Veiled hypocrisy or blatant racism?

The NHS is to conduct a review into whether staff in England should be allowed to wear full face veils. Although the number of women who actually wear the niqab is thought to be very low, the debate is gathering momentum following the recent court case where a Judge ruled that an accused woman must remove the veil while giving evidence.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said “I think it is very important patients do get proper contact with the Doctors and nurses looking after them”. He then said that hospitals must come up with a policy that is right in their areas and that national guidelines were a matter for the professional standards bodies not politicians. This is typical of the atmosphere in this country, where everyone is terrified to say what they really believe or use the slightest excuse to further their agenda.

Mr Hunt went on to say “certainly if I was a patient myself, I’d want to see the faces of the doctor or nurse that was treating me”.

The arguments in favour of wearing the veil are plenty. Some claim it is the right of all women to wear whatever they choose, and should not be dictated to by men. Others claim it is a right to demonstrate their religious beliefs. In response others claim that women are forced to wear them by controlling Muslim men and the women should be free to show their face.

My belief is that all these arguments are valid and there will undoubtedly be cases where all these statements are true.

There are Muslim men who force their women, whether it be wives or daughters to dress in a certain way. The same could be said for many western men, who are equally as capable of trying to control and dominate women. I believe men and women should be free to express themselves by wearing what they like but I also believe that when they are at work they should be willing to follow a dress code if the job demands it. Would we like to see politicians or news readers dressed in tee shirts or revealing tattoos? Would people attend weddings and funerals in football shirts and track suits? Would school children be allowed to cast aside their uniforms and opt for pyjamas for the classroom, or is it simply a case of wearing appropriate attire?   

Banning the Berka or the veil would be as wrong as banning Hawaii shirts, but there is a time and place for certain outfits. If I had to be told I was terminally ill or that my nearest and dearest had passed away, it would not be unreasonable of me to expect face to face contact with bearer of the news.

Considering the aging population, the number of elderly people visiting hospitals is very high. Many of those patients may be deaf and rely on lip reading. How can we ensure patients understand if they cannot see the face of the person they are listening to?

Hospital appointments can be very stressful and often frightening events for many people and it is vital that patients trust the people who work there. Not being able to see someone’s face does not instil trust or comfort.

I absolutely disagree with anyone dictating what others should wear in their free time but we must not be bullied into allowing a free for all. Dress code is not a new thing nor is exclusive to Muslims.

 Personally, I don’t like baseball caps. Unfortunately the shape of my face makes me look like I have a serious illness when wearing a hat, and I fail to see the need to wear them indoors. Recently in a pub at tea time, with most of the patrons just finished work for the day, one of my colleagues was politely asked to remove his cap as it was “policy”. The cap wearer duly obeyed and removed the cap. The cap did not have any offensive logos or words on it. There is no possible rational explanation why someone should not be allowed to wear a hat while drinking beer, yet it was removed. There was no ism the man wearing the hat could use to defend his right to wear the hat. It wasn’t sexism or racism or ageism. The trouble with the neqab debate is that it affords too many bigots and racists an opportunity to say it should be banned because.. It gives too many feminists an opportunity to say this is an attack on women because..

There needs to be compromise. That is a word that is rarely used these days. There is entirely too much use of the phrase "it is my right".

Men and women who chose certain professions should choose a different profession if they want to express themselves by what they wear. If my doctor wants to wear flip flops and socks with checked flared trousers and a frilly shirt at weekends I don’t care. That is his right. If my local MP wants to wear shorts and tee shirt when he isn’t working I don’t care. If construction workers wear a suit on a Saturday night, I don’t care. There is always plenty of time to express oneself and wear whatever one wants but one should expect to respect the need to wear appropriate clothes for their role.