Excerpt:
Belgium will soon become the second country in Europe to ban the burqa in public places, after the parliament approved legislation forbidding full veils, the bill's author said on Wednesday.
The legislation quietly cleared the Senate last week after it was overwhelmingly approved by the lower chamber of deputies last month, when only one Green lawmaker voted against it and two abstained.
The new law will take effect 10 days after it is published in Belgium's official journal, in around one month. France became the first European country to ban the burqa on April 11.