Sunday June 05, 2005
[url=http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-13365637,00.html[SkyNews[/url]
.................................................... 
Italy has been accused of stoking up anti-Islamic feelings by threatening to fine women who wear burkas.
Justice minister Roberto Castelli said an Italian law banning the covering of a person's face in public would be applied to women wearing the religious robe that hides the head and face.
He added: "To go around with your face covered is a crime, you can't do it.
"Women who do so must be reported to the police and fined."
Opposition politicians have demanded his resignation and that of other Northern League ministers, whose party has come to be defined by its anti-immigrant rhetoric.
They said the comments were irrelevant because it was rare to see a woman dressed in a burka on Italian streets and that Castelli was fanning hysteria.
"Northern League ministers are ... feeding a culture of fear and defensiveness against migrants of Islamic origin," said Paolo Cento, vice chairman of parliament's justice committee.
Italy, with a population of 57 million, is home to an estimated one million Muslims, making Islam the country's second-largest religion.
But social services groups say the number is much higher and growing.
