Attachments: UN SR Freedom of
Religion or Belief Mission to France Report.pdf
WUNRN
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63. When assessing the indirect consequences of the law, opinions
are much more divided. Although the scope of the new law applies equally to all
religious symbols, its application disproportionately affects young Muslim women
wearing the headscarf. A large
number of these women told the Special Rapporteur about the difficulties they
had endured because they had freely chosen to wear the headscarf. Many had been intimidated or humiliated
for expressing their personal opinion on the question. Even in cases where young girls were
obliged to wear headscarves by their families, the law is said to have provoked
particularly painful situations within the families. Some girls who did not wear the
headscarf before the law have decided to wear it when they leave the school as a
form of protest. Some informed the
Special Rapporteur that they felt torn between loyalty to their religious
community and their commitment to women’s rights.
67. The law also appears to have sent the wrong message to a
certain portion of the population which has come to believe that the wearing of
religious symbols per se, and in particular headscarves, is generally
unlawful. As a result of the new
law, a portion of the population has come to associate the headscarf solely with
gender inequality and oppression. The Special Rapporteur was informed about
instances where women were refused access to shops or were insulted in the
street because they wore the headscarf.
For the same reasons, some women were dismissed from their employment,
while others found it difficult to find employment.
101. The concerns of the
Special Rapporteur are more serious with regard to the indirect consequences of
Law 2004-228 in the longer term.
The implementation of the law by educational institutions has led, in a
number of cases, to abuses that have provoked humiliation, in particular amongst
young Muslim women. According to
many sources, such humiliation can only lead to the radicalization of the
persons affected and those associated with them. Moreover, the stigmatization of the
headscarf has provoked instances of religious intolerance when women wear it
outside school, at university or in the workplace. Although the law was aimed at regulating
symbols related to all religions, it appears to mainly target girls from a
Muslim background wearing the
headscarf.
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FULL REPORT IS ATTACHED.
UNITED
NATIONS
Economic
and Social Council
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Sixty-second session
Item 11 (e) of the
provisional agenda
Distr. GENERAL
E/CN.4/2006/5/Add.4
8
March 2006
CIVIL AND
POLITICAL RIGHTS, INCLUDING THE QUESTION OF RELIGIOUS
INTOLERANCE
Report submitted
by Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or
belief
Addendum
2
MISSION TO
FRANCE
(18 to 29
September 2005)
REPORT OF THE
SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON FREEDOM OF RELIGION
(18 to 29
September 2005)
FULL REPORT IS
ATTACHED.
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