Afghanistan’s new first lady supports niqab ban by France

The new first lady of Afghanistan Rula Ghani has said she supports the decision by the government of France to ban women from wearing the full veil/burqa in public.

Speaking during an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP), the first lady said she was in full agreement with the government of France regarding the controversial ban on niqab.

She compared the full veild to ‘blinders’ and said, “Regarding the French law against the niqab and burqa which prevent women from being able to move freely and see, because the niqab is a bit like blinders, I am in full agreement with the government of France.” The French law banned wearing full veil in public in 2011, igniting a fierce debate and criticisms that the law was targeting Muslim women. Introduced in 2010, the law makes it illegal for anyone to cover their face in a public place. The remarks by Afghanistan’s first lady comes as she is preparing to campaign for more respect for women in her conservative adopted homeland. She is expected to start charitable works for women and children and internally displaced individuals who are in need of assistance. She said she hopes that by the end of her husband’s five-year term, ‘men in Afghanistan will be more inclined to recognize whatever role their wives take.”

Now aged 66, Ghani is with degrees from leading universities in France, Lebanon and the United States. She returned to Kabul in 2002 when her husband returned home as Afghanistan’s finance minister.