Portugal Bans Face Coverings: Just Not the Ones on Bank Accounts
The Portuguese parliament, in its infinite wisdom, has approved a bill outlawing face coverings in public, ostensibly for 'security.' This initiative, celebrated by some as a win for 'transparency,' conveniently ignores historical patterns of such bans primarily targeting religious minorities, particularly Muslim women. Spain (2010), France (2010), and Belgium (2011) all enacted similar
legislation, consistently framing them as secular or security measures, despite clear impacts on specific communities. One might wonder where this impassioned commitment to 'identifiability' goes when it comes to the shadowy world of political donations, offshore accounts, or the actual faces behind corporate lobbying. Portugal's parliament can mandate showing your face on the street, but good
luck getting them to mandate transparency on who's funding their campaigns. Perhaps true 'security' means knowing whose interests are actually being served, not just whose headscarf is showing.