00:00 Intro
00:20 "Ban Hijabs in Public Places If Elected"
02:21 "Will Put It to a Referendum"... Why Marine Le Pen Is Stoking the Fire
04:11 Germany Also Shocked by Far-Right Landslide

This is Paris. Today, we are going to talk about the hijab. The French political arena is unexpectedly in an uproar over the hijab. To be more precise, it is the controversy surrounding the push to ban the wearing of hijabs by Muslim women.

1. "Ban Hijabs in Public Places If Elected"
France will hold a presidential election next year. While candidates are currently in the thick of campaigning, a front-runner has claimed that if she becomes president, she will push for a law banning the wearing of hijabs in public places. Specific methods are even being discussed around her, such as imposing fines if someone wears one out. Since it is a bit ambiguous to pinpoint exactly where a "public place" is, it is practically the same as telling Muslim women not to step outside their homes wearing a hijab. Who is the candidate making these remarks? It is Marine Le Pen of the National Rally, classified as a far-right party in France. She is not just any far-right candidate, but the leading presidential contender currently holding a wide lead in opinion polls for the presidential election coming up next spring. She is a candidate with a very high probability of becoming the first far-right president in French history. Last week, Le Pen posted on her social media that the hijab emphasizes the subjugation of women and that she would push for a law banning it in public places. She also stated that she would simultaneously pursue measures to curb the spread of Islamism alongside the hijab ban. Marine Le Pen, who puts forward anti-immigration policies, aims to drastically narrow the definition of a French citizen down to bloodline to grant national status, and she has once again brought out anti-Islam propaganda for this election.

Centrist and progressive forces immediately rose up in protest. Criticisms emerged asking whether a dedicated clothing-inspection police force would need to be established just to fine people for wearing a hijab, followed by condemnations that it is excessive discrimination and an overly divisive policy.

[Glucksmann / French Center-Left Presidential Candidate : We do not use specific groups as material for wordplay. Nor do we constantly divide society by exploiting identity conflicts.]

Even the police union stepped forward, criticizing Le Pen by saying, "We do not have the bandwidth for such tasks."

2. "Will Put It to a Referendum"... Why Marine Le Pen Is Stoking the Fire
However, Le Pen is also saying she will put this to a national referendum. Instead of simply passing a bill in parliament, she is pulling out the card of a referendum to further stoke the fire. The reason she brought up a referendum is simple: it would be difficult to pass in parliament. This is Le Pen's fourth run for the presidency. In previous elections as well, she pledged a hijab ban when she lost to Macron. Even after losing the election, the National Rally submitted related bills to parliament, but they failed to clear the legislative hurdle. Therefore, she has expressed her intention to bypass parliamentary opposition by using the method of a referendum.

Many scholars state that a law banning the hijab, which touches on freedom of religion, cannot be the subject of a referendum. They note that even if it were put to a vote, it would likely be ultimately struck down by bodies akin to our Constitutional Court. Nevertheless, Le Pen is pushing ahead with it once again in this election. Why? Because the public opinion is there. When the hijab issue became controversial, a polling agency conducted a survey on the 2nd. As a result, 60 percent of French people supported banning the hijab in public places. Fifty-three percent responded that fines should be imposed. Among respondents who support the National Rally, 92 percent expressed nearly absolute support. In particular, opposition to wearing the hijab was higher among female respondents. With opinion polls showing these results, Le Pen cannot stop her claims for a hijab ban. However, things have been relatively quiet this week. Due to fierce backlash and criticisms over creating a clothing police, they are clashing a little less. Yet, because anti-immigration and anti-Islam policies are core platforms of the French far-right, they will continue to push these arguments whenever they get the chance leading up to next year's election.

3. Germany Also Shocked by Far-Right Landslide
However, this is not just France's situation. Neighboring Germany has been turned upside down. A state parliament election was held in a central state with a population of about 2.5 million, and the far-right emerged as the party winning the most seats in the state legislature. This happened during the state parliament election in Saxony-Anhalt last weekend. A party called the Alternative for Germany (AfD) won the largest share of the vote at 44 percent. That is double what it was five years ago. This German party is far more radical than Le Pen's National Rally—to an incomparable degree. Not only do they ban the hijab, but they do not even recognize Islam in Germany at all. Their stance on immigration is ultra-hardline, arguing for the complete abolition of the right to asylum and advocating for the deportation of immigrants already present. They go as far as to say that Germany should leave the EU, immediately lift sanctions against Russia, and make the Russian language mandatory in education. They have even stated that building a monument to reflect on the Nazi Holocaust is a shame. It reached a point where Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy congratulated the election as a historic victory, declaring that Germany had awakened. While France's Le Pen is a far-right figure who at least stops short of crossing certain lines, it is safe to say this group has crossed that line. Such a far-right party has become the largest party in a state with a population of over 2 million.

The problem is that their influence is expanding further. Currently, in the former East Germany region, outside of West Germany, opinion polls consistently show the AfD ranking first. The western region does not support the far-right as much as the eastern region, so looking at Germany as a whole, this party does not hold the number-one spot. However, the AfD already won the second-most votes in the last general election, establishing itself as a major political force. Now, the situation looks even more ominous. The current German chancellor has stepped forward to criticize the AfD, and protests against the AfD are spreading across various parts of Germany. Moreover, this is not limited to France and Germany. Voices of far-right forces are growing louder and stronger across all of Europe. Far-right forces are on the rise in the UK, Spain, and Sweden as well. The real concern is next year. Next year features a dense lineup of major elections in Europe: the French presidential election, the German federal election, the Spanish general election, and the Italian general election. Although it is still early to predict, one thing is certain: policies and pledges such as hijab bans will be pursued more aggressively than ever before, making these elections likely to be the most turbulent yet.

(Reported by Kwon Yeongin | Produced by Shin Hee-sook | Video by Kim Si-nae | Video Editing by Ryu Ji-su | Graphics by Yook Do-hyun | Produced by SBS Digital News)