Belgian lawmakers are set to vote on a proposed ban on wearing face-covering veils in public, an issue that is dividing opinions and forming policies across Europe.
Khola Hasan, a representative of the City Circle, a think tank that promotes the development of a distinct British Muslim identity, said the ban is part of a worrying trend in Europe.
She told Al Jazeera that European Muslims are being criminalised for issues that are not criminal.
"The European convention on human rights guarantees freedom of religious expression," she said.
"For a country to legislate how its inhabitants should dress in public is very worrying. What sort of totalitarian states are we going towards to in Europe?"
