France's school uniforms return in pilot scheme to tackle inequality

Now some schools in France will be taking part in a national trial to get students to wear uniforms The experiment comes after the government banned the wearing of Abaya Now that's a long dress worn by some Muslim women and girls in public schools last year Ross Cullen with more Wearing a uniform is not part of school life for almost all children in France But the government wants to try out Introducing one set dress code and at the start of the next school year in September Schools across the country that volunteer can take part in the trial at the moment Pupils can choose what to wear though Some items of clothing are now banned including the Abaya a loose-fitting dress sometimes worn by some Muslim women Gabrielle Atal the former education minister who was recently named the country's new prime minister Argued that the loose-fitting clothes violated the national principle of secularism The action rights of Muslims group filed what turned out to be an unsuccessful appeal against the Abaya ban at the Council of State the country's highest Administrative court the group says the ban impacts pupils as young as 14 As I said they call us at 4.30-5pm on Saturday or even on Sunday And we immediately respond to their expectations. Parents are shocked and do not know what to do They feel discriminated against and excluded, they feel not understood and stigmatized They are shocked and say, what do I do? What kind of law do I have? One of the most well-known examples of the controversy surrounding Islamic clothing in French schools took place in in 1989 in the town of Crelles, north of Paris. Three girls were expelled for refusing to remove their headscarves. The expulsion sparked months of media, political, and social debate here in France, and the arguments and counter-arguments are famously known as l'affaire du foulard, the scarf affair. Following on from the 1989 controversy, the French parliament passed a law in 2004 prohibiting the wearing of conspicuous religious symbols in public schools. That includes Christian crucifixes, Jewish skull caps, Sikh turbans, and Islamic headscarves. Some argue that the government's secular objectives are not grounded in the well-being of students. A 1905 law enshrines the division of church and state in France. But nearly 120 years later, deep divisions remain between the state and religious groups, and also over whether ministers can find a uniform agreement on school clothing. Ross Cullen, CNA, Paris.