Italy’s cabinet adopted a decree law Thursday banning burqas and niqabs in schools and capping at 30% per class pupils without adequate Italian. It targets new arrivals, not pupils born in Italy or those who attended kindergarten.
If a child seriously struggles to integrate at school, social services will be called and the parents must attend free Italian lessons. Failure to comply carries a fine of up to €1,000.
Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said 34,000 classes had more than 30% foreign pupils, but most would not be affected. A 2010 ministerial memo already set a flexible 30% limit on foreign pupils, with exceptions based on Italian-language skills. Save the Children warned that moving children to other schools because of nationality or limited Italian could create “first-class” and “second-class” pupils; opposition leader Elly Schlein called the measure a “witch hunt.” Meloni said the burqa and niqab ban was a security measure, arguing that forced face covering denies women and girls fundamental rights and integration.
