The Hindu : International : Muslim schoolgirls face new French law

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Aug 29, 2004

International

International

Muslim schoolgirls face new French law

By Amelia Gentleman — © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004

PARIS, AUG. 28. Precisely how France's schoolgirls knot scarves and bandanas over their hair when they arrive at school for the first day of the autumn term will be under scrutiny this week from teachers, religious leaders and even the Education Minister.

Appeals for calm

Despite appeals for calm from religious leaders, France's teaching community is braced for a wave of tension as schools implement new and controversial legislation banning the wearing of Islamic headscarves and other 'conspicuous' religious symbols.

A hotline was launched by Muslim pressure groups last Wednesday, advising students on how to circumvent the legislation discreetly. Though officials claim that fewer than 100 pupils plan to defy the law, the Government has warned that radical Islamist organisations are using them as pawns, encouraging them to provoke confrontation.

After months of national debate, the Government ruled in February that from Wednesday any pupil who arrives at school wearing a headscarf, skull-cap, turban, large cross or any other piece of ostentatious religious insignia will not be allowed to attend classes. Repeat violations will lead to swift expulsion.

Free advice line

Pupils wondering whether or not to conform to the ban will be able to consult a free advice line, set up by the Union of French Islamic Organisations, which opposed the law. Volunteers offer confidential suggestions on how to get around the legislation by wearing discreet bandanas instead of full-scale headscarves, and advice on what to do if a disciplinary process is launched by the school.

"We are not calling for the law to be broken," said Noora, one of the hotline's operators. "But we will tell girls that they may be able to get away with wearing a small, discreet triangle of material pushed far back on their heads.'

The Education Minister, Francois Fillon, said the Government would be unflinching. "There will be no concessions in the way the law is implemented, no matter what attempts are made to circumvent it," he said. "But there will be dialogue between those pupils concerned, their families and their teachers with one objective: to make sure that children continue to be educated within the confines of the law."

Sania, 17, who is about to enter her final year of school in Strasbourg, stressed that she would turn up at school wearing a headscarf. "Teachers and friends have been understanding about my decision to wear the veil for the past seven years, and I hope they will continue to be sympathetic," she said. "Maybe we will be able to compromise eventually on the acceptability of a small bonnet or a bandana, instead. If not, I risk missing the final and most important year of my education."

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