Council of State Defends Independence Amid Controversy Over Hijab in Sports

In a press release made public on Wednesday, the Council of State denounced these attacks "and in particular a public rapporteur" who have been the target for a few days. The highest administrative court in France "solemnly reminds that the women and men who administer administrative justice work every day, in complete independence, and in the strictest respect for the principle of impartiality, to guarantee the respect of the law by the administration and the respect of freedoms."

"To call into question the functioning of this public service of Justice is to attack an institution essential to democracy," insists the Council of State in its note cited by Saphir News. The court expressed its outrage at the criticism leveled against the public rapporteur after his opinion in favor of the Hijabeuses, who are demanding the cancellation of Article 1 of the regulations of the French Football Federation (FFF) prohibiting the wearing of the veil, recalling that the latter’s role "is to publicly expose, and in complete independence, his analysis of the issues raised by the case being examined, and to propose a legal solution, in order to enlighten the judgment formation, which alone rules on the dispute."

The Council of State "reserves the right to initiate proceedings in case of insult, defamation, incitement to hatred, or threat," the note warns.