The Hindu : International : Wins dress right

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Mar 04, 2005

International

International

Wins dress right

London: A British schoolgirl who on Wednesday won the right to wear the Islamic shoulder-to-toe dress in school said the landmark ruling would ``give hope and strength to other Muslim women''. In an exclusive interview with the London-based Guardian newspaper, Shabina Begum (16) described the court of appeal verdict against Denbigh high school in Luton, north of London, as a victory for all Muslims ``who wish to preserve their identity and values despite prejudice and bigotry.'' After a two-year campaign by Shabina, Lord Justice Brooke found her former school had acted against her right to express her religion by excluding her because she insisted on wearing the hijab. The ruling, overturning a lower court decision which dismissed her application for a judicial review last year, will affect every school in the U.K. Almost a year after the French Government banned ``conspicuous'' religious symbols, including the hijab, in schools, the judge called on the U.K.'s Department for Education (DfES) to give British schools more guidance on how to comply with their obligations under the Human Rights Act. ``I really feel like screaming out of happiness,'' said Shabina, who was represented at the court of appeal by Cherie Booth, a leading English lawyer who is married to the U.K. Premier Tony Blair

— © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2004

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