After the Senate rejected, on Wednesday, February 16, a vote on a bill banning the wearing of hijab in sports competitions; It got referred to the French National Assembly for consideration.
France will host the Olympic games in 2024, and critics of the legislation questioned how much it would affect the Games, whose participants will include Muslim women that wear the hijab.
The bill
This bill aims to "democratize sport". But it does include a clause, previously appended as an amendment by the conservative-dominated Senate, that bans the wearing of "obvious religious symbols" at events and competitions organized by sports federations.
However, the move was rejected by the centrist government of President Emmanuel Macron and its allies, who have the final vote on the project.
The wearing of religious symbols in public, in general, has long been a hotly debated topic in France, a largely secular country that is home to Europe's largest Muslim community.
