Two days after Denmark’s contentious burka law came into effect, a 28-year-old woman has become the first person in the country to be charged with breaching it.
The woman was charged by the police in Hørsholm, north of Copenhagen, for wearing a niqab and subsequently fined 1,000 kroner – as well as being charged with disturbing the peace following an altercation with another woman on an escalator in a local shopping centre.
The other woman was also charged with disturbing the peace.
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From burkas to fake beards
The police took a photo of the woman in the niqab, as well as securing other video evidence from surveillance cameras in the shopping centre.
Should the woman refuse to pay the 1,000 kroner fine, the case will be sent on to the courts.
The new burka law means that all forms of clothing that cover the face are now banned in public spaces, unless they serve a creditable purpose. Anything from burkas, niqabs, ski masks and even fake beards are encompassed by the ban.
