The head of France's Muslim council has urged Muslims to ignore calls to join protest marches against the French government ban on Hijab in public schools. Dalil Boubakeur, chairman of the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), has called on Muslims to ignore a march on 17th January. He went on to say, "Demonstrations in the name of religion are very dangerous," and "I ask everyone to be wary of the sirens of political Islam." French Parliamentarian’s of the current ruling party assert that ‘most Muslim girls are forced by fundamentalists’ to wear the hijab, meaning they did not wear the hijab freely. For them the ban will ‘liberate’ Muslim girls. There has been wide-spread condemnation from Muslim and non-Muslim quarters. In the UK, Home Office Minister Fiona Mactaggart said, "In Britain we have a proud tradition of supporting free speech and allowing people to follow their own beliefs. The British way is to support religious freedom. It is tolerant and adaptable.” Across the Atlantic the Muslim Students Association (MSA) of the US and Canada is protesting the ban as an infringement upon liberty and religious tolerance. “The MSA of the US and Canada (MSA) believes that President Chirac's ban on religious wear….signals one of the greatest setbacks for freedom and democracy in France since it became one of the democratic powers of the world. To deny a woman her God-given right to freely practice her religion does not only constitute a violation of her personal freedom, but it defies the very concept of secularism.” Regrettably, several Muslim personalities such as Iranian Shahdrot Djafman living in France have being blinded by the veil of secularism and have even supported the ban on the hijab and attacked the wearing of Islamic attire. At the same time thousands of our sisters have been openly demonstrating their opposition to this ban by marching through the streets of France as well as around the world. It is unfortunate that among them are those who are falling into the trap of calling for the right to wear hijab based on the pillars of Capitalism and not on the Hukm Shar'i (divine law). This is not a debate about expressing a person’s political views through their outward appearance as the West takes it to be. Islam’s view is completely different. Wearing the hijab based on the concept of personal freedom is no different from the woman who chooses to walk around in a micro skirt on a Friday night. The motivation in both cases is freedom. Secularism has the attraction of duping Muslims into believing that they have not in any way abandoned their belief, but only accepted the idea of personal freedom. The implications of this are that a Muslim has the right to discern what is right or wrong rather than Allah (swt). It gives the Muslim the false notion that the choice of what they should and shouldn’t do is theirs alone leaving them open to adopt the Western way on life. Thinking like this has severe impact on a Muslim’s life. Adopting secularism leads to the ridiculous situation of referring to the laws of the Creator in your personal affairs, but to the laws of man in societal issues. This is not acceptable in Islam. The reaction of Western States to the proposal to ban the hijab has confused some Muslims. The British government’s response has been different to the French. However, the decision to not interfere with the wearing of Hijab in education and work places does not stem from any love for Islam. A certain interpretation of secularism is what is determining the stance the British take. This interpretation does not mind what women wear outwardly as long as the concepts, values and allegiances will be to British values such as freedom. The French however have taken an exception to even the outward appearance of its Muslim population. The disease of secularism has affected Muslims throughout the world. Islam is seen as being merely a Muslim’s personal matter – limited to their relationship with Allah (SWT). It is this erroneous limitation on the ideology of Islam that has left the Ummah open to dictates from Capitalism in all spheres of life. At the same time those Muslims who see that Islam cannot be secularised must openly challenge this cancerous thought. Exposed must be the idea that in everyday life man can decide on good and bad, right and wrong using the mind alone, a human tool that is subject to biases, mistakes and contradictions. Secularism makes man sovereign whereas in Islam sovereignty lies with Allah (SWT). The Muslim Ummah is going through a crucial phase. With the War on Terror intensifying the attack on Islam both physically and conceptually a fog of erroneous ideas and values is swamping Muslims throughout the world, especially in the West. Pushing the criteria of actions from Hukm Sharia to a criterion of benefit, freedom and human rights is a motley crew of shady players within the Muslim community and outside it. Muslims must never succumb to the perils of secularism and must adhere to the Islamic obligations based upon Islam, not Western freedoms. Man has never been free; mankind has always been commanded to tread the path that confines our actions and thinking to Allah (swt) message. The secularism that evolved from post feudal Europe is incompatible with the ideology of Islam and should be treated as such.