Banning the burqa anti-constitutional

France will not be able to impose a “general and absolute” ban on the wearing of the full-body veil in public because that would be unconstitutional. This is, in a nutshell, the opinion handed down on 30 March by the Conseil d’Etat (Council of State) to the French government. The principle of secularism invoked by the government, which is "hell bent on legislating on the wearing of the full-body veil”, applies to institutions and public agents, but not to society as a whole or individuals, save in public establishments, explains Le Monde. A ban grounded in the principle of human dignity is not admissible either, argues the Council of State, pointing out that the European Court of Human Rights protects the exercise of free will as long as it does not harm others. So it recommends imposing a ban in certain places: polling stations, courts, examination rooms (i.e. at public schools and universities) etc. Concurrently, on 31 March, Belgian MPs at a special committee meeting came out in favour of a law to ban the burqa in public, even in the street, which would be a first in Europe.