Germany's Bavaria mulls face veil ban

Germany's southern state of Bavaria has drafted a law banning face veil in certain public places, the German news agency Deutsche Presse Agentur reported on Wednesday.

In the fields of civil service, universities, schools, kindergartens, at elections, a full-face veil, or niqab in Arabic, is to be prohibited, according to the draft law introduced by Bavaria.

Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said the face-covering garments will hinder communication and public safety, adding that communicative exchanges take place also through "looks, expressions and gestures."

He added the regional parliament of Bavaria might approve the law by summer break.

The new legislation was widely seen as measure by the center-right political bloc, led by Chancellor Angela Merkel, to win back voters as federal elections drew near in September.

In December, Merkel voiced her support for such a ban, saying it should be implemented "wherever legally possible."

The German government in recent months also sped up deportations of rejected asylum seekers back to Afghanistan, which was also interpreted by critics as another way to regain losing votes for the Merkel's governing political union. Endit