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Supports wearing veil

Hasan Suroor

LONDON: The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, the most senior cleric in the Church of England, has warned the British Government against interfering in people's right to wear visible faith symbols such as veils, crosses or turbans, saying that any attempt to impose secularism from above would be "politically dangerous''.Intervening in the "burqa'' row, which has dominated the headlines here in recent weeks with Prime Minister Tony Blair calling it a "mark of separation'', Dr. Williams said the state should not become a "licensing authority'' to decide who should wear what, or what religious symbols were acceptable. His views were backed by other leading Christian figures who said attempts to ban religious symbols from public life would rob the society of its "richness'' and diversity. Dr. Williams said that the "panic'' over the issue appeared to give the impression that the "biggest threat to British society'' was from religion — "veiled women and the Bishops' Benches in the House of Lords.'' Writing in The Times on Friday, he said: "The ideal of a society where no visible public signs of religion would be seen — no crosses around necks, no side locks, turbans or veils — is a politically dangerous one. It assumes that what comes first in society is the central political `licensing authority' which has all the resource it needs to create a workable public morality.''

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