What does the face veil represent to you?

I read an article about Syria banning face veils from their universities. Specifically being anything that covers the face fully, so the niqab and the burkah. I originally read a different, more vague article, but here’s the one I will be referring to:
http://tinyurl.com/22lff83

It is a different question to ask if you agree with it, so I’ll ask that separately. Right now I’m curious about how people view the face coverings. This article implied that the original logic for the ban was that parents felt the full coverings represented extremism and felt unsafe. What does the face veil represent for you and how do you react when you see someone wearing one? Either niqab or burqa are fine.

If you are unfamiliar with the different head coverings, you can go here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10611398
Down, you’ll find a handy little thing that gives you the name and description of each covering. Note that the illustration for niqab is a little misleading. It is specifically a head veil, not necessarily accompanied by the full length body covering.