Australia to ban wearing headscarves for girls under 14

AUSTRALIA: Austrian lawmakers are expected to approve a new law on Thursday banning girls under 14 from wearing Islamic headscarves in schools, a move rights groups warn is discriminatory and could deepen social divisions.

The bill, introduced by the conservative-led government in the face of rising anti-immigration sentiment, is reportedly intended to protect girls “from oppression.”

The move comes despite a similar 2019 primary school headscarf ban having been struck down by Austria’s constitutional court on grounds of discriminating against Muslim children.

According to the new law, girls under 14 would be prohibited from wearing any kind of Islamic veil, including hijabs and burqas, at school.

Integration Minister Claudia Plakolm also claimed the practice was not religious but “oppression,” since one should not teach girls to hide themselves from men.

It will be banned starting this September; schools will begin an initial grace period in February, during which they will be informed but not penalized.

Parents who are repeatedly found in contravention may be fined between 150 and 800 euros. The government estimates that it could be around 12,000 girls, citing a 2019 study showing 3,000 girls below 14 wore headscarves at the time.

Rights groups, including Amnesty International Austria, condemned the bill as “blatant discrimination” and warned it fuels anti-Muslim prejudice.

The official Islamic community body in Austria, IGGOe, said this move will “stigmatize and marginalize” rather than “empower the children”.

Women’s rights organizations also criticized the proposal as sending a message that the state can dictate choices regarding girls’ bodies.

The far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) said the ban did not go far enough and called for it to be extended to all students, teachers, and school staff.

While the government maintains the law is constitutional, legal experts such as Heinz Mayer disagree, pointing to the court’s earlier ruling that the previous ban targeted a single religion and therefore violated equality principles.

Austria’s debate echoes the long-standing restrictions of France under its secularism laws, which ban overtly religious symbols in schools.