UN Welcomes Suspension of Burkini Ban

Geneva, 28 Dzulqa’dah 1437/31 August 2016 (MINA) – The UN High Commission for Human rights on Tuesday welcomed last Friday’s decision by France’s highest administrative court, the Conseil d’Etat, to suspend the ban on supposedly inappropriate beachwear, KUNA reported.

The ban was adopted in the seaside town of Villeneuve-Loubet and was widely interpreted as targeting the burkini and other forms of dress worn by Muslim women.

“We call on the authorities in all the other French sea-side towns and resorts that have adopted similar bans to take note of the Conseil d’Etat’s ruling that the ban constitutes a grave and illegal breach of fundamental freedoms”, said the Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Rupert Colville in a press briefing.

“We urge all remaining local authorities which have adopted similar bans to repeal them immediately, rather than exploit the limited geographical scope of this particular decision in order to keep their highly discriminatory bans in place until the end of the current holiday season,” he added.

According to international human rights standards, limitations on manifestations of religion or belief, including choice of clothing, are only permitted in very limited circumstances, including public safety, public order, and public health or morals.

In addition, under international human rights law, measures adopted in the name of public order must be appropriate, necessary, and proportionate.

According to the UN, “clearly, individuals wearing burkinis, or any other form of clothing for that matter, cannot be blamed for the violent or hostile reactions of others. Any public order concerns should be addressed by targeting those who incite hatred or react violently, and not by targeting women who simply want to walk on the beach or go for a swim wearing clothing they feel comfortable in.”

Nor can it be claimed that such a ban on beachwear is necessary on grounds of hygiene or public health.

Dress codes such as the anti-burkini decrees disproportionately affect women and girls, undermining their autonomy by denying them the ability to make independent decisions about how to dress, and clearly discriminate against them.

In addition, as has been widely noted, the manner in which the anti-burkini decrees have been implemented in some French resorts has been humiliating and degrading. (T/R07/R01)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)