French Headscarf Ban Recommended

BBC ^ | 12/11/03

[marshmallow]

Muslim girls in France could be barred from wearing headscarves in schools after an expert commission recommended a ban on "conspicuous" religious signs. The official commission headed by former minister Bernard Stasi has released its findings on issues relating to religion and the state.

French President Jacques Chirac will announce next week whether he supports the commission's recommendation.

The ban would also include the Jewish skull-cap and large Christian crosses.

Discreet displays

Mr Stasi consulted a wide cross-section of public opinion, including teachers, religious leaders, sociologists and politicians before handing in the report to the president on Thursday.

Although the report was into the wider question of French secularism, debate on the issue has focused on the wearing of Islamic headscarves in schools.

The commission's recommendations would outlaw the Jewish kippa, large Christian crosses and the Islamic headscarf, which would be considered overt religious symbols.

"Discreet" medallions and pendants which merely confirm a person's religious faith would be allowed.

"Muslims must understand that secularism is a chance for Islam," Mr Stasi told a news conference on Thursday.

"Secularism is the separation of church and state, but it is also the respect of differences."

The commission's proposed law was intended so people of all religions could "live together in public places", he said.

Mr Stasi stressed that the commission's work did not target France's Muslim community but was aimed at giving all religions a more equal footing.

Public holidays

The report also recommends that Yom Kippur - the Jewish Day of Atonement - and Muslim Eid al-Kabir festival be celebrated in state schools.

French public life has a strong secular tradition which has existed since the revolution, but the commission has now recommended that the plan be enshrined in law.

Mr Chirac has hinted that he could back a formal ban.

He said he would study the proposals, consider the opinions of "political parties, the religious authorities and the representatives of public opinion" and discuss them with the prime minister.

He will then announce his decision on 17 December.

"The objective is to guarantee freedom to every French citizen, with the only restriction that the common rules be respected," he said.

The proposals have prompted a mixed response.

Rector of the Great Mosque of Paris, Dalil Boubakeur, said he would call on Muslims to respect any law, but he would ask for a grace period of several months "so that everyone can take stock of the fact that things have changed".

Moise Cohen, president of the Consistoire of Paris, which directs religious Jewish life, said he opposed a headscarf law because it could be viewed by Muslims as a discriminatory measure and could "exacerbate emotions".

Agonised debate

The proposals sparked a divided reaction from French anti-racism groups.

SOS-Racism said a new law would take the pressure off teachers, but the Movement Against Racism (MRAP) said that "one religion is clearly in the firing-line: Islam".

The issue has led to a number of celebrated cases where girls have been suspended or expelled for wearing headscarves to school.

Other schools have not acted.

France has the largest Muslim population in the European Union, with around five million people.

The BBC's Caroline Wyatt in Paris says the Islamic headscarf has become the focal point of an agonised national debate in France.

She said it reflects many of the nation's unspoken fears about its failure to fully integrate its Muslim immigrants or to give them a purely French cultural identity.

[marshmallow]

"The objective is to guarantee freedom to every French citizen, with the only restriction that the common rules be respected," he said

I was looking for a comment like this. Whenever some restrictive law is introduced which curtails and suppresses the public expression of faith, the word "freedom" is seldom far away. Usually used in a sense which is the exact opposite of its true meaning.

The USA is a shining example of this.

[kdf1]

The mark of the state may be allowed on the forehead or headgear.

[AdequateMan]

This is exactly the type of backasswards legislation that happens with these "separation of church and state" people. Their form of activism nearly always leads to state restriction of the church. That's not separation. Telling a muslim that she cannot wear hajib is ridiculous, as this is mandated by her religion. This is not freedom. We must be careful as conservatives that we not seek to restrict the behavior of others to that which we approve of, as well. We cannot convince the world to respect religious freedom if we also seek to control the activities on nonreligious people.

[Tacis]

The French will burn Christians at the stake or in Wacos before they'd ban Muslim headscarfs. Their Arab masters won't permit it. The French will, however, be able to use the issue to extort even more Arab/Saudi money.

[LurkedLongEnough]

as this is mandated by her religion

From what I understand, wearing headscarves is not mandated anywhere in the Koran or Islam. It's a cultural tradition "mandated" by mullahs.