French Top Court Reverses Burkini Ban

The French State Council, the country’s highest court, has overturned a growing number of bans on the burkini. The burkini, or full-body swimsuit, worn by some Muslim women was criticized as an affront to civil liberties and a risk to public order.

On July 14, the French Independence Day, a terrorist drove a truck through a populated boardwalk in Nice, France, killing 85. Following a second jihadist attack on July 26, the French Riviera town of Cannes banned the burkini on July 27. The small town of Villeneuve-Loubet followed suit in early August, and some 30 towns have done so, too, since.

Patrice Spinosi, a lawyer representing the Human Rights League, who filed the lawsuit against the ban, applauded the high court’s decision, reports France 24.

“Today the state of law is that these ordinances are not justified,” Spinosi said. “They violate fundamental liberties and they should be withdrawn.”

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls, who has supported the burkini ban, defended the mayors who had created the laws.

“We are not at war with Islam,” Valls began. “[T]he French republic is welcoming (to Muslims), we are protecting them against discrimination.”

Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, the French Education Minister, took a different opinion.

“In my opinion, there is nothing to prove that there is a link between the terrorism of Daesh [ISIS] and what a woman wears on a beach,” she said.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the former president of France, who is seeking reelection in 2017 under the Conservative Party, supports a nationwide ban on burkinis.

“This is a slap for the prime minister [Manuel Valls] and a kick up the backside for [Nicolas] Sarkozy,” Abdallah Zekri, secretary general of the French Muslim Council (CFCM), said. “We’re satisfied with this.”

According to the New York Times, Marwan Muhammad, head of the Collective Against Islamophobia in France, was worried what new direction Islamophobia would now take.

“Now that it is over with the beach, they are going to come back with the debate on long skirts or on halal meals.”

Sources: France 24, (2), New York Times / Photo Credit: Parti Socialiste / Flickr