SBS World News Radio: Pauline Hanson considers proposal to ban the burqa in certain public buildings in Queensland.
Ms Hanson says she has grand plans for her party in her home state of Queensland, claiming the major party politicians there are too timid.
A state election is due in Queensland in 2018, but is widely expected to be called at some stage this year.
However it's unclear just what the One Nation Senator means when she refers to "the burqa".
So what are the facts behind the various head coverings and why Muslim women wear them?
Misconceptions abound when the topic of Islamic headdresses is raised.
For instance, it is widely assumed women are obliged or even forced to cover at least their hair, that the styles of head coverings are standard across the Muslim world.
But a closer look reveals why, what and how Muslim women cover up is far more complex and it varies, depending on the cultural practices of individual countries.
Shakira Hussein is a researcher, author and honorary fellow at the University of Melbourne's Asia Institute.
She says many people, even Muslims, believe there is a universal glossary defining what each head covering is.
"Muslims themselves often tend to think and talk as though there's one single glossary referring to women's dress, and, of course, they think it's the glossary that they grew up with, so that the people around them use, but that's not really the case."
Dr Hussein says the long robe covering a woman's face, sometimes with netting over the eyes, is often considered a burqa.
But she says, in some countries, the word refers to a different item of Islamic dress.
"In Pakistan, that's actually called the shuttlecock burqa. The reason why it's referred to as a shuttlecock burqa is that there's other types of dress that are also referred to as being burqas and which, in parts of the Arab world, would be referred to as niqab."
Australian Muslim Women's Association president Silma Ihram says the hijab is the most commonly worn Islamic head cover in the Western world.
She says the word literally means "a barrier."
"The actual name hijab is actually not the correct name in traditional Islam. But it's come to represent, these days, the simple scarf that a woman wears, usually wrapping around from her hair and under her chin, which is the common word, or common thing, that women in the West wear."
Ms Ihram, who converted to Islam 40 years ago, says most Muslim women make a conscious choice to wear the hijab, or another item of covering, but for a variety of reasons.
"For some women, though, it is an identification that they are on that path of spirituality. So, for a lot of women, they feel it's a really important thing to be able just to say, 'Look, I'm visibly a Muslim woman.'"
Ms Ihram says other women choose to wear the hijab to preserve their beauty for those they feel truly appreciate it, usually their husbands and families.
Professor Kevin Dunn, dean of Western Sydney University's school of social sciences and psychology, says more women are actually choosing to wear the hijab.
He says that is despite a rising number of Islamophobic attacks on women wearing the garment.
"It's certainly linked to cultures and an embracing of hijab-wearing as an identifier of both Muslimness but also affiliation to community and, therefore, generating a sense of community."
Professor Dunn says the head coverings arise out of an Islamic requirement for both men and women to dress modestly.
But he says the matter has become focused on women and the covering of their heads.
"The cultures of cover and modesty are varied across the world, across the Islamic world, Muslim-majority and Muslim-minority world."
Professor Dunn says the cultures often determine the level of cover a woman needs to preserve her modesty.
It could involve a hijab, a face veil or perhaps a full burqa-style garment that covers the woman's eyes.
Shakira Hussein says some of those coverings include the jilbab, a covering similar to the hijab worn in South Asia, and other styles not often seen in Australia.
"In some parts of the Gulf, in Dubai and whatever, you also see these kind of metallic masks that fit across the lower part of a women's face. And they're often very beautiful and ornate."
Dr Hussein says a common recent fashion in Australia was known as the Moroccan-style hijab, including a small turban covering the hair, sometimes with a scarf draped over the top.
In many countries, wearing Islamic head coverings is not considered compulsory for women.
But Silma Ihram says some countries and sects of Islam are more strict than others.
"There are some women who feel pressured to put the hijab on, particularly with the Salafist and fundamentalist communities, the Islamist kind of section, which the vast majority of the Muslim community is fighting against."
Dr Hussein says the belief that women must cover the faces is unusual, even among conservative Muslims and scholar.
She says the definition of modest clothing for women still prompts much debate today.
Ms Ihram says what many people do not know is men are also required to abide by certain standards of modesty in their clothing.
That includes covering themselves from the navel to the knees, sometimes with a long-sleeved ankle-length robe.
"These days, you see a lot of men showing their allegiance to different kinds of Islamic spirituality through their clothing as well. That's why you see a lot more men wearing thobes and, the same as the Jewish, men wear the little hat as well."
