Click to play videoDoes the wearing a burkha, nose rings or a mangalsutra undermine a modern secular society?
In England, a woman who worked at a catering services firm at Heathrow airport, was sacked for wearing a nose ring. London's Mayor Ken Livingstone says this is an attack on her right to express her religion.
Other western countries have gone a step further. France has banned the wearing of headscarves and turbans in school whereas in England a teacher was sacked for wearing a veil.
So, does the West overreact to Asian cultural symbols?
Head of Communications, London CNN News, William Higham, Senior Lawyer of Supreme Court K T S Tulsi and Fashion Designer Rina Dhaka debated the topic on Face the Nation.
Symbol of intolerance?
From nose-pins to crucifixes to turbans and the burqa, across many western countries there seems to be a suspicion of the overt display of religious identity. A crack down on cultural and religious symbols has been brewing in the West for a long time.
A law banning Islamic headscarves and other religious symbols from French schools came into effect in 2004. The normally tolerant government of the Netherlands also banned the all-covering veil worn by fewer than hundred Muslim women in the entire country in 2006.
The same year Italy put forward legislation to ban-the naqab and the burka-the Islamic veil that covers the face.
Some German states have banned teachers in public schools from wearing headscarves.
In fact in October 2006, a British Muslim teacher, Aisha Azmi was sacked for refusing to remove her veil in class.
And the recent policy of US airports to screen Sikh turbans also led to a huge uproar among Sikhs in the US and in India.
Why is Western Europe banning symbols, which represent a "conspicuous" sign of religious affiliation? Be it the Islamic scarves, the Sikh turbans or the Jewish skullcaps?
For some it is a clash of civilizations. But considering the fact that British airways suspended an employee for wearing a crucifix in 2006 it seems to be part of a difficult drive towards secularization, in an increasingly multicultural Europe.
However you take it, wearing religious symbols in public is a burning issue across Europe.
Increasing sense of unease
In London, there is an increasing sense of unease about the open demonstration on religious identities, specifically a Hindu, Muslim or a recognizably an Asian.
"A whole series of skirmishes between individuals and employers have taken place where there has been unease about crucifixes, turbans, hijab, and now a nose stud. The employers in particular have a role in dealing with a more diverse workforce. Its time the employers realize that London is increasingly becoming a multi-culture city and you cannot build your policies around an assumption that everyone is the same. There has to be a mechanism for talking about these kind of clashes between workplace rules and religious or cultural sentiments," said William Higham.
But isn't there a deeper problem there? Supposing somebody considered his religious identity to be a nudist or wear clothes that were completely unsuitable to a work place. What would be the line of logic there? Shouldn't there be a dress code or rules laid down on what you can and cannot?
"The case that you put forth is a perfect example of why extremes on either sides wont work. On the one side, the employees are told they can come to work as they like. But these rules were invented years ago perhaps without talking to people, without consulting. We are going to put them down shortly. If you don't like it, you can pack your bags and find another employment. Democracy does apply to a workplace as much as it does to a parliament. We need to strike a balance somewhere," said William Higham.
The Sikhs are a very outward-bound community yet they are also a community that insists on their distinctive religious identity expressed in their appearance. As the Sikh community tries to integrate with international societies, should the attachment to the turban or the beard need lessen?
"Not at all. The religious symbols in all religions have a resonance about your origin. It is an expression of solidarity and expresses a certain moral value which each of the symbols represent. Like a ring, which is the Christian symbol of marriage is supposed to be the symbol of chastity prior to marriage. Various religious symbols after the French revolution came to be recognized as symbols of art and religion. They moved hand-in-hand but were also accepted as freedom of expression," said Senior Lawyer, K T S Tulsi.
But would there not be a modern fallout? What if it was considered religious duty to carry a kirpan (sword) on to a plane? Will that not be violating security concerns?
"That's right.Kirpan have already been done away with because they come in conflict with the security requirements. But I don't understand how come a nose ring put a threat to security?" Tulsi pointed out.
"There is a declining respect for freedom of speech and expression," he added.
The ideal definition of secularism, according to the French, is that a nation recognizes no religion, therefore if you want the rights from the system, you cannot show any religion.
"By doing so they are reversing the very foundation of modern nationhood. Freedom of expression of an individual so long as the act you do are not unlawful, you have the right to do it," said K T S Tulsi. "What is unlawful is when you are endangering somebody. How can I endanger anybody by wearing a turban or a nose ring?" he added.
"After 9/11 the whole paradigm has changed. There is reduced respect for the freedom of an individual. There is a kind of siege mentality, which is overtaking the western world," he pointed out.
Cultural paranoia: Fashionably in?
Rina Dhaka commenting on whether there are any takers in the West for Indian ethnic wear said, "To be accepted in the west you have got to take Indian elements and to package it in a simple clutter free mode-that's how the western market buys from us. Even designers face a slight racial bias at times."
Is it the western fashion norm, which is at the top? "People are very fascinated by India and all the things Indian. In fact if there is such an uproar in England about a nose ring, if Kate Moss decides to wear a nose pin tomorrow, trust me there will be a lot of English girls dying to wear a nose pin. But I find racism more when you want to get into up-market stores like Harrods, then you need to be represented as an English designer for them to accept you," said Rina Dhaka.
Is there still an unwritten sort of understanding that Britishness constitutes a certain kind of look that it is not the Burqa, not a Bindi, a nose stud but British ness sublimely stated is a certain kind of an Anglo Saxon look?
"The difficulty is the British ness. Until recently it has been very under discussed. Britain is not a country where you see many people flying their flag. The rules seem to imply a sense that someone normal out there won't necessarily wear a nose ring or a turban or a crucifix. That's completely outdated in a country that has over one million Indian people. That itself sets an example. There is a hunger really from the Prime Minister and the President to discuss and determine Britishness in a way that we can lay down values that everyone can subscribe to," said William Higham.
- October 2006: Tony Blair & Jack Straw describe veils as a mark of separation and urge Muslime women not to wear full-face veils
- November 2006: A Muslim classroom assistant sacked by a school in UK for wearing a veil in lessons
- February 2007: A court in Buckinghamshire rejected a 12-year-old Muslim girl's demand to wear the niqab in class
- March 2007: British authorities issue new rules to allow schools to forbid Muslim students to wear full-face veils in class
- March 2004: French law bans the wearing of conspicuous religious symbols, including headscarves and turbans in state schools
- June 2007: Sikhs have gone to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg to challenge a French law banning the wearing of turbans for ID documents
- January 2007: Dutch parliament votes in favour of a proposal to ban the burqa outside the home
- August 2007: US federal policy that subjects air travellers wearing headgear to additional screening
- May 4, 2007: Gaurav Singh, who describes himself as a "proud turban-wearing Sikh," demanded the apology after saying he was denied admission to a Richmond Hill restaurant in Canada.
Several Sikh boys have been expelled from schools in France for defying the ban
What is also emerging in the post 9/11 world is that cultural costumes are seen as an act of defiance, assertion of a religious identity. "The West may not agree with the symbols of other people but these symbols are a part of the freedom of these nations of which they were founded. It is ironic that the British, the US is becoming intolerant," KTS Tulsi
"The symbol is not about declaring a war on anybody. These are only asserting the right to express of an individual who feels he must dress up in a particular way," he added.
"From Madonna to Naomi Campbell have adorned bindis and sarees. I remember Naomi telling me in India that she wants to get one saree for her friend Kate Moss. When there was a fashion phase of wearing a saree, they all wore it. But the fashion is faddish," concluded Rina Dhaka.
Final Verdict: Does the West overreact to Asian cultural symbols?
64 per cent said yes.
36 per cent said no.
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