In light of the tragic Davao City bombing which killed at least 14 people, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte confirmed the local government’s plea for locals and tourists to refrain from covering their faces in public spaces.
Mayor Duterte issued a written statement on Thu, Sep 15, through the official Facebook page of the City Government of Davao City. It reads:
“The law enforcement officers have expressed their opinion that it would be a good security practice to disallow garments that cover the faces in public places.
These garments include hats, sunglasses, facemasks, mouth masks, burqa, face paint, and other similar things.
I understand the sentiments of our Muslim sisters with regard to the burqa, may I suggest that you wear the hijab which shows your face or cooperate with the security personnel and show your face if you are wearing the burqa.
While it is true that these garments are not disallowed by law, we discourage their use in public places.”
Davao City is located in Mindanao, the southernmost and second largest island in the Philippines.
According to the National Statistics Office (NSO), as of 2010, there are 5,127,084 Muslims in the Philippines — 4,838,060 or 94 per cent of which are living in Mindanao.
