Burqa and niqab ban in schools approved in Italy

The Italian Council of Ministers has approved a new regulation banning the use of burqas and niqabs in schools. In addition to the ban on face-covering garments, the regulation also aims to limit the concentration of students with insufficient knowledge of Italian in the same classrooms.

According to the new rules, the proportion of non-Italian citizen students who have insufficient knowledge of Italian or who meet the conditions specified in the regulation cannot exceed 30 percent in primary, middle, and the first years of high school.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stated that students should go to school with their faces uncovered, saying, "No one can decide that a young woman should hide her face in the name of tradition." Meloni described the regulation as "common-sense tools that do not divide, but rather truly help with integration."

Minister of Education Giuseppe Valditara said that the limit in classrooms is determined based on language proficiency rather than citizenship. Valditara also defended the burqa and niqab ban within the framework of gender equality.

The regulation covers the burqa, which covers the face and body, and the niqab, which covers the entire face except for the eye area. The hijab, which leaves the face exposed, is not included in the ban.

In primary schools, the limit will apply to non-Italian citizen students who were born outside of Italy or who have not attended kindergarten for at least two years. In middle and high schools, non-Italian citizen students who have not successfully completed at least three years in the Italian education system will be taken into account.

News Source: 12punto