THE HAGUE, 21/11/06 - The Netherlands should seriously expect furious reactions from Muslim countries to the decision to ban the wearing of burqas in public places. The possibility of violent protests cannot be excluded, the Algemeen Dagblad newspaper warned yesterday on the basis of an internal Foreign Ministry memo.

The cabinet decided on Friday to submit a proposal next spring banning the wearing of clothing that covers the face, such as burqas, in public places. The memo predicts that the cabinet decision could cause a major tumult in the Islamic world. "A fierce reaction can be anticipated in the current climate," warns the memo, which was written at the beginning of this year in reaction to the riots prompted by the Danish cartoons of the prophet Mohammed.

Independent MP Geert Wilders yesterday asked for an explanation of the internal memo. He also pressed for Foreign Minister Ben Bot to summon the Malaysian ambassador, who strongly criticised the proposed burqa ban on Sunday. Muslim countries should mind their own affairs, the leader of the new Party for Freedom (PVV) declared.

A spokesman for Bot said that the Dutch government was following the reactions from abroad "with interest". He pointed out that there was no question of a specific ban on burqas, but a proposed ban on all clothing that hides the face, including opaque motorcycle helmets and balaclavas.

At the weekend, the Malaysian Foreign Affairs Minister Syed Hamid Albar called the Dutch burqa ban "an impediment to personal freedom and the integration of Muslims" in a country where people may display themselves "naked". The minister made his comments as chairman of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), to which 57 Muslim countries are affiliated.

The Foreign Ministry memo also warned of furious reactions by Muslims against the then MP Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Algemeen Dagblad reported. She planned to make a sequel to her film Submission. "In relation to Submission II, the government is seriously concerned about international reactions and how these can be kept under control," the memo reads.

Hirsi Ali is no longer an MP and has left the Netherlands for the United States in September. Her film Submission, which criticises the position of women in Islam, was never shown again in the Netherlands after the murder of its director Theo van Gogh.