Lisbon, Oct. 19, 2025 (Lusa) - The Communist-backed CGTP-IN union confederation on Sunday criticised the ban on wearing the burqa in public places, saying that it serves to "distract attention" from the essential and accused the parties that passed it of not being concerned about women's freedom.
"Those who pass laws like this really aren't concerned about women's freedom. Banning clothes, veils, or burkas is just a means to an end," the trade union confederation said in a statement released today.
"In the immediate term, it serves to distract attention from what is essential and is there for all of us to see, if we don't keep our eyes closed," added the CGTP.
On Friday, PSD, IL and CDS-PP approved, in general, the Chega bill, which aims to ban the use of the burqa in public spaces, citing women's rights and safety issues.
The CGTP-IN emphasised that "equality is not imposed by taking away freedom" and that safety "is not built by pointing the finger at a specific culture".
In the same vein, it warned that the law banning the use of clothing that hides or makes it difficult to show one's face in public spaces "is vague" and that there is a "risk of abuse".
At the same time, the trade union confederation accused the "voices that now claim to want to “protect women”" of being "the same ones attacking equality policies in work and life".
"They agree to unequal pay, want to abolish maternity rights, watch - without a word - women having children in ambulances on motorways, promote harassment at work, cut support for domestic violence, destroy public services and support the current labour package, which is an authentic regression of civilisation," said the CGTP.
In the trade union confederation's view, this law also has the purpose of "distracting attention from what is essential".
While the IL and CDS-PP declared their support for Chega's bill, which "prohibits the concealment of the face in public spaces, with certain exceptions", the PSD said it was "willing to go down this road", but argued that "the text presented can and should be improved in specialised sessions".
The PS, on the other hand, argued that care should be taken when drafting laws, in a context where the far right wants to "direct hatred" against a "specific target", in this case, the Muslim community. The PCP and BE contested the proposal. At the same time, Livre accused Chega of presenting a project that was deliberately "badly done" and, for this reason, didn't want to add value to this debate.
With this initiative, Chega proposes that "the use in public spaces of clothing intended to conceal or obstruct the display of the face should be prohibited", with a few exceptions. At the opening of the debate, the Chega leader specified that the aim is to ban "women from wearing burqas in Portugal" and addressed immigrants in particular.
On Saturday, Amnesty International condemned the Portuguese parliament's approval of Chega's bill, saying it was discriminatory and violated women's rights.
JO/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
