November 12, 2003	Wednesday	Ramazan 16, 1424

STUTTGART, Nov 11: German state authorities on Tuesday agreed the country’s first bill that bans teachers from wearing a Muslim headscarf in school, although Christian and Jewish symbols would be allowed.

The measure was drawn up by the conservative-led government in the southwestern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg following a landmark verdict by Germany’s highest court in September.

It must still be approved by the state parliament, probably in January, but that is regarded a formality due to the assembly’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) majority.

“The aim of the law is to forbid state teachers from wearing symbols which could be regarded as political,” state premier Erwin Teufel, a member of the CDU, said.

Regional Culture Minister Annette Schavan said the headscarf is “seen as a symbol of cultural division and part of a history of oppression of women”.

Mr Teufel and Annette Schavan defended the decision not to include Christian or Jewish symbols in the ban, saying the state constitution placed Christian and Western values and culture at the heart of the education system.

In September’s ruling, the federal constitutional court argued that it was wrong for Baden-Wuerttemberg to forbid a Muslim teacher from wearing a headscarf in the classroom because there was no law against it.

However, the court said individual states could legislate to ban religious apparel in state schools if they were deemed to unduly influence children.

Civil rights organizations and groups representing the 3.2 million Muslims living in Germany have defended the right to wear a headscarf as a question of religious freedom.—AFP