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25/09/2016
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Scared? Make women disrobe
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A French court was right to overturn the burkini ban, but that is not the only foolish
response to terrorism
Sep 3rd 2016 | From the print edition
Like
1.4K
Tweet
Follow The Economist
A TERRORIST drove a lorry into a crowd on Bastille
Day, killing 86 people and injuring hundreds. This
atrocity took place near a beach. So a number of
French seaside towns decided to ban Islamic
Latest updates »
swimwear in public (see article). This is an idiotic
policy, and a French court was right to overturn it.
What next for Labour?: Jeremy Corbyn is
reelected with an increased...
Yet Nicolas Sarkozy, a former French president who
launched his campaign to regain the Elysée last
Bagehot's notebook | Sep 24th, 12:15
week, wants to change the constitution and impose
a nationwide ban on burkinis. Why?
The first presidential debate: Lessons
from the debates of the past
As a measure to prevent terrorism, such a ban would be useless. Muslim women who
Democracy in America | Sep 23rd, 20:50
wear modest swimsuits do so because they like swimming but would prefer not to expose
lots of flesh. They are not hiding weapons under their burkinis. More important, giving
Casting ballots: Early voting may
decrease turnout
officials the power to order women to disrobe is an affront to human dignity. Does anyone
seriously imagine that this power would not be abused? It is as if Mr Sarkozy wants to
Democracy in America | Sep 23rd, 17:46
turn a drunken rugby chant into government policy. A burkini ban would also alienate
moderate Muslims, whose cooperation is desperately needed if France is to gather
intelligence and foil actual terrorist plots. The notion that the burkini is a form of
Close to peace: The FARC agree to hand
in their weapons and become a...
“enslavement of women”, as Manuel Valls, France’s prime minister, put it, and so
The Americas | Sep 23rd, 17:20
offensive that it is likely to cause disorder, is preposterous.
The week ahead: Crumbling ceasefire
Stripsearching, without the searching
Alas, the burkini ban is not the only noxious response to
jihadism that Western leaders are mulling. Mr Sarkozy
International | Sep 23rd, 15:15
In this section
Uberworld
wants all suspected Islamist militants either to be put into
Bruised Apple
detention camps or made to wear electronic tags, regardless
The right kind of budget
of whether they have committed a crime. He would also ban
A chance for a fresh start
headscarves and Muslim prayer from public places. He
claims to be defending laïcité (secularism). Liberté,
apparently, can go hang.
to next year’s French presidential election is distressing.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, Donald Trump
has called for a ban on immigration to America by foreigners
from countries racked by terrorism, urged the murder of
Gulliver | Sep 23rd, 14:06
Scared? Make women
disrobe
Bangladesh’s missing millions: Failure to
publish a report stokes a...
Finance & Economics | Sep 23rd, 13:50
Reprints
The prospect of a contest between Mr Sarkozy and Marine
Le Pen to decide who can bait Muslims more in the runup
Money bags: American flyers have paid
billions to check in luggage. Could...
More latest updates »
Related topics
Politics
French politics
Most commented
European politics
terrorists’ families and vowed to deploy forms of torture
World politics
“tougher than waterboarding”.
France
1
Trump and the Alt
Right
Pepe and the
stormtroopers
Politicians make such promises because they think voters want to hear them. Some
Next in Letters
clearly do, partly because they have an exaggerated idea of the danger that terrorism
X
2 Syria’s widening war: The ceasefire unravels
poses. A recent poll finds that 77% of Americans who follow the news believe that Islamic
On China, Labour, assisted suicide, Yazidis, voting, long
3 The Economist explains: Why Colin
lunches, dogs, religion, Donald Trump
State (IS) is a serious threat to “the existence or survival of the US”. Mr Trump agrees. If
Kaepernick’s silent protest is catching on
Letters to the editor
4 The global economy: The lowrate world
America doesn’t get tough on terrorism soon, he has said, “we’re not going to have a
country any more—there will be nothing left.”
5
India’s armed forces: Guns and ghee
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21706270-french-court-was-right-overturn-burkini-ban-not-only-foolish-response
1/3
25/09/2016
Scared? Make women disrobe | The Economist
Nonsense. For America (and most other countries) terrorism is a real threat, but not an
existential one (see article). In the seven months that included the San Bernardino and
Orlando shootings, Americans were nearly 300 times more likely to die in a car crash
than a terror attack. Even in the past year, a French citizen was three times more likely to
be the victim of an ordinary murderer than of a terrorist. Groups such as IS aim to spread
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
Products and events
Test your EQ
Take our weekly news quiz to stay on top of the
headlines
fear. Using hyperbolic language about their power helps them achieve this aim. Illjudged
“security theatre”, such as sending heavily armed soldiers to patrol French beaches, may
make people feel more anxious than safe.
IS will eventually be evicted from the territory it controls in Iraq and Syria. The end of the
“caliphate” will reduce its power to inspire terrorists in the rest of the world, but not
Want more from The Economist?
Visit The Economist estore and you’ll find a range of
carefully selected products for business and
pleasure, Economist books and diaries, and much
more
eliminate it. Western security services have proved (mostly) effective at preventing large,
complex attacks. Stopping lone wolves is much harder: anyone can rent a lorry and crash
it into a crowd. So the spooks will have to remain vigilant.
But it is no disrespect to IS’s victims to suggest that counterterrorism policy should be
measured and judicious. The aim should be to stop the largest number of attacks with the
minimum intrusion into people’s lives. That means spying on suspects, but not locking
them up without charge or harassing the communities from which they come. Over
reacting, as Barack Obama put it, can undercut “the essence of who we are”.
From the print edition: Leaders
Like
1.4K
Tweet
Share
30
View all comments (40)
1
Add your comment
More from the Economist
Norway’s global fund:
How to not spend it
The global economy: The
lowrate world
India’s armed forces:
Guns and ghee
• Schumpeter: Against happiness
• The campaign: President Trump?
• Just as she is: Bridget Jones: woman of
substance, top news producer, millennial
icon
• Religious freedom in Malaysia: Taking
the rap
• Saudi Arabia: The real game of thrones
• Bagehot: Not drowning but waving
Want more? Subscribe to The Economist and get the week's most
relevant news and analysis.
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Next in Letters
X
On China, Labour, assisted suicide, Yazidis, voting, long
lunches, dogs, religion, Donald Trump
Letters to the editor
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21706270-french-court-was-right-overturn-burkini-ban-not-only-foolish-response
2/3
25/09/2016
Scared? Make women disrobe | The Economist
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
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Next in Letters
X
On China, Labour, assisted suicide, Yazidis, voting, long
lunches, dogs, religion, Donald Trump
Letters to the editor
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21706270-french-court-was-right-overturn-burkini-ban-not-only-foolish-response
3/3
Scared? Make women disrobe | The Economist
More from The Economist
My Subscription
World politics
Business & finance
Subscribe
Economics
Science & technology
Culture
Blogs
Log in or register
Debate
Multimedia
Print edition
Counterterrorism
Comment (40)
Timekeeper reading list
Scared? Make women disrobe
Reprints & permissions
A French court was right to overturn the burkini ban, but that is not the only foolish
response to terrorism
Sep 3rd 2016 | From the print edition
Like
1.4K
Tweet
Follow The Economist
A TERRORIST drove a lorry into a crowd on Bastille
Day, killing 86 people and injuring hundreds. This
atrocity took place near a beach. So a number of
French seaside towns decided to ban Islamic
Latest updates »
swimwear in public (see article). This is an idiotic
policy, and a French court was right to overturn it.
What next for Labour?: Jeremy Corbyn is
reelected with an increased...
Yet Nicolas Sarkozy, a former French president who
launched his campaign to regain the Elysée last
Bagehot's notebook | Sep 24th, 12:15
week, wants to change the constitution and impose
a nationwide ban on burkinis. Why?
The first presidential debate: Lessons
from the debates of the past
As a measure to prevent terrorism, such a ban would be useless. Muslim women who
Democracy in America | Sep 23rd, 20:50
wear modest swimsuits do so because they like swimming but would prefer not to expose
lots of flesh. They are not hiding weapons under their burkinis. More important, giving
Casting ballots: Early voting may
decrease turnout
officials the power to order women to disrobe is an affront to human dignity. Does anyone
seriously imagine that this power would not be abused? It is as if Mr Sarkozy wants to
Democracy in America | Sep 23rd, 17:46
turn a drunken rugby chant into government policy. A burkini ban would also alienate
moderate Muslims, whose cooperation is desperately needed if France is to gather
intelligence and foil actual terrorist plots. The notion that the burkini is a form of
Close to peace: The FARC agree to hand
in their weapons and become a...
“enslavement of women”, as Manuel Valls, France’s prime minister, put it, and so
The Americas | Sep 23rd, 17:20
offensive that it is likely to cause disorder, is preposterous.
The week ahead: Crumbling ceasefire
Stripsearching, without the searching
Alas, the burkini ban is not the only noxious response to
jihadism that Western leaders are mulling. Mr Sarkozy
International | Sep 23rd, 15:15
In this section
Uberworld
wants all suspected Islamist militants either to be put into
Bruised Apple
detention camps or made to wear electronic tags, regardless
The right kind of budget
of whether they have committed a crime. He would also ban
A chance for a fresh start
headscarves and Muslim prayer from public places. He
claims to be defending laïcité (secularism). Liberté,
apparently, can go hang.
to next year’s French presidential election is distressing.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, Donald Trump
has called for a ban on immigration to America by foreigners
from countries racked by terrorism, urged the murder of
Gulliver | Sep 23rd, 14:06
Scared? Make women
disrobe
Bangladesh’s missing millions: Failure to
publish a report stokes a...
Finance & Economics | Sep 23rd, 13:50
Reprints
The prospect of a contest between Mr Sarkozy and Marine
Le Pen to decide who can bait Muslims more in the runup
Money bags: American flyers have paid
billions to check in luggage. Could...
More latest updates »
Related topics
Politics
French politics
Most commented
European politics
terrorists’ families and vowed to deploy forms of torture
World politics
“tougher than waterboarding”.
France
1
Trump and the Alt
Right
Pepe and the
stormtroopers
Politicians make such promises because they think voters want to hear them. Some
Next in Letters
clearly do, partly because they have an exaggerated idea of the danger that terrorism
X
2 Syria’s widening war: The ceasefire unravels
poses. A recent poll finds that 77% of Americans who follow the news believe that Islamic
On China, Labour, assisted suicide, Yazidis, voting, long
3 The Economist explains: Why Colin
lunches, dogs, religion, Donald Trump
State (IS) is a serious threat to “the existence or survival of the US”. Mr Trump agrees. If
Kaepernick’s silent protest is catching on
Letters to the editor
4 The global economy: The lowrate world
America doesn’t get tough on terrorism soon, he has said, “we’re not going to have a
country any more—there will be nothing left.”
5
India’s armed forces: Guns and ghee
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21706270-french-court-was-right-overturn-burkini-ban-not-only-foolish-response
1/3
25/09/2016
Scared? Make women disrobe | The Economist
Nonsense. For America (and most other countries) terrorism is a real threat, but not an
existential one (see article). In the seven months that included the San Bernardino and
Orlando shootings, Americans were nearly 300 times more likely to die in a car crash
than a terror attack. Even in the past year, a French citizen was three times more likely to
be the victim of an ordinary murderer than of a terrorist. Groups such as IS aim to spread
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
Products and events
Test your EQ
Take our weekly news quiz to stay on top of the
headlines
fear. Using hyperbolic language about their power helps them achieve this aim. Illjudged
“security theatre”, such as sending heavily armed soldiers to patrol French beaches, may
make people feel more anxious than safe.
IS will eventually be evicted from the territory it controls in Iraq and Syria. The end of the
“caliphate” will reduce its power to inspire terrorists in the rest of the world, but not
Want more from The Economist?
Visit The Economist estore and you’ll find a range of
carefully selected products for business and
pleasure, Economist books and diaries, and much
more
eliminate it. Western security services have proved (mostly) effective at preventing large,
complex attacks. Stopping lone wolves is much harder: anyone can rent a lorry and crash
it into a crowd. So the spooks will have to remain vigilant.
But it is no disrespect to IS’s victims to suggest that counterterrorism policy should be
measured and judicious. The aim should be to stop the largest number of attacks with the
minimum intrusion into people’s lives. That means spying on suspects, but not locking
them up without charge or harassing the communities from which they come. Over
reacting, as Barack Obama put it, can undercut “the essence of who we are”.
From the print edition: Leaders
Like
1.4K
Tweet
Share
30
View all comments (40)
1
Add your comment
More from the Economist
Norway’s global fund:
How to not spend it
The global economy: The
lowrate world
India’s armed forces:
Guns and ghee
• Schumpeter: Against happiness
• The campaign: President Trump?
• Just as she is: Bridget Jones: woman of
substance, top news producer, millennial
icon
• Religious freedom in Malaysia: Taking
the rap
• Saudi Arabia: The real game of thrones
• Bagehot: Not drowning but waving
Want more? Subscribe to The Economist and get the week's most
relevant news and analysis.
Classified ads
Next in Letters
X
On China, Labour, assisted suicide, Yazidis, voting, long
lunches, dogs, religion, Donald Trump
Letters to the editor
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21706270-french-court-was-right-overturn-burkini-ban-not-only-foolish-response
2/3
25/09/2016
Scared? Make women disrobe | The Economist
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
Contact us
Help
My account
Subscribe
Print edition
Digital editions
Sections
Blogs
Research and insights
United States
Britain
Europe
China
Asia
Americas
Middle East & Africa
International
Business & finance
Economics
Markets & data
Science & technology
Special reports
Culture
Multimedia library
Bagehot's notebook
Buttonwood's notebook
Democracy in America
Erasmus
Free exchange
Game theory
Graphic detail
Gulliver
Prospero
The Economist explains
Topics
Economics AZ
Style guide
The World in 2016
Which MBA?
MBA Services
The Economist GMAT Tutor
The Economist GRE Tutor
Executive Education Navigator
Reprints and permissions
The Economist Group »
The Economist Intelligence Unit
The Economist Intelligence Unit Store
The Economist Corporate Network
Ideas People Media
1843 Magazine
Roll Call
CQ
EuroFinance
The Economist Store
Editorial Staff
Modern Slavery Statement
Debate and discussion
Events
The Economist debates
Letters to the editor
The Economist Quiz
Jobs.Economist.com
Timekeeper saved articles
View complete site index »
Contact us
Help
About us
Advertise with us
Staff Books
Careers
Copyright © The Economist Newspaper Limited 2016. All rights reserved.
Site index
Accessibility
Privacy policy
Cookies info
Terms of use
Next in Letters
X
On China, Labour, assisted suicide, Yazidis, voting, long
lunches, dogs, religion, Donald Trump
Letters to the editor
From the print edition Sep 3rd 2016
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21706270-french-court-was-right-overturn-burkini-ban-not-only-foolish-response
3/3
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