France, July 10: France defended the ban on wearing religious symbols in schools and a proposed move to stop women from wearing of Burqa saying it is to prevent disruption of the secular nature of the country which was too small compared to India which has over a billion people.
“There is specific regulation in France when it comes to religious symbols in public places. There is a complete freedom of religion….Now it happened that we have been subject to pressures by some religious fundamentalists to change secular rules of France,” Ambassador of France to India Jerome Bonnafont said when asked about President Nicolas Sarkozy’s remarks that he will not allow Burqa to enter French territory.
The fundamentalists were putting pressure “to make special rules for Muslims, Jews, Catholics, Buddhist…. this was a challenge to our concept of secularism”, he said adding Parliament then decided to ban wearing of any ostentatious religious symbols by children in public schools.
They can wear it at home or anywhere else but not in schools, he said adding the ban was not in universities.
The French Ambassador said it was also not right to compare India and France as the size and population of the latter was too small.
India, a country of over a billion people, follow the principle of ‘unity in diversity’ whereas France is a much smaller country with only 6.2 million people with one language and same civil rule for all, he said while interacting with a groups of eminent thinkers.
He said the President has already constituted a committee to look into the issue of wearing burqa in France.
The interaction was organized by Observer Research Centre.
–Agencies