The ban is partly grounded on security concerns, demanding that all people must be identifiable by the authorities when in public.

But parliamentarians also explained the vote on grounds of "fundamental democratic principles and the dignity of women", comparing the full veil to a "walking prison which is not adapted to Belgian values".

Such a ban may be defensible on security enforcement grounds.  Otherwise, it is the first step onto a slippery slope towards totalitarianism in which the state (1) decides what pieces of clothing symbolize, (2) decides whether those symbols are compatible with "state values", (3) outlaws any ideologically "incompatible" pieces of clothing, and (4) uses these laws to stigmatize, bully and incrementally ostracize targeted groups within society.

"We have sent a very strong signal to Islamists," said Denis Ducarme, a centre-right member of parliament.