STOCKHOLM: The Danish parliament on Thursday passed a law banning the Islamic full-face veil in public spaces, becoming the latest European country to do so.
"Anyone who wears a garment that hides the face in public will be punished with a fine," says the law, which was passed by 75 votes to 30.
Presented by the centre-right government, the legislation, which is to take effect on August 1, was also backed by the Social Democrats and the far-right Danish People's Party.
Wearing a burqa, which covers a person's entire face, or the niqab, which only shows the eyes, in public will lead to a fine of $156.
Repeated violations will be fined up to 10,000 kroner.It is not known how many women wear the niqab and burqa in Denmark
.
"I don't think there are many who wear the burqa here in Denmark. But if you do, you should be punished with a fine," Justice Minister Soren Pape Poulsen was quoted as saying by Ritzau news agency in February.
The European Court of Human Rights last year upheld a Belgian ban on wearing it in public.
France was the first European country to ban the niqab in public places with a law that took effect in 2011.
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