Religious Dress Restrictions Are Unlawful, Not “Neutral,” Argues the Justice Initiative

LONDON—In a complaint filed earlier this month with the UN Human Rights Committee, the Open Society Justice Initiative, together with co-counsel, the Human Rights Centre at Ghent University, argues that religious dress restrictions, or “headscarf bans”—as they are commonly called—are discriminatory against Muslim women.

“So-called ‘neutrality’ dress codes perpetuate prejudicial assumptions, such as that those who wear religious dress are biased or pose a threat to society,” said Susheela Math, senior managing litigation officer at the Justice Initiative. “Far from being ‘neutral,’ these restrictions target and/or disproportionately impact Muslim women. The complaint sets out the rise of Islamophobia and the racialisation of Muslims and asks the Committee to lift the veil of discrimination masquerading as ‘neutrality’ in this case and many others.”

The complaint was filed against Belgium on behalf of Samira Achbita, a receptionist who was dismissed from her employment for intending to wear a headscarf in the workplace. She is one of many Muslim women across Europe who are prevented from studying for, entering, and pursuing their careers because of laws, policies, and practices prohibiting the wearing of religious dress under the purported justification of “neutrality.”

Although national litigation has often led to rulings against bans, case law from the two major regional courts, the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the European Union, has failed to provide the same level of protection—representing a backslide in women’s civil liberties. A week after the Justice Initiative and the Human Rights Centre filed their complaint, the Court of Justice of the European Union handed down its latest judgment upholding religious dress restrictions on the justification of an employer’s wish to present an image of “neutrality.”