Sri Lanka bans dress covering face post Easter Attacks

The terror attacks in Sri Lanka which has taken away the lives of more than 250 has caused the Sri Lankan Government to ban all clothes that hide one’s face.

This has been made as an emergency law in Sri Lanka .The intelligence and security forces are in search of attackers and if any of them remain inside Sri Lanka and in the outskirts of the country, through this ban, they can identify the suspects, says reports.

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena ‘s  spokesperson Dharmasri Bandara Ekanayake said “It is a presidential order to ban any dress covering faces with immediate effect”

The apex body of Islamic Scholars in Sri Lanka – All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) has said that they support the ban provided it stays short-term and for the sake emergency. The body has cautioned that if it is made a law, the permanence of the prohibition could hurt the hearts of Muslims.

Farhan Faris , Assistant Manager, ACJU said “We have given guidance to the Muslim women to not to cover their faces in this emergency situation,” He added “If you make it a law, people will become emotional and this will bring another bad impact, it is their religious right.”

In an update we learned that this ban is limited not just to burga or face veils but it applies to anything covering the face – burqas, niqabs, helmets, masks, etc will be banned for security reasons in public places. We shall see how this rule progresses in the days to come.