@ Jackie,u seem to have a point, u could very well be right theres many of us like u here in south africa, more specifically cape town, we are searching , searching and searching, but to no avail, u are quite brave to give up ur career for islam, quite inspirational

@ Jackie,after reading the article,I expected the comments left by Deborah & Khalsah,but Jackie`s is what I least expected,they way you put thing is the way people should see it...WOW if only they could see,they too would be free!

My question is, are the woman free from intimidation to 'not wear' the burka? From what I saw at an airport in an arab country the answer is - NO. Religious police herding their cattle is more like it.

If a person does not like their adopted country's laws - they can go back to where they came from...Well done to the Hollanders for asserting their right to their way of life.

I have recently begun doing in depth researching and studying of islam currently,its fascinating to note that the facts and solutions of problems in the entire mankind given in the koran is so comprehensive that it encompasses problems from 1400+years ago and will continue survival for thousands of years to come with its simple recomendations of good deeds, and abstention from evil deeds, @ Jandro and Kalsa, its not just manipulation and us being subjected... in my case its an option of self purification, i was a model for a leading fashion company in france, but i kept searching for what truely makes me happy and content with myself, besides being popular from photo shoots and magazines... I have found that fashion is what i would term as slavery, i have found it in islam and the moslem woman as my icons, where they are so carefree in terms of their appearence to the world with a simple black garb and facial coverings, keeing their beauty concealed for their husbands and freedom from the bondage of fashion... i truely admire islam just like the 1000's that are accepting the religion (the way of life) on a weekly basis in france...

Excellent. Nothing more disgusting than seeing people subjected to wearing these horrid garments. Totally out of place in Europe.

As a French born citizen this is just my personal oppinion, At the start of mankind, man was naked, the more they advanced in terms of lifestyle and qualifications, the more they clothed themselves... I personally feel that by passing these laws mankind is slowly starting to regress rather than progress, and rather imposing upon a woman whos religion gives them total security and preservation, a culture of a holistic lifestyle, and a culture that I am looking very intensely looking seriously at accepting... The france ban initially opened my eyes to the fact, that france hoped that the burka ban would actually impose upon the muslim woman a culture of full nakedness, freedom, and "taking them out of bondage by islam", but what I have come to realise that there are so many of us french women that are actually finding that the lifestyle that was banned was actually the lifestyle that the non moslem women now are looking into adopting as their new look and accepting... many of my friends also feel the same way, they are breaking loose the chains of bondage in fashion, and are adopting the most simple dress... If netherlands ends up banning the facial coverings, I am almost certain that it would play the same role in that country, where many a non moslem women may accept islam like how in france in the hundreds if not thousands...was the influx to islam by the thousands contemplated by the authorities who passed the laws? well but thats just whats happening and will carry on happening in al the countries that follow suit... islam was a sleeping giant till the media gave it the publicity, we never viewed moslems in any particular way, they were just bypasses, but now they are to us like icons...

Personally, I think they are wise to enforce this. Dont get me wrong, I am all for freedom of religion, but the problem within the Netherlands is escalating, and this is a wise way of handling it. It may seem radical, but its no more radical than the laws imposed upon me when I go to countries where Muslims and Islamic rule dictates what me and my wife can and cannot wear, or do in public. These are laws imposed by a country and I respect them. I do not see it as a personal attack on my faith. The same applies for Holland, if the people elect for these rules to be enforced, the Islamic people have to comply in the same way that we do in their countries. It is also not an Islamic country, and they have to accept that.

Frankly, religions rely strongly on indoctrination from a very young age, bringing many well-known psychological techniques (in layman's terms: emotional trickery) like pomp, ceremony, rituals, customs, dress, etc to bear to reinforce the indoctrination. I don't know whether to laugh or cry when I see people still allowing themselves to be captivated and manipulated by these blatant techniques in the 21st century. On the other hand, I also cannot see how the world will become a better place by banning people from willingly submitting themselves to psychological manipulation.

Good for them. This type of dress is a huge problem for security at airports and any place that they have to show ID. Why should the rest of us have to put up with the inconvenience and they skate by with the excuse that it's because of their religion?