Sri Lanka on Saturday announced a ban on the burqa and the closure of more than 1,000 Islamic schools in the country, according to the Associated Press.
“The burqa has a direct impact on national security,” Public Security Minister Sarath Weerasekara said about the one-piece, full-length clothing worn by some Muslim women.
He added: “It is a sign of religious extremism that emerged recently. We will definitely ban it.”
Weerasekara said he signed a document on Friday advancing the burqa measure in the Cabinet for approval. He also addressed the closure of Islamic madrassa schools, citing their lack of adherence to national education policy, according to Reuters.
According to the 2018 U.S. State Department report on international religious freedom in Sri Lanka, the South Asian island country officially recognizes four religions: Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, and Christianity.
The country’s population is 9.7% Muslim, compared to 70.2% Buddhist, 12.6% Hindu and 7.4% Christian.
The report indicates that Sri Lankan government officials have practiced “systematic discrimination against religious minorities, especially Muslims, and become” free “(non-denominational and evangelical) Christian groups.”
The last time the burqa was banned in Sri Lanka was in 2019, after Islamic militants killed more than 250 people after bombing churches and hotels, according to Reuters.
Other countries have enacted burqa bans in recent years as well, including Switzerland and Denmark.