DDHK.ORG - Grenoble, a city in France, allows Muslim women to wear the burkini or 'sharia bikini' in government-owned swimming pools. This was said by the Mayor of Grenoble, Eric Piolle, in the RMC broadcast, Monday (16/5/2022), as quoted by CNN Indonesia from France24.
"What we hope is that women and men alike can dress the way they want," Piolle said.
Right-wing groups and some feminists in France also protested the mayor's policy. One of France's conservative figures and head of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region, Laurent Wauguiez, also voiced his opposition to Piolle's policy.
"I believe what Piolle is defending is a terrible stalemate for our country," Wauquiez said in May. He also accused Piolle of implementing the policy to "buy votes" using political Islam.
The former right-wing mayor, Alain Carignon, has urged a local referendum on the issue. “You can't force a sensitive issue. You have no legitimacy. You weren't chosen for that," he said.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson for President Emmanuel Macron's party, Prisca Thevenot, accused Piolle's policy of destroying the value system in one of these European countries. "I don't think [Mayor Piolle] is aware of the damage he is doing to the value of our Republic," Prisca said.
France24 reported, France was covered by Islamophobia. Even the burkini is seen as a fearsome symbol of Islamism and an insult to French secular traditions. In fact, the burkini is only a one-body swimsuit that Muslim women usually use to cover their bodies and hair. [DDHKNews]
