A trio of activists wearing a KKK outfit, a burqa and a motorcycle helmet attempted to enter Australia’s parliament house in Canberra, challenging the idea of allowing women wearing face veils in public places.
When the three approached the security, the men wearing a helmet and a Ku Klux Klan hood were immediately asked to remove their headwear, but there was a moment of hesitation concerning the Muslim veil.
Guys from 'Faceless' organisation want face coverings banned everywhere #auspolpic.twitter.com/HQSeiNfTRr
— ToryShepherd (@ToryShepherd) October 26, 2014
"One of the requirements of coming into parliament house is
that the motorcycle helmet is going to have to come off, your
headdress is going to have to come off and your burqa... your
identity will be checked," the security guard told the
group, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
The man in a KKK hood took it off only to reveal he had a burqa
underneath.
"Bit of a loophole, eh?" he asked.
Protestor wearing KKK hood reveals he is wearing a niqab when told to remove his hood by Parliamentary security pic.twitter.com/mGa9oPlF5W
— Alex Ellinghausen (@ellinghausen) October 27, 2014
The three men who participated in the stunt - Sergio Redegalli,
Nick Folkes and Victor Waterson – are members of protest movement
‘Faceless’, which is generally against the wearing of burqas or
niqabs in public places across Australia.
Their Monday action comes in the wake of the Australian
government initially ruling that women wearing face veils should
be separated from the public in Parliament House, but later
scrapping the decision.
READ MORE:Burqa
backtrack: Australia PM reverses parliament veil ban after public
outcry
The three later spoke to journalists to explain what they were
campaigning for.
"It seems that you're allowed to wear a full-faced covering
into parliament if you're a Muslim woman, but no other group is
allowed to have that same privilege," Sergio Redegalli, who
wore the KKK outfit, told reporters, according to ABC.
"No one should be walking up the [parliamentary] forecourt or
in [the] public domain hidden from sight," he added.
The men explained they had nothing to do with the Ku Klux Klan,
and were only using its paraphernalia to stress their point.
'Faceless' group protesting at Parliament House. Say they are going to try their luck in a bank next. #auspolpic.twitter.com/qccf3Fyqgq
— Jennifer Rajca (@jrajca) October 26, 2014
There are supporters of the burqa ban among ruling Coalition MPs
- including Liberal senator Cory Bernardi, who has praised
Faceless for the anti-burqa stunt, saying that it demonstrated
"just how ridiculous it is to allow anyone wearing an
identity concealing garment into parliament house."
The Australian Christian Lobby’s Queensland director, Wendy
Francis, has however criticized the group for staging a
“hurtful” action.
“To identify [the KKK] with a Muslim woman is extremely
confronting and hurtful,” she said, according to the
Guardian.
Currently, women wearing a burqa or niqab are obliged to show
their face to the security at the parliament house, but can
continue to wear it once inside.