BRUXELLES, BELGIUM

EML condemns language used in British nikab row

There are already serious concerns about institutionalised Islamophobia within the ranks of the British Conservative political party and this has been further fuelled by hurtful comments made by former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson comparing women who wear the niqab to "letter boxes" and "bank robbers".

So far, British Prime Minister Theresa May as well as the party's chairman Brandon Lewis have called on Johnson to apologise and additional pressure has been exerted by other senior members of the party including Baroness Sayeeda Warsi who fears his views over the nikab could trigger a rise in hate crime. 

Sadly the calls so far have been met with silence from the controversial politician who has a history of making Islamophobic comments including "Islam is the problem." 

The European Muslim League would like to express its disappointment over the whole Johnson affair which centres on an article over the decision by Denmark to join several other European countries in banning the niqab and burqa.

It is ironic that Johnson condemned the move but then chose hateful language to describe what he personally thought of Muslim women who choose to wear such garments.

EML agrees with the many human right groups who feel the bans against face veils in Europe are neither necessary nor proportionate. We also feel that many Muslim communities in Europe will be hurt and anxious over Johnson's personal views about the nikab and an early apology might go some way to diffusing the situation and easing the pain caused.