For the past several years, the French government has been debating the potential banning of the Burqa and the Niqab, garments that cover the entire face except the eyes of Muslim women.

The heated controversy has been going on for the past year, and just recently, French senate approved the official legislation by a vote of 246 to 1, becoming the first European country to ban the Burqa.

The purpose of imposition of this legislature is to overcome the so-called “barrier to human interaction.” However, the question is: Is the Burqa really a barrier to human interaction as the French like to think?

Of course, for security reasons, the Burqa would propose a threat given the rise in suicide bombings in the past few years. However, banning the Burqa as a whole is unjustified.

Regardless of the person’s attire, a threat exists whether or not a Burqa is worn. For example the underwear bomber and the shoe bomber both managed to conceal explosives in their so-called “normal” attire.

Muslim women wear the Burqa and Niqab for specific religious beliefs and besides that, it is nothing more than a daily outfit.

The history of the French government points to their Laïceté government, a total separation of Church and state.

The French government may not have any involvement in religious affairs and vice versa; however, this legislation reminds us of the religious intolerance that existed centuries ago.

This ban is also hypocritical — the nation prides itself on an unrelated and also contradicts the French government’s action.

The legislature does not completely exemplify Laïceté government structure and should be modified. In 2004, the French government already passed a law banning public display of religious symbols in schools, and items such as Muslim hijabs, “over-sized” Christian crosses and Jewish Yarmulke were removed.

The past legislature may be acceptable since those symbols should not affect children at schools, but a complete banning of a specific religious display in the country is taking away one of the natural rights of a person. Also, the meaning of wearing a Burqa may also vary.

Although the French government’s Laïceté style is favorable, it has gone too far with its religious intolerance. The new legislature does not correspond with the idea of separation of church and state because it sets certain limits to rights to express personal beliefs.

The recent poll showed that about 80 percent of French citizens agreed on banning the Burqa. Such statistics reflect on the religious bias in France and will allow Americans to appreciate their First Amendment rights.