Italy bans full face veils and caps foreign students in schools

Italy's conservative government on Thursday approved a new decree banning face-covering Islamic veils — including burqas and niqabs — in schools and putting a limit on the number of students with a poor command of the Italian language in each classroom.

Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, called her Cabinet's measures "tools of common sense that do not divide," adding that they will help integration by avoiding what the right-wing leader called "ghetto classes."

She went on to say the rules would lead to all students receiving the "same opportunities."

Opposition parties and other critics have denounced the move by Meloni's government, with some calling it a "witch hunt” and others accusing the government of turning immigration into more of a political issue ahead of next year's general election.

What do Italy's new school rules entail?

The measures take effect right away but still require parliamentary approval within 60 days. Meloni's coalition currently holds a majority in the country's legislature.

Here is what the decree includes:

A per-classroom cap of 30% for foreign students who lack sufficient proficiency in Italian

In primary schools, the limit applies to pupils without Italian citizenship who were not born in Italy or did not attend at least two years of preschool

In lower and upper secondary schools, the same limit applies to students without Italian citizenship who have not attended the country's school system for at least three years

Failure to comply with the decree is punishable by a fine of up to €1,000 euros ($1,140)

Face-coverings banned in schools

The decree bans burqas and niqabs in schools but will continue to allow hijabs.

Meloni said the burqa ban was "a matter of security."

"When a woman — or worse, a young girl — is forced to cover her face, she is being denied fundamental rights and the very integration that is so often loudly championed," Meloni was quoted as saying in a television interview.

Italian Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said the decree would affect about 1,000 classrooms, which come up to 0.3% of the nationwide tally.

According to official data, pupils without Italian citizenship comprised 11.2% of Italy's school population from 2022 to 2023, while classes with over 30% foreign students stood at 7.6% of the total.

What do critics say?

Opponents of the decree are worried that the new measure could force students to attend schools far from the neighborhoods where they live.

Reports have also highlighted concerns among school authorities regarding how the rules would work in areas with large migrant populations.

Independent child rights organization Save the Children had on Wednesday called on the Italian government to weigh the measure "with the utmost political responsibility,” adding that it risked creating discriminatory effects.

"Such a criterion would create ‘first-class' and 'second-class' students," the organization said in its statement.

Meanwhile, opposition leader Elly Schlein railed against the decree, accusing Meloni's government of "a new witch hunt at the expense of children."

Meloni is at the head of the most right-wing government that Italy has seen since World War II.