On Thursday, the highest administrative court in France upheld a ban on female football players wearing Islamic hijab headscarves. This decision came after politicians in France jumped on the matter and claimed that secularism was in danger.
In a statement, the Constitutional Council said that sporting federations “whose task it is to ensure the good functioning of public services… can impose a neutrality requirement on their players in competitions and sporting events, to guarantee the smooth running of matches and any clashes or confrontation.”
It determined that a regulation of the French Football Federation (FFF) that prohibits “any sign or clothing clearly showing political, philosophical, religious or union affiliation” during a match to be “appropriate and proportionate”
The lawsuit challenging the restriction imposed by the FFF was initially brought forward by a team of female Muslim footballers who name themselves the “Hijabeuses.”
Ahead of the verdict, judges found themselves subject to political pressure, as mainstream parties sought to defend themselves against the far right, which was riding high in the polls.
A contentious issue in France, secularism is defended as a means of ensuring the religious impartiality of the state, while its detractors view it as a dog-whistle used towards racial and religious minorities, particularly Muslims.
The “Hijabeuses” received a boost on Monday when the state’s legal advisor came to the conclusion that the regulation was inappropriate; this conclusion provoked a wave of political outrage.
On Tuesday, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who is known for being a staunch supporter of law and order, was quoted as saying, “I hope profoundly for the republic that (judges) uphold neutrality on sports fields.”
According to Darmanin, the “Hijabeuses” had the intention of “battering” the republic.
“When you play sports, you shouldn’t wear religious clothing…when you play football, you don’t need to know the religion of the person in front of you,” he stated. “You shouldn’t wear religious clothing when you play sports.”
There have been other comments made, including those from members of the far-right National Rally and the conservative Republicans party.
On Twitter, far-right politician Marine Le Pen argued against wearing the hijab while competing in sports. And we will make sure it is honored by passing a legislation to that effect.”
In the event that the Supreme Court ruled in favor of wearing the hijab, the leader of the French Republicans, Eric Ciotti, stated that his party, which has just 62 members out of a total of 577 in the National Assembly, would propose legislation regarding the issue.
Amelie Oudea-Castera, the Minister of Sports in Macron’s cabinet, has also hinted that legislation may be passed by stating that “we aren’t ruling anything out” and “we can see that there’s a need for clarification.”
Wednesday, the Constitutional Council itself responded to what it described as “attacks aimed at the administrative branch and particularly the legal advisor.”
The organization went on to state that calling into question the procedures of the courts was “an attack on an institution that is essential for democracy,” and that it might pursue legal action in situations involving “insult, defamation, incitement to hatred or threats.”