Date Posted: Tuesday, September 11, 2007

By Tamara Slobogean

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) Sept. 10, 2007 - Muslim women won't have to lift their veils when they vote, according to a recent Elections Canada decision. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has now reacted and he has come out swinging.

The PM says the job of Elections Canada is to uphold the law and not to make it. Just this spring, a new law was passed requiring all voters to visually identify themselves. Just in time for federal by-elections in Quebec, Elections Canada says Muslim women will be allowed to cast ballots even if they refuse to show their faces.

One man says voting is part of our way of life and he thinks it's difficult to balance a person's religion with other things in society. Another person says law and security should come before religion. He says all Canadians have to do the same, and reveal their faces because it's for security reasons.

For Muslim women, it is about upholding a religious conviction. Today this story of religion versus security is bringing government together. Even the opposition believes the visual identification should be mandatory at the polling station.

Other Muslims, when asked, said they considered the Elections Canada decision a goodwill gesture that is doing more harm than good. Prime Minister Harper is urging Elections Canada to reverse its decision or parliament may force the issue.

URL: http://www.news1130.com/news/topstory/article.jsp?content=20070910_093501_4996

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