Monday, July 04, 2016

German Court Says Legal Intern Can Wear Hijab

In Germany last week, a high-ranking law graduate who encountered a ban on wearing her hijab after she had begun her internship with the Bavarian judicial system won a court victory, at least for now.  According to The Local:
The battle started after [Aqilah] Sandhu successfully completed her state exams and started a traineeship with the Bavarian judicial system.
In July 2014, the highest court in the state sent her a letter informing her that she was forbidden from interrogating witnesses or fulfilling other legal duties as long as she continued to wear a headscarf....
She immediately asked for an explanation of the ban, to which she was told “[religious] clothing and symbols can impair the trust in the religious neutrality of the administration of justice.”...
Judge Bernhard Röthinger decided that the young lawyer was in the right, agreeing that there was no legal basis for the state's attack on her religious freedom.
Sandhu is now seeking damages.  However  the state says it will appeal.