Veils and custom

Mr Jack Straw is the Member of Parliament for the town of Blackburn, north of Manchester in England. In this capacity, he holds surgeries, in which constituents can drop in to discuss problems that they want him, as their MP, to address.

Mr Straw has stated, in an interview with a regional paper, that he expects Muslim women attending his surgery to remove the face veil before coming to speak to him. He finds it puts up a barrier between him and the person concerned, not just physically but also socially. If you can't see a person's face, when you are talking to them "face to face" (sic), it makes people very uncomfortable.

In the Muslim world, the modesty of a woman is very important. Women who appear in public are expected to keep their hair covered. Only the woman's husband is allowed to see her hair, as this is regarded as a very explicit statement of her femininity. A minority within the Muslim faith demands that the woman remain virtually completely covered, as not doing so basically reduces the woman to a harlot. The dress is commonly referred to as a burka.

Jack Straw isn't just any old MP. He was Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary, and is currently Leader of the House of Commons, a pretty senior position within Parliament. His expressions, even if only aired at a local level, will be taken note of nationally if not internationally. The Muslim community has aired its disapproval of Mr Straw's statement.
Personally, I have to agree with Jack Straw that talking to somebody face-to-face who keeps their face covered is off-putting. It also goes against British custom. I respect culture, customs and religion of those who come to live in Britain or elsewhere in Europe from outside the continent. It is an expression of great open-mindedness that Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus are given the opening to worship their religion in freedom. In return, we should expect these folk to respect our custom.

I am writing this with caution, as there is a degree of resentment against migrants within the UK as well as the US. It is an issue that needs to be addressed. Not by bilateral mudslinging, but by community leaders reaching a compromise. Without fuss. I would hate to see this being picked upon by the racist element within our society as a pretext for thuggery.