Friday

29th Mar 2024

Rights watchdog removes video of women in hijab

  • The Council of Europe has removed this tweet it posted, reportedly after a backlash from a French government minister (Photo: Council of Europe)
Listen to article

The Strasbourg-based human rights watchdog the Council of Europe has removed a tweet of a video supporting women's rights to wear the hijab.

The video was as part of a wider campaign, co-financed by the European Commission, to combat hate speech against Jewish and Muslim communities and was being led by the Council of Europe's inclusion and anti-discrimination branch.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

The European Commission on Wednesday (3 November) said it had no input into the campaign, despite having an EU logo on the video and having helped finance it from a larger €340,000 grant.

The video was reportedly taken down on the demand of the French government, triggering condemnation by rights groups like Amnesty International.

In an emailed statement, a spokesperson at the Council of Europe said the tweets "do not represent the views of the Council of Europe or its secretary general."

"We have taken down these tweet messages while we reflect on a better presentation of this project," she said, noting they reflected statements made by individual participants in one of the project workshops.

Pressed on whether the video was removed following French government pressure, she did not respond.

But France's secretary of state for youth Sarah El Haïry earlier this week said the video had been pulled due to its intervention, claiming it had shocked her.

"France made its very strong disapproval of the campaign clear, which is why it was pulled today," she told French media outlet LCI.

The video juxtaposed images of young women wearing the hijab interspersed with phrases like "beauty is in diversity, as freedom is in the hijab."

It comes amid a gathering momentum of support for a possible far-right wing French presidential contender, who has railed against and targeted minorities and immigrants. An estimated 5 million people of Islamic faith live in France.

France under the leadership of president Emmanuel Macron has also led what many critics perceived to be an anti-Islam campaign, under the guise of defending its secular traditions.

Among other measures, it last year dissolved a leading anti-discrimination group known as the Collective Against Islamophobia in France (CCIF).

That decision was upheld by a top court in September.

Human Rights Watch, an NGO, says CCIF had played a key role in providing legal support to people facing anti-Muslim discrimination. It says the judgment will likely have a chilling effect on freedom of expression and association in France and elsewhere in Europe.

France had also adopted a so-called anti-separatism law it says was designed to crack down on extremists.

But critics say the law risks leading to further discrimination, noting French authorities have employed vague notions of "radical Islam."

Opinion

Using Istanbul Convention to stop online abuse of women

Although legal instruments have been developed, no universally-agreed definition of gender-based violence against women online or via technology exists - and this Council of Europe recommendation aims to fill that gap.

EU Parliament set to sue EU Commission over Hungary funds

The European Parliament will likely take the European Commission to court for unblocking more than €10bn in funds for Hungary last December. A final nod of approval is still needed by European Parliament president, Roberta Metsola.

EU Commission clears Poland's access to up to €137bn EU funds

The European Commission has legally paved the way for Poland to access up to €137bn EU funds, following Donald Tusk's government's efforts to strengthen the independence of their judiciary and restore the rule of law in the country.

Opinion

Potential legal avenues to prosecute Navalny's killers

The UN could launch an independent international investigation into Navalny's killing, akin to investigation I conducted on Jamal Khashoggi's assassination, or on Navalny's Novichok poisoning, in my role as special rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, writes the secretary-general of Amnesty International.

Opinion

I'll be honest — Moldova's judicial system isn't fit for EU

To state a plain truth: at present, Moldova does not have a justice system worthy of a EU member state; it is riven with corruption and lax and inconsistent standards, despite previous attempts at reform, writes Moldova's former justice minister.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us