Freedom of the Individual in danger
The Dutch have entered the English language in a rather strange way, the pharse Dutch Uncle. This character is a well endwed, if genrous man who can always be counted on for a no strings attached loan of help. The Dutch Uncle is always a wee bit stupid. well meaning and not above an ocassional tantrum. From such a benign presence in the world of symbols and objects the Dutch are clearly making waves for the wrong reasons. The Right wing Government in power wants to impose a ban on women wearing the Islamic head dress/hijab. The question that this proposed ban raises are as follows:
In what way if the Government of the Dutch nation different from other Islamic dictatorships which impose restrictions on women?
How can any democratic government issue a diktat on so personal an issue as the dress the one chooses or chooses not to wear?
In these days of hieghtened Islamophobia, the very act of suppressing the mislim headdress will be trotted out as a graet example of Women's liberation and progrssive social ideals. Instead the decision of the Dutch governemnt only goes to show that behind the fascade of democracy and human rights there lurks an intolerant and fanatical society willing to suppress the fundamental rights of its own citizens inorder to promote religious divisions.
There will be an Islamic reaction to this. The issues raised by the Prophet's cartoons have not been forgotten as yet. And the latest development is only another instance of racist inspied intolerance masqueradfing an progressive concern for womens rights and equality.