Amnesty International criticizes ban on Muslim women wearing chador at 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics

Amnesty International (AI) on Tuesday protested against the ban on Muslim women wearing the chador (hijab) at the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, saying France’s unilateral decision violates both international norms and human rights.

“This ban (…) violates international human rights laws and exposes the discriminatory hypocrisy of the French authorities and the weak will of the International Olympic Committee (IOC),” criticizes MA.

In a new report on the Olympics, titled “We Can’t Breathe Anymore. We Can’t Even Play Sports Anymore,” AI details the “devastating impact” of this measure on Muslim women’s sport at all levels.

“Discriminatory rules governing what girls and women wear are a violation of Muslim women’s human rights and have a devastating impact on their participation in sport, blocking efforts to make sport more inclusive and accessible,” said Anna Blyus, women’s rights researcher at Amnesty International in Europe.

AI, along with other international organisations, expressed its outrage and concern to the IOC, but the organisation’s response to a joint letter calling for the ban on the hijab to be lifted was deemed “disappointing and inadequate”.

The AI ​​accuses the French political authorities of “violating a number of obligations under international human rights treaties to which it is a party,” as well as “the commitments and values ​​established within the IOC’s own human rights framework.”

Despite persistent calls, the IOC, which chairs the event, “refused” to ask the French authorities to do so, saying the issue “goes beyond the Olympic movement,” arguing that “freedom of religion is interpreted very differently in each state’s way.”

“The IOC’s response makes no mention of other rights violated by the ban, such as freedom of expression and access to healthcare,” Amnesty International criticises.

AI analyzed the rules of 38 European countries and concluded that France “is the only country that has enshrined the ban on the use of the religious veil both at the level of national legislation and at the level of individual sports rules.”

“This is a clear violation of the Olympic Charter, its values ​​and provisions, and a violation of our fundamental rights and freedoms. I think it will be a shameful moment for France,” basketball player Helene Ba condemned.

For AI, another athlete who wished to remain anonymous found it “sad and even more shameful to be at this moment in 2024, blocking dreams just because of a piece of cloth.”

In France, a ban on Muslim women wearing any type of religious burqa — “an illegal measure to impose restrictions on freedom of expression and/or religion, fueled by prejudice, racism and Islamophobia on the basis of gender” — is not limited to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, previously a widespread sport.

“These bans cause humiliation, trauma and fear and have already led to many women and girls giving up on sport. Preventing them from fully and freely participating in sport for leisure and recreation or for career purposes can have devastating consequences for all aspects of their lives, even their mental and physical health,” recalls AI.

“No political decision maker should dictate what a woman can or cannot wear, and no woman should be forced to choose between her favorite sport and her faith, cultural identity or beliefs,” says Anna Blus.

Fune Diawara, co-chairman of the Hijab Football Collective, ensures that this is not a “political or religious struggle” but simply “the human right to participate in sport”, saying that “it is not too late” to reverse this castration.

The Olympic Games will be held from July 26 to August 11 in Paris, where the Paralympic Games will be held from August 28 to September 8.