, racial or communal disharmony or feelings of ill will or hostility between different communities or racial or religious groups’”. The regulation is disproportionately applied to Muslims. In addition to the burqa ban, the government is considering shutting down approximately 1,000 Islamic schools.

Considering the treatment towards the Muslim community over the years shows that the Sri Lankan government has scant regard for its citizens’ religious freedom. If the bill to ban the burqa and shut down Islamic schools is approved by parliament, this will only promote further segregation of the Muslim community rather than encouraging integration. Islamophobic policies will only lead to further discrimination of the Muslim community.

After having completed the Bar Professional Training Course (2018), Safia currently working as a Costs Advisor in a law firm. Her life goal is to make a positive change in the society we live in, no matter how small that change might be.

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