Turkey condemns EU court ruling on headscarf ban at workplace
ANKARA
Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a written statement on July 18 that the latest decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) imposing a headscarf ban on employees of two separate businesses in Germany is “an open violation of the right of religion.”
This decision constitutes a further example of the efforts to institutionalize and legalize “hate and intolerance against Muslims in Europe,” the ministry noted.
“It is a fact that Muslims are exposed to intolerance, hate speech and even violence, that they are subjected to widespread stigmatization and exclusion from socio-economic life, and that especially Muslim women are adversely affected by this situation,” Ankara stated.
This undeniably dangerous trend, which indicates that “lessons have not been learned from the bitter experiences of the past,” is also highlighted in the reports of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) and the U.N. Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and Belief, it stated.
“At a time when hatred against Islam, racism and the poison of hate that takes Europe hostage, are on the rise, the CJEU’s decision not only ignores freedom of religion but also provides a basis and legal cover for discrimination,” the ministry said, condemning the decision that was “legally and conscientiously wrong and dangerous in terms of hate against Islam it will fuel.”
Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın also reacted to the court decision regarding the ban on headscarves.
“Does the concept of religious freedom now exclude Muslims?” he tweeted.
“The decision of the European Court of Justice regarding the headscarf in workplaces is another blow to the rights of Muslim women who wear the headscarf. This will benefit those who are calling for war against Islam in Europe,” he said.
Communications head blasts EU court ruling on Muslim women's rights
