Court backs France’s ban on abaya Muslim dress in schools
- Macron’s government says wearing the traditional overgarments breaks the rules on secularism in education
- Critics, however, say the move is discriminatory and could incite racial profiling and hatred against Muslims
France’s top administrative court on Thursday upheld a government ban on traditional overgarments worn by some Muslim women in schools and rejected complaints it was discriminatory and could incite hatred.
President Emmanuel Macron’s government announced last month it was banning the abaya in schools as it broke the rules on secularism in education.
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.