President Bans Islamic Coverings as Search Intensifies

Muslim women in Sri Lanka are scrambling to adapt after the South-East Asian country introduced a raft of measures outlawing the wearing of full-face veils.

The raft of measures outlined by a Member of Parliament days after the attack were made official after President Maithripala Sirisena introduced the measures “for security reasons.”

In the new order, Muslims will have the privilege of wearing hijabs and chador.

However, the niqab and Burka remain illegal even as the country reels from the vagaries of a terrorist attack that happened on Easter Sunday.

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In the multiple bomb attacks which targeted high-end hotels and Christian churches, some 253 people were killed including 39 foreigners.

Also, an additional 500 others were injured, with 15 more dying in a shootout between police and suspected militants on Saturday.

In a bid to hunt down the militants, Police have banned the Muslim coverings in order to help them in faster identification of suspects.

In the Saturday shooting, police believe that some wanted women suspects escaped police dragnet wearing niqabs and burqas.

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“The ban is to ensure national security… No one should obscure their faces to make identification difficult,” President Sirisena said.

The ban takes effect from Monday.

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