French court upholds banning of religious symbols in municipal council

A French court has upheld a mayor’s ban of conspicuous religious symbols in a municipal council after it was challenged by two elected officials.

The administrative court in Dijon found on Wednesday that the decree of Gilles Platret, mayor of the town Chalon-sur-Saône, banning “conspicuous religious signs” did not constitute “a serious and manifestly unlawful infringement of freedom of conscience.”

“The freedom of conscience of an elected member of a municipal council must be reconciled with the principle of secularism [Fr. laïcité] that he is required to respect,” the judge added.

Damien Saley and Lamia Sabrina Sari, both elected officials of radical left-wing group La France Insoumise (LFI), had filed a lawsuit against Platret’s ban, saying they felt “directly targeted” by the decree. Sabrina Sari wears an Islamic headscarf.

Platret said the court’s finding was “a source of satisfaction” and that it was “an example that could be followed by all municipal councils.”

He said the ban makes sure “secularism cannot be attacked by elected officials who come to the municipal council to proselytize, in disregard of the principle of neutrality.”

The decree was issued Jan. 14 and was based on the 2018 National Assembly regulations that bans “conspicious” religious symbols which, in turn, draws on the 2004 law for public primary, middle, and high schools.

“We adopted the model from the highest authority. How could we imagine that they could have these regulations, and not us?” Platret said when he left the hearing.

Platret’s lawyer, Julie Callot, argued that the decree “does not target any specific religion and applies equally to a large cross around the neck or a kippah.”

“The principle of secularism applies to all elected officials,” she added, also saying it doesn’t permit “propaganda attire.”

Marion Ogier, the lawyer for the LFI officials, argued unsuccessfully that “secularism is first and foremost the freedom to believe” and that Sabrina Sari “would be excluded if she came with a headscarf, which infringes on her freedom to exercise her mandate.”

Previous controversies

Platret, who won Sunday’s local elections with more than 61% of the vote – the election which saw Sabrina Sari and Saley come to power – is known for a number of controversial bans.

In June, he banned the flying of the Palestine flag throughout the whole municipality, which has 45,000 residents, arguing the flag had become “the rallying symbol of Islamist groups.”  The courts suspended this ban.

Further, in 2015, Platret tried unsuccessfully to ban pork-free menus in school cafeterias. He also tried to ensure only French was spoken on the city’s construction sites, and refused to validate a French-Turkish wedding until the courts forced him to do so.

Platret was former vice-president of the right-wing Les Republicains group which he has now left, and was allegedly close to joining Éric Zemmour’s Reconquête! movement, a far-right group known for its controversial views on immigration and cultural identity.

Excitement over Pope’s visit to Monaco

Pope Leo XIV will go to the principality of Monaco on March 28 – the first time a pope has done so.

Catholics in Monaco have reacted to the news with joy and the archdiocese of Monaco emphasized the shared commitments between the pontiff and Prince Albert II who has ruled the Principality of Monaco since 2005.

These shared commitments include “a particular focus on respect for human life from beginning to end; a concern for integral ecology and the preservation of ‘our common home’; and a shared passion for sport and what it represents for humanity,” a press release from the archdiocese said.

The Principality of Monaco, often considered a part of the French Riviera, is one of the final European countries that still has Catholicism as its state religion.