Nicolas Sarkozy has made it perfectly clear that he does not want women in burqa. He prefers them in the buff. That is why he is so madly in love with Carla Bruni who did pose nude for the world.
I was once on a beach where there were a lot of French families, I saw quite a few ladies in the buff. I will be untruthful if I didn't admit that I had the time of my life ;) I enjoyed this beach more than many others and I am a bit of a beachcomber.
But why can't we get along and respect each other's cultures. Now there is a big controversy over Burqini which covers the whole body except the face and a Muslim woman has been banned from a swimming pool in France because she must be in a regular swimsuit, preferably two piece. The excuse used is that the Burqini is unhygienic. Wow! Really? Can fabric material be infectious? A man or a woman can have a highly infectious disease on their private parts which can be easily covered by regular swimwear. Now are they going to require uncovering that too? So what is the big deal? People may have more germs and fungus on their feet than any other part. Because of these germs on the feet, the surrounding walking areas of pools are rampant with germs and people can easily get fungi disease between their toes. What happened to hygienic there? It is baloney.
What is the difference between a man who forces a woman to undress compared to the one who forces a woman to completely cover-up? In the case of this swimming pool a big scary man was interviewed who wanted a Muslim woman to uncover herself by wearing a traditional French swimsuit – a skimpy two-piece. Don't the women have their opinion too. Why not let them decide? If someone's belief calls for covering up then leave that person alone. Hypocrisy knows no boundaries and is indeed universal.
There's an article in Britain about the complete opposite. They're offering Burquini classes in which all swimmers, Muslim or not, have to wear one.
ReplyDeleteIt really comes down to a question of culture clash, and it's quite natural I think. I have a real problem with Islamic countries demanding we obey their laws and culture when we visit, but they don't have the same obligations here.
Raphael, you raise an interesting point. However, it is more than cultural issue. In the west bikini is not a religious apparel but in case of Muslim countries and Muslims covering their bodies is a religious belief and to a certain extent applies to men too as they do not walk around in shorts although Muslim societies are more patriarchal. When it comes to religion we need to show more consideration.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the difference between a man who forces a woman to undress compared to the one who forces a woman to completely cover-up?
ReplyDeleteMan forces woman vrs man forces woman.
Looks the same to me.
French swimwear rules in public pools even apply to men. Boardshorts are forbidden.
ReplyDeletesassy, thank you. Exactly.
ReplyDeleteSkinny Dipper, may be but you don't have to worry about any of that :)