The Belgian parliament was preparing a late- evening vote today on a bill to ban Muslim women from wearing the burqa in public in what became the first such ban legislated in Europe, according to dpa. The vote was to have been held last week, but was postponed amid the government coalition crisis. The Belgian news agency Belga, reporting on the vote, pointed out that a ban would not take effect until the upper chamber, the Senate, also approved the bill. It was unknown when the Senate might put the bill on its agenda. The bill drafted by a parliamentary committee foresees punishment of 25 euros (33 dollars) fine or up to 7 days in jail. The ban makes Belgium the first country in Europe to prohibit women from wearing the full-body garment in public. The French government is also preparing legislation for a ban on burqas.
