Islam in Germany: The Burqini Ruling Was the Right Call

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: A German court ruled Wednesday that schools can require Muslim girls to participate in co-ed swimming classes. They were right to do so -- but not for the reasons many conservatives suggest.

In 2008, the German Islam Conference published an insightful study: Some 3.5 percent of Muslim schoolgirls in Germany don't participate in co-ed swimming classes on religious grounds, provided it is offered at their school. The absolute numbers are tiny.

Nevertheless, the nationwide significance attached to the question of whether Muslims should be allowed to opt out of school swimming is large. Germany's federal administrative court in Leipzig was tasked with clarifying this on Wednesday. The Helene-Lange-Gymnasium, a high school in Frankfurt, required a Muslim girl to take part in swimming class. She had the option, according to the logic of the Culture Ministry, to wear a full-body bathing suit known as a "burqini." Her parents filed a complaint. It was a case in which the educational mission of the state had come into conflict with religious freedom.

The court in Leipzig has now passed judgement: It is reasonable to require Muslim schoolgirls to swim together with boys, assuming she has the option of wearing a burqini.

They were right to do so. » | A Commentary by Dietmar Hipp and Maximilian Popp | Thursday, September 12, 2013

German Court Rules Muslim Girl Can’t Skip Swimming Lessons
FOX NEWS: A German court on Wednesday ruled that a Muslim student cannot skip co-ed swimming lessons because her religion prohibits form-fitting clothes that do not cover her body, The Local reported.

The 12-year-old girl’s parents sued a school in the northern city of Remscheid after it refused to let the girl skip the lessons.

The court sided with the school, saying that the state’s responsibility to educate the girl outweighed an infringement on her religious freedom.

Last year the girl’s parents rejected an offer from the school saying she could swim in leggings and a T-shirt. They argued that her body still would be visible through wet clothes, The Local reported.

The court concluded that because the swim lessons take place in water, there would be very little time that her body would be seen.

The parents’ attorney said the family will appeal the decision. [Source: German Court Rules Muslim Girl Can't Skip Swimming Lessons] | May 8, 2008

Hat tip: Dhimmi Watch

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