Mallorca burka ban vote: €30,000 fines proposed

On Mallorca, repeatedly wearing a burka or niqab in public could bring a fine of up to €30,000 under a proposed ban. The Parliament of the Balearic Islands votes on the Vox bill in Palma, Mallorca, on Tuesday. It would cover public spaces across the islands, but the ban is not yet in force.

The People’s Party and Vox are expected to back the bill. It would then go to Spain’s Congress of Deputies for final approval because it would change the Criminal Code and other laws.

The proposed fines would also apply to people who make minors or women under guardianship wear a burka or niqab. Anyone who forces, intimidates or coerces a woman into wearing one could face up to four years in prison. Foreign nationals who repeatedly break the proposed ban could be expelled from Spain.

Tuesday’s sitting will also take up a Socialist Party attempt to reject the proposed coastal law in full. The party says the law would “privatise” the coast and create more business on beaches. The sitting begins at 09.00 with questions to the Balearic government; housing and water supply are also on the agenda.

Topics: Sea & coast · Politics · Palma

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com