A scholar of Islamic history at Queen's University in Kingston, Prof. Mohammad Qadeer, wrote: "The argument about concealing one's face as a religious obligation, is contentious and not backed by the evidence. In western societies, the niqab also is a symbol of distrust for fellow citizens and a statement of self-segregation. The wearer of a face veil is conveying 'I am violated if you look at me'. It is a barrier in civil discourse. It also subverts public trust." 

Canadian judges should meet their Pakistani colleague, Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court, Tariq Pervaiz Khan, who ordered female lawyers to remove their face veils, saying they couldn't be identified nor assist court properly while veiled.  He scolded them, saying, "You are professionals."

Reza Raheel migrated from Pakistan in 1990 and wrote she has seen a steady rise in numbers of "Muslim women in the pernicious black tent" passed off to naïve guilt-ridden Canadians as religious necessity. Referendum on this?