Bangladesh court says women can't be forced to wear veil

(April 10, 2010) A Bangladesh court has ruled that Muslim women working at schools and colleges cannot be forced to wear a veil. "If any person tries to compel a woman to wear a veil against her consent ... that would amount to a violation of her fundamental rights as enshrined in the Constitution," the High Court said following Thursday's ruling. The verdict came in response to a petition seeking a directive following a report that an education officer in northern district had insulted a female teacher for not being veiled, court officials told reporters. Wearing a burqa or niqab in the overwhelmingly Muslim country of 144 million is not compulsory, but women are often pressured into adopting Muslim headwear, which is tantamount to sexual harassment, barrister Sara Hossain told AFP. "It is a woman's personal choice to cover her head or not and nobody can force them to do so against their will," she said, quoting the court ruling. Wearing a veil - or even a headscarf - has become a political issue in Muslim-majority countries such as Turkey and Indonesia, and even in European nations such as France.