The Egyptian parliament is drafting a law to ban women from wearing the niqab, a veil worn by the females that covers most of one’s face.
The ban will apply to wearing the clothing in public places and government institutions, it has been reported.
The full-face veil is worn by some followers of Islam and typically covers all of the wearer’s face other than their eyes.
The clothing is common in Egypt which is a predominantly Muslim country.
MP Amna Nosseir, professor of comparative jurisprudence at Al-Azhar University, who has backed the ban, said that wearing the veil is not a requirement of Islam and in fact has non-Islamic origins.
“The niqab is not an Islamic duty,” said Amna Nuseir, an MP in the alliance and a professor of Islamic creed at the Islamic Al Azhar University.
“This costume is part of Judaism and spread in the Arabian Peninsula before Islam,” she told Gulf News.
“When Islam came, it did not impose the niqab. Islam enjoins decent dressing,” she said, citing verses from the Quran urging men and women to avoid ogling at each other.
Nuseir is a vociferous opponent of the niqab. “I have said for more than 20 years that the niqab is not obligatory in Islam and have been harshly criticised for this view.”
Nuseir added that she will participate in drafting the relevant law before it is presented to the legislature.
She is not worried about facing fresh criticism. “I have been waiting for long years for this bold law,” she said.
“We seek to spread moderate Islam. Wearing the niqab in public has raised concerns in the Egyptian streets in view of the hard circumstances the country is undergoing.”
A number of restrictions have been placed on wearing the niqab in Egypt in recent years. In February, Cairo University banned nurses and doctors from wearing it in medical schools and in teaching hospitals, arguing the ban would: “protect patients’ rights and interests.”
In September of last year, the university also banned academic staff from wearing the niqab in classrooms in response to complaints from students that it was too difficult for niqab wearers to communicate effectively with students.