The wearing of abaya dresses by some Muslim girls in French schools is a “political attack”, said the spokesman of the French Government, Olivier Veran, on Monday, as he explained the ban on this clothing.
France’s education minister, Gabriel Attal, said on Sunday that long, loose dresses, originating in the Middle East, will no longer be allowed in schools from the new school year starting next week because they violate secular law.
The abaya is a dress that covers the entire body, except the head, and is combined with a hijab or other head covering by Muslim women in countries of the Muslim world, mainly in the Middle East.
Veran said that the abaya “is clearly” religious clothing and “a political attack, a political sign”, which he describes as an attempt to convert to Islam.
“The school is secular. We say this in a very clear but firm way: there is no place for that (wearing religious clothes)”, said Veran for BFM television.
Attal said on Monday that the Government has made it clear that the abaya “has no decision in schools”.
“Our schools are being tested. In recent months, the violation of secular rules has increased significantly, especially for the wearing of religious clothing, such as the abaya or the shirt, which have been seen – and remain – in some institutions,” said Attal.
Attal’s decision to ban the abaya has sparked fresh debate about France’s secular rules, and whether they are being used to discriminate against the country’s large Muslim minority.
A law in March 2004 banned “the wearing of signs or badges in school through which students show that they belong to a religion”.
This includes large Christian crosses, Jewish hats (kippas) and Islamic headscarves.
The government has sided with right-wing and far-right politicians, who have pressed for an immediate ban on the garment, arguing that it is part of a wider agenda by Islamists to spread the practice of the religion across society.
But left-wing politicians and many Muslims see France’s secular rules as a front used by conservatives for Islamophobic policies.
The French constitution guarantees citizens the right to practice religion freely, but obliges the state and state employees to respect neutrality.
A legal appeal is expected against the abaya ban, and it will make things difficult for school authorities who will have to decide when a long, loose dress goes from a personal fashion choice to a religious stance, supervisors say./REL
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