A Right to Discriminate? Widening the Scope for Interference with Religious Rights inEbrahimian v France

Abstract

Following the European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section) ruling in Ebrahimian v France , 1 the ban on Islamic religious dress in Council of Europe States has gone from being sanctioned where it covers the face 2 and in the educational sphere, 3 to covering all public sector workers in France. 4 Although finding an interference with the applicant’s Article 9 rights in the case, the Court held that the interference pursued a legitimate aim, namely the ‘protection of the rights and freedoms of others’ pursuant to Article 9(2) of the Convention. This case comment will argue that the majority’s failure to substantiate the ‘rights’ interfered with and appropriately to test the proportionality of the measure in question led to the handing down of a discriminatory decision, one with alarming implications for the rights of religious minorities. The Muslim applicant, Christiane Ebrahimian, was employed on a fixed-term contract as a social worker in a public hospital. After refusing to remove her veil (covering her hair, ears, and neck) and following a warning, the authorities failed to renew her contract. The domestic courts found that the decision not to renew her contract had been made in accordance with the principles of laïcité and the neutrality of public services.