Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Acknowledgements
- Contents
- List of Cases
- List of Abbreviations
- List of Contributors
- An Introduction to the Interdisciplinary Considerations of the “Burqa Ban” Trend: Criminalizing the Trivial or Separating National and International Law?
- PART I Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Strategy of Prohibition
- PART II Legal Perspectives: Religious Clothing, Law, and a Veil-Wearer’s Experiential Account
- Part II Legal Perspectives: Human Rights Perspectives
- Part II Legal Perspectives: National Perspectives
- PART III Responses To Otherness: Gender, Race, And The Veil Factor
- Epilogue
- Index
- About the Editors
The Perspective of Post-Soviet States on the Burqa Ban: A Study of the Delegalization of Religious Headwear in Post-Soviet States
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 December 2021
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Acknowledgements
- Contents
- List of Cases
- List of Abbreviations
- List of Contributors
- An Introduction to the Interdisciplinary Considerations of the “Burqa Ban” Trend: Criminalizing the Trivial or Separating National and International Law?
- PART I Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Strategy of Prohibition
- PART II Legal Perspectives: Religious Clothing, Law, and a Veil-Wearer’s Experiential Account
- Part II Legal Perspectives: Human Rights Perspectives
- Part II Legal Perspectives: National Perspectives
- PART III Responses To Otherness: Gender, Race, And The Veil Factor
- Epilogue
- Index
- About the Editors
Summary
Abstract
This chapter seeks to study the legislative developments that have led such post-Soviet states as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan to the delegalization or restriction of the religious headwear in one or the other form in the context of the so-called “burqa ban” trend. It studies the legislative and administrative changes introduced in the aforementioned states in the historical retrospective and compares them to each other in order to find common grounds for the legislative motivation. While Tajikistan and Latvia have introduced bans on closed-face religious headwear, such post-Soviet states as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Uzbekistan are on similar paths, which even ban the open-faced religious headwear (ḥijāb) in public sphere. The cases seem very different; however, an overall trend appears to be recognizable from the legal changes and policies pursued by the states in their attempt to delegalize or restrict religious headwear. This phenomenon affecting post-Soviet states is largely overlooked and requires deeper investigation.
Introduction
The prohibition of public wearing of religious headwear that cover faces and its criminalization has been on the rise in several African, European, and Asian states. Overall, around 16 countries to date have introduced bans on such religious headwear as the burqa or the niqāb in public. This trend has also touched post-Soviet states that since the dissolution of the Soviet Union are on a constant path of transformation into developed and democratic states, with various degrees of success.
Tajikistan, a former Soviet republic, is notably one of the 16 states that have bans on some forms of religious headwear. The same is true of Latvia, the post- Soviet member of the European Union (EU) (albeit that the ban is not yet in force). Moreover, such post-Soviet states as Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Uzbekistan are on similar paths and have even banned open-faced religious headwear (e.g. the ḥijāb) in public schools. These cases seem starkly different. In the case of Russia, the ban was confirmed by the Supreme Court. Conversely, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan feature populations with clear Muslim majority and their legislative measures were not adopted without any protest. On the other hand, there appears to be an overall trend that spans these post-Soviet states.
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- Information
- Law, Cultural Studies and the 'Burqa Ban' TrendAn Interdisciplinary Handbook, pp. 329 - 348Publisher: IntersentiaPrint publication year: 2021