Canucks try again to ban wearing niqab at citizenship ceremonies

This may be a picture of Zunera Ishaq, a Muslim lady who immigrated to Canada from Pakistan in 2008. Or maybe not. It's pretty hard to ascertain someone's identity, or even their gender, when their face is covered with the niqab.

It was for that reason that, in 2013, a Canadian judge who was about to administer the oath of citizenship to Ms Ishaq refused to do so unless she uncovered her face, as required by government policy. Ms Ishaq refused, saying that to show her face in public to men whom she did not know would violate the requirements of her religion -- Islam -- and the traditions of her culture. The culture of her adopted country didn't matter to her. Let Canada adapt itself to her, not the other way round.

As sure as God made little wormy apples and little wormy lawyers, a challenge under Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms ensued. Just as surely, the politically correct Federal Court ruled this year that the ban on wearing the niqab, mandated by the Canadian Minister of Immigration was contrary to the government's own immigration laws.

The court ordered the feds to lift the ban and allow Ms Ishaq to take the oath with her face covered. Mr. Justice Keith Boswell found that "to the extent that the policy interferes with a citizenship judge's duty to allow candidates for citizenship the greatest possible freedom in the religious solemnization or the solemn affirmation of the oath it is unlawful."

The Canuck government indicated at the time that it would appeal the ruling. But before the appeal could be heard -- today in fact -- the same government proposed a new "Oath of Citizenship Act" which, if enacted, will require all Canadian citizenship applicants to show their face while taking the oath of citizenship. Ironically, the new legislation was introduced in the House of Commons by the Minister of State for Multiculturalism, Tim Uppal, seen here wearing the turban which his religion -- Sikhism -- requires.

"The Citizenship Oath is an integral part of Canada's citizenship ceremony, and where new Canadians embrace our country's values and traditions, including the equality of men and women," said Mr. Uppal. "This bill will ensure all citizenship candidates show their face as they take the Oath. We believe most Canadians, including new Canadians, find it offensive that someone would cover their face at the very moment they want to join our Canadian family."

That's if the bill given first reading today becomes law, which seems highly unlikely, given that Parliament adjourned today for its summer recess, and the House of Commons won't sit again until after the election.

Any suggestion that the bill was tabled as a sop to the majority of Canadians fed up with "cultural accommodation" is absurd. So is the suggestion that Prime Minister Steve Harper's government was inspired by polls showing widespread support for the Québec government's reintroduction of legislation to ban the wearing of the niqab, announced just last week.

"Fancy that" Dept.": On Sunday morning (21/6) CBC News posted "Conservatives' niqab ban shaped by Quebec's secular charter battle". Perhaps the CBC follows WWW?