The small storm set off by British MP Jack Straw grew a bit larger when Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi echoed Straw’s sentiments. The Italian new agency AKI has three pieces—from Rome, Beirut, and Jakarta—that find Muslim leaders generally supporting the proposition that Muslim women should not be wearing veils while living in the West:

VEIL DEBATE: MOST MUSLIM LEADERS IN ITALY SUPPORT PREMIER’S COMMENTS

Rome, 18 Oct. (AKI) - The majority of Muslim leaders in Italy voiced support Wednesday for prime minister Romano Prodi who said that Muslim immigrant women should not hide their faces behind a veil. The president of Italy’s largest Muslim group, the Union of Islamic Communities in Italy (UCOII) said he agreed with the premier’s words. “The niqab (a veil which reveals only the eyes) is against Italian law,” said Mohammed Nur Dachan. “We perfectly agree with the premier,” he added, warning however that no confusion should be made between the niqab and the hijab, which doesn’t cover the face and should not be banned.
On Tuesday, Prodi told Reuters: “You can’t cover your face. If you have a veil, fine, but you must be seen.” “It is not how you dress but if you are hidden or not,” Prodi added. In the interview, the Italian premier was asked about comments by former British foreign minister Jack Straw, the leader of the House of Commons, who sparked a major debate in the UK and Europe after stating that full veils made relations “more difficult.”

VEIL DEBATE: WOMEN, ADAPT TO HOST COUNTRY’S LAWS OR LEAVE, LEBANESE CLERIC SAYS

Beirut, 18 Oct. (AKI) - A leading Lebanese Muslim cleric, Shaykh Hasan Abdallah, has said that although the Koran does not prescribe the face-veil, or niqab, Musilim women should be allowed to wear it provided it does not contravene the laws of the country where they reside. Abdallah president of the Shiite Ulema was commenting on remarks by Italian prime minister Romano Prodi that Muslim women who wished to intergrate in Italy should not “hide” their faces behind a veil.

VEIL DEBATE: INDONESIAN EXPERTS ANALYSE EUROPE’S STANCE

Jakarta, 18 Oct. (AKI) - The suspension of a British teacher for wearing a veil that covers her face, the invitation by former minister Jack Straw to his constituents to show their face when visiting his office and most recently, Italy’s prime minister Romano Prodi’s call for women who want to integrate into Italian society not to hide behind a full veil, have all triggered debate over the wearing of Muslim women’s headwear - from the simple headscarf to the eyes-only niqab - in Europe and beyond. Adnkronos International (AKI) spoke to two opinion-makers in the world’s most populous Muslim nation Indonesia.

“The question whether to wear it or not is constantly debated among religious leaders but the Holy Koran is clear on what Muslim’s unavoidable duties are” Lanny Octavia, of the Liberal Islam Network, a group of intellectuals and activists who endorse a modern interpretation of their religion.

“To wear the veil is not one of the five pillars of Islam, it is not compulsory” Octavia told Adnkronos International (AKI). “If in Europe wearing the veil causes problems to the woman, if it makes life difficult for her, creates suspicion or social division, then it is better not to wear it” he added.

The debate, so far, has not included any particular comment coming from Saudi Arabia, where the veil is seen as traditional garb. But even there, it’s not a simple story. There is a strong traditionalist view, shared by several of the Gulf States, that women should be veiled. But in many regions—as in Jeddah or the Asir—you find women who do not veil. They wear a hijab, a head covering, but not a niqab, a face covering. Just what is worn depends on just where you are. In parts of the Asir, for instance, women will cover their faces only in the presence of strange men. In parts of the Nejd, particularly around Al-Kharj, you find women who put on a veil at puberty and never take it off, even for their husbands and children, ever. To me, this variation makes is pretty clear that to veil or not to veil is a cultural question, not a religious one. If nothing else, this suddenly global debate over the veil will be interesting to follow.