Muslim women wearing niqabs should be identified to vote: Charest

Liberal Premier Jean Charest wants Quebec's chief returning officer to reverse a decision that allows Muslim women to have their faces covered when they vote in Monday's provincial election.

"I expect the chief electoral officer to assume his responsibilities and make sure that people are properly identified," Charest said Thursday.

Charest said all voters must properly identify themselves, aposition backed byParti Québécois Leader André Boisclair and Action démocratique du Québec Leader Mario Dumont.

Elections Quebec has decided that Muslim women who vote do not have to remove their niqab, which leaves only the eyes visible.

Instead, it said they couldbe accompanied by another person who can verify their identity.

Elections Quebec spokesman Denis Dion said Thursday that Quebec's human rights commission was consulted when the decision was made.

"I think he should ensure that everyone properly identifies themselves," Charest told a news conference in Lac Megantic, about 200 kilometres east of Montreal.

Quebec, a francophone minority in North America, has been in the middle of a debate about what constitute reasonable accommodations for religious minorities. A small Quebec town called Hérouxville recently garnered international attention for setting up a code of behaviour for immigrants.

Boisclair said Elections Quebec has gone too far.

"I don't see why there are double standards," the PQ leader said while campaigning in the Saguenay region north of Quebec City.

"They have to identify themselves to have their photo taken on their driver's licence or on their health insurance card, it should be the same thing for voting," he said.

Boisclair said a voter's identity is a fundamental principle of the electoral process.

"You absolutely must see the person's face."

Dumont said it wasup to Elections Quebec to make sure that each person can properly identify themselves.

Quebecers go to the polls on March 26.