Britain's most senior judge has suggested that Muslim women should be allowed to appear in court wearing the full-face veil.
The President of the Supreme Court, Lord Neuberger expressed that it was essential that the courts and judges “show, and be seen to show” respect towards different customs. This includes having an understanding of the “different cultural and social habits” of those appearing as witnesses, defendants or jurors in cases.
The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Thomas, said there was a need for clear guidance on the issue following controversy over the trial at of a Muslim woman accused of witness intimidation in 2013.
in 2013, Rebekah Dawson was told that she would be have to remove her full-face veil if she gave evidence. She declined, hence, was jailed for six months after she changed her plea to guilty.
While addressing the Criminal Justice Alliance, Lord Neuberger said that jusges and courts often In his address to the Criminal Justice Alliance, Lord Neuberger said judges and lawyers often failed to notice how “artificial and intimidating” courts could be for ordinary people. He states, “I sometimes wonder whether our trial procedures really are the best way of getting at the truth.”
He goes on to add, “Would you feel that you had given of your best if you had been forced to give evidence in unfamiliar surroundings, with lots of strangers watching, in an intimidating court, with lawyers in funny clothes asking questions, often aggressively and trying to catch you out, and with no ability to tell the story as you remember it?”
Lord Neuberger specified that this does not mean a command for a dominant reconstruction of the court proceedings. He says judges, lawyers and court staff ought to do as much as possible in order to help people feel more at ease in court.
