Muslim Swimwear in Pools – Europe – Divisive Views & Policies

A Muslim woman who tried to go swimming in a head-to-toe ‘burquini’ has been
banned from her local pool in the latest tussle between religious practices and
secular authority in France.

Officials on Wednesday insisted they banned the woman’s use
of the Islam-friendly swimsuit because of France’s unusually strict hygiene
standards in pools, and not because of official hostility to wearing overtly
Muslim garb.

Under the policy, swimmers are prevented from wearing any street-compatible
or baggy clothing, such as Bermuda shorts, in favour of figure-hugging suits.

The woman, a 35-year-old convert to Islam identified only as
Carole, complained of religious discrimination after trying to go swimming in
her burquini in the Paris suburb of Emerainville.

She was quoted as telling the daily Le
Parisien that she had bought the burquini after deciding “it would
allow me the pleasure of bathing without showing too much of myself, as Islam
recommends.”

“For me this is nothing but segregation,” she
added.

The issue of religious attire is a hot topic in France,
where head-to-toe burqas or other full-body coverings worn by Muslim
fundamentalists are in official disfavour.

French lawmakers recently proposed a ban on the burqa and
other voluminous Muslim attire. President Nicolas Sarkozy backs the move,
saying such clothing makes women prisoners.

But Daniel Guillaume, a regional official in charge of
swimming pools, said Carole’s poolside rebuff had nothing to do with religion
and everything to do with public health standards.

He said swimmers throughout France must wear special clothes
to the pool, whereas a burquini could be worn all day long, collecting
everything from food spills to sweat along the way.

“These clothes are used in public, so they can contain
molecules, viruses, et cetera, which will go in the water and could be
transmitted to other bathers,” Guillaume said in a telephone interview.

“We reminded this woman that one should not bathe all
dressed, just as we would tell someone who is a nudist not to bathe all
naked,” he said.

Guillaume said France’s public health standards require all
pool-goers to don appropriate attire — swimsuits for women and tight,
swim-specific briefs for men — and caps to cover their hair. Bathers also must
shower before entering the water.

Guillaume said Carole had tried to file a complaint at a
local police station, but her request was turned down as groundless.

Carole told Le Parisien that she
would protest with the help of anti-discrimination groups.

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/6034706/Swimmers-are-told-to-wear-burkinis.html

British
Swimming Pools Are Imposing Muslim Dress Codes in a Move Described as Divisive
by Labour MP’s

By Patrick Sawer
15 August 2009

UK councils
running restricted swimming session for Muslims

Under the rules, swimmers –
including non-Muslims – are barred from entering the pool in normal swimming
attire.

Instead they are told that they
must comply with the “modest” code of dress required by Islamic
custom, with women covered from the neck to the ankles and men, who swim
separately, covered from the navel to the knees.  

The phenomenon runs counter to
developments in France,
where last week a woman was evicted from a public pool for wearing a burkini –
the headscarf, tunic and trouser outfit which allows Muslim women to preserve
their modesty in the water.

The 35-year-old, named only as
Carole, is threatening legal action after she was told by pool officials in
Emerainville, east of Paris, that
she could not wear the outfit on hygiene grounds.

But across the UK
municipal pools are holding swimming sessions specifically aimed at Muslims, in
some case imposing strict dress codes.

Croydon council in south London
runs separate one-and-a half-hour swimming sessions for Muslim men and women
every Saturday and Sunday at Thornton Heath Leisure Centre.

Swimmers were told last week on
the centre’s website that “during special Muslim sessions male costumes
must cover the body from the navel to the knee and females must be covered from
the neck to the ankles and wrists”.

There are similar rules at
Scunthorpe Leisure Centre, in North Lincolnshire, where
“users must follow the required dress code for this session (T-shirts and
shorts/leggings that cover below the knee)”.

In Glasgow,
a men-only swimming session is organised by a local mosque group at North
Woodside Leisure Centre, at which swimmers must be covered from navel to knee.

At a women-only class organised
by a Muslim teacher at Blackbird Leys Swimming Pool, Oxford,
to encourage Muslim women to learn to swim, most participants wear
“modest” outfits although normal costumes are permitted.

The dress codes have provoked an
angry reaction among critics who say they encourage division and resentment
between Muslims and non-Muslims, putting strain on social cohesion.

Ian Cawsey, the Labour MP for the North Lincolnshire constituency of Brigg and Goole,
said: “Of course swimming pools have basic codes of dress but it should
not go beyond that.

“I don’t think that in a
local authority pool I should have to wear a particular type of clothes for the
benefit of someone else. That’s not integration or cohesion.”

Labour MP Anne Cryer, whose
Keighley, West Yorkshire constituency has a large number
of Muslims, said: “Unfortunately this kind of thing has a negative impact
on community relations.

“It’s seen as yet another
demand for special treatment. I can’t see why special clothing is needed for
what is a single-sex session.”

Muslim swimming sessions are also
held at a number of state schools around the country. At LoxfordSchool in Ilford, east London,
a local Muslim group organises weekly sessions for Muslim men, with the warning
that “it is compulsory for the body to be covered between the navel and
the knees.

“Anyone not adhering to the
dress code or rules within the pool will not be allowed to swim”.

The practice of holding special
Muslim swimming sessions has led to non-Muslims being turned away.

David Toube, 39 and his five year
old son Harry were last year refused entry to Clissold Leisure Centre, in
Hackney, east London, after being
told the Sunday morning swimming session was for Muslim men only.

Council officials later said
staff had made a mistake and both Mr Toube, a corporate lawyer, and his son
should have been admitted.

After discovering the rules at
Thornton Heath one Croydon resident, 34-year-old Alex Craig, said: “I
think it is preposterous that a council should be encouraging this type of
segregation over municipal facilities.

“Surely if Muslims want to
swim then they should just turn up with their modest swimwear at the same time
as everyone else.”

Douglas Murray, director of the
Centre for Social Cohesion, last night condemned the practice. He said:
“This kind of thing is extremely divisive.

“Non-Muslims see these
extremist demands as an example of Muslims wanting things to fit into their
lifestyle, when there aren’t similar things organised for Hindus, Buddhists or
Jews.

“It also puts moderate
Muslims in an awkward position as it suggests, wrongly, that they are not
devout enough, simply because they choose not to cover themselves in a shroud
in a pool.”

A press officer at Croydon
council, which introduced Muslim-only swimming in 2006, claimed that the
wording on the website was a mistake and the dress code should be regarded as a
suggestion rather than a requirement.

The website was late changed to
remove the reference to the dress code.

However, an official at the
leisure centre said the dress code remained compulsory.

Earlier, defending the
segregation policy, a Croydon council spokesman said: “We appreciate that
certain religious groups, such as Muslims, have strict rules on segregation for
activities including sports, so in response to requests from the local
community, we have been running these sessions at Thornton Heath Leisure
Centre.”