Russian Court Upholds Ban On Religious Clothing At Stavropol Region Schools

[rug]

A young girl wear Islamic-style head scarf in Stavropol, in sourthern Russia.

By RFE/RL
July 10, 2013

Russia's Supreme Court has upheld a ban on Islamic head scarves or hijabs at schools in the multiethnic region of Stavropol.

"Taking into account the principles of the Russian Constitution and Russian legislation on the secular nature education, this resolution (to ban Islamic wear) is aimed at ensuring students of educational institutions adhere to the same norms that are expected of business-style clothing," Vladimir Molchanov, a Stavropol official representing the region's governor, told journalists in Moscow on July 10 after the ruling was announced.

The lawyer representing Muslim families in Stavropol that filed the case, Murad Musayev, indicated that he planned to appeal the Supreme Court's decision.

"Our main argument is that no regional government has the right to restrict the constitutional rights of citizens, including freedom of religion. Legally, such restrictions can be introduced only by the federal legislature, and that's it," he said.

http://www.rferl.org/content/dress-code-russia-islam-headscarf-stavropol/25041866.html


For a different take, see this link.


School is not a place for religion and religious attributes

10.07.2013

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation recognized as legal the ruling of a court in the Stavropol region that banned the wearing of headscarves in schools. Pravda.Ru asked Olga Timofeeva, a member of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications, to share her views about the problem.

"It's about time the Supreme Court should put an end to the controversial and scandalous process when we started using school and children for selfish gains of adults. Let's go back to what happened in a small village of the Stavropol region. The girls began to wear Muslim hijab scarves at school. Teachers said that it was not the way students should look. The next day, a lawsuit was filed to the regional court. Moreover, those people found an opportunity and money to resort to lawyer's assistance. Clearly, it was a provocation, in which children had been involved.

"My fundamental position as a deputy from the Stavropol region is as follows. One has to leave schools alone - this is not a place for religion, not a place for social stratification. Schools are for knowledge. Our children need to understand that there are educational institutions and there are other types of schools: evening and religious schools, where one can follow special dress code rules.

The conflict that started in the Stavropol region revealed that Russia did not have one single legislative act that would regulate students' appearance. Afterwards, the Stavropol region approved a decree, signed by the governor. The decree regulated the appearance of schoolchildren - it contained the list of rules that schoolchildren should follow in their clothes. The decree banned jeans, jewelry, bright make-up and other similar things that one can often see in Russian schools today.

http://english.pravda.ru/society/family/10-07-2013/125084-school_hijab-0/

It's a fine kettle of fish when the choice is between Pravda and Radio Free Europe. Now's as good a time as any to plug a new DU Group.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=forum&id=1268

[cbayer]

1. So much for not hurting people's religious feelings.

[Jim__]

2. Do you think there may be more going on here than a minor religious skirmish?

I think this rule could be driven by Russia's fear of it's ethnic populations, in this case, its Muslim population. Valery Zerenkov sounds like an ethnic Russian. From the first article:

...

Stavropol's governor, Valery Zerenkov, introduced a dress code for the region's schools last autumn. ...

...

The Stavropol region borders Russia's mostly Muslim-populated republics of Chechnya, Daghestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, and Karachaevo-Cherkessia.

[rug]

3. I think you're exactly right.

One of the first things propaganda goes after is appearance.

The present Russian government's priority is to prevent the remnants of Czarist empire fracturing any more over ethnic lines.