France’s highest administrative court on Thursday, September 7, upheld the government’s prohibition of traditional over-garments worn by certain Muslim women in schools, dismissing claims of discrimination and potential incitement of hatred.
Muslim headscarves have already banned on the ground that they constitute a display of religious affiliation.
An association representing Muslims filed a motion with the State Council, France’s highest court for complaints against state authorities, for an injunction against the ban on the abaya and the qamis, its equivalent dress for men.
The association said the ban was discriminatory and could incite hatred against Muslims, as well as racial profiling.
But after examining the motion, filed by the Action for the Rights of Muslims (ADM), for two days, the State Council rejected the arguments.
It said wearing the abaya “follows the logic of religious affirmation”, adding that the decision was based on French law which did not allow anyone wearing visible signs of any religious affiliation in schools.
Ahead of the ruling, France’s Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), established to represent Muslims before the government, had warned that banning the abaya could create “an elevated risk of discrimination” and said it was considering putting its own complaint before the State Council.
The absence of “a clear definition of this garment creates vagueness and legal uncertainty”, it said.
ADM’s lawyer, Vincent Brengarth, argued during the court hearing that the abaya should be considered a traditional garment, not a religious one.
He also accused the government of seeking political advantage with the ban.
ADM president Sihem Zine said the rule was “sexist” because it singles out girls and “targets Arabs”.
French schools sent dozens of girls home for refusing to remove their abayas, a shoulder-to-toe over-garment, on the first day of the school year on Monday.
Around 10 percent of France’s 67 million inhabitants are Muslim, according to official estimates.
Khalil Wakim, with AFP
