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Row over Cherie Blair's remarks on the burkha

Sanjay Suri in London

British Muslim leaders are irked with Prime Minister Tony Blair's wife Cherie for describing the burkha (veil) as a "symbol of the oppression of women".

Cherie Blair had said at a meeting attended by several Afghan women that "nothing more symbolises the oppression of women than the burkha, which is a very visible sign of the role of women in Afghanistan".

"Cherie Blair's remarks are an interference in our way of life," a leader of the Islamic group Al Muhajiroun told the Indo-Asian News Service. "This is not a symbol of oppression, but a religious obligation."

The women's meeting sparked a religious row in Britain.

Education Secretary Estelle Morris attended the meeting called in London to highlight the difficulties Afghan women had faced. Several Afghan women, including two teachers who had fled the Taleban and come to Britain as refugees, attended.

Cherie Blair said the refugees had described to her the difficulties of wearing the burkha and "how difficult it makes just ordinary, everyday living".

The Times noted how some of Cherie Blair's remarks were similar to those made by Laura Bush, the American first lady.

Bush had said: "The Taleban threaten to pull out women's fingernails for wearing nail polish."

Blair said: "In Afghanistan, if you wear nail polish you can have your nails torn out.

"In my experience as a professional woman, a mother and somebody who has been on the margins of the political world, I have seen how all communities work more smoothly and productively when women are involved and have a voice," she added.

Indo-Asian News Service

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