Magistrate questions whether Islamic women should wear burqas in Australian courts

A magistrate in Australia has questioned whether a Saudi woman appearing in court should have been allowed to wear a 'full burqa' or face covering.

The magistrate said told her that she was standing in an Australian court.

According to news.com.au, Brisbane Magistrate John Costello was sentencing a woman who pleaded guilty to leaving her four and half month's baby unattended in a car in direct sun for 45 minutes last year.

Costello asked the woman's lawyer Peter Saggers if what she was wearing was a full burqa, and he indicated it was.

The magistrate questioned whether it was appropriate for the full burqa to be worn in court, saying that it was an Australian court and questioned the validity of her wearing it in court.

According to the report, Islamic groups, however, came out in support of Costello, saying they supported magistrates asking women to remove their face covering if there was a reasonable question of security or identification.