Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[KavkazUzel] State Duma Deputy Speaker Vladislav Davankov's proposal to ban religious clothing in schools is populist, extralegal and discriminatory from the point of view of the law, and aimed against the Muslim community of Russia, according to Islamic scholars, lawyers and human rights activists interviewed by the Caucasian Knot. Davankov explained the initiative with appeals from the students’ parents and promised to discuss it with Delimkhanov in the State Duma.
As the Caucasian Knot reported, State Duma Deputy Speaker Vladislav Davankov proposed granting educational organizations the right to ban the wearing of religious clothing. He also proposes to give legislative and municipal assemblies the power to introduce a ban on wearing religious and other clothing that hides the face in public places. State Duma deputy from Chechnya Adam Delimkhanov criticized Deputy Speaker Vladislav Davankov for a bill banning the wearing of religious clothing in schools. He promised " “clearly” explain to Davankov and the others what “religious traditional values and customs” are. Delimkhanov pointed out “a violation of freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution.” He also expressed fears that Davankov’s initiative could cause disagreements in society.
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“In order to ensure the principle of a secular state and to ensure public safety, in many countries of the world there is a ban on wearing a niqab, hijab and other religious clothing that completely or partially hides the face in public places and in educational and government organizations,” the explanatory note says, published on the website of the System for Supporting Legislative Activities (SOZD).
BAN ON RELIGIOUS CLOTHING PROVOKES SOCIAL TENSION
Bans on religious clothing lead to social tension and pose serious psychological threats to children, says Svetlana Gannushkina, head of the Civic Assistance Committee *.
“I consider this [Davankov’s initiative] incredible stupidity. All these prohibitions lead to a showdown and aggravation between people. If previously children did not notice that they are dressed differently, they begin to notice, and this affects the children’s perception of each other friend, which is unacceptable,” the human rights activist told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
Gannushkina criticized similar bans on religious elements in Europe. “The banning of religious elements in Europe also does not lead to anything good. We have many examples that we could take from both the West and the East. There are many traditions that are good to adopt from any nation, but what is happening in the West with this, it only sharpens attention to who is dressed how,” she says.
She also notes that laws cannot be discriminatory against any particular group of people, and such an initiative itself can only contribute to the growth of social tension and the accumulation of grievances. "This should not concern only Muslims, but everyone. If children come from a religious background, and their stay at school begins with the pressure and offense that will be inflicted on them, it is completely unreasonable to pit the school against the child and the family. A Jewish child may come in with a kippah, if it’s important for parents,” says Gannushkina*.
Discussion of such topics, according to the human rights activist, distracts from more important problems in the state and society. “When such topics are discussed and a big discussion arises, this is a desire to distract from big and important problems. Probably, he has his own electorate, to which such rhetoric and initiatives are directed,” said Gannushkina*.
The human rights activist believes that neither society nor schools should deal with issues of people’s appearance. “In my time, they fought against women in trousers. At all times, someone struggles with clothing in society, then trousers, then earrings, then a headscarf. In my opinion, schools should not deal with such issues,” says Gannushkina.
The interlocutor considers it reasonable to reject such a bill when considered by the Federal Assembly. “Let it [the bill] be considered and not adopted. Sometimes even with Delimkhanov or Ramzan Kadyrov I have the same position, only with the difference in the reason for the negative attitude,” concluded Svetlana Gannushkina.
THE BAN ON WEARING THE NIQAB COULD BE THE FIRST SIGN OF AN ANTI-MUSLIM CAMPAIGN
The issue of wearing the niqab in Russia is so isolated that any initiative related to its ban is perceived by the country’s Muslim community as yet another anti-Islamic one, says Islamic scholar, PhD, Rinat Mukhametov.
“This question, this whole discussion cannot be split, the issue of hijab and niqab cannot be separated. Because if we are talking about niqab, then this is just shaking the air, since this topic concerns, perhaps, several dozen people throughout Russia. For 25 years of its professional work on this topic, I have never heard of anyone in Russia wearing niqabs to schools. I am convinced that all talk about banning niqabs, even if at some stage talk about the hijab is excluded, their goal is only to limit it. on wearing a hijab. I don’t know what the answer was to Delimkhanov from Davankov’s faction, but his bill is about banning the hijab, not the niqab, or any religious clothing in educational institutions,” Mukhametov told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
There is some idea to start a campaign to limit manifestations of Islamic identity and activity, for which the niqab simply became a trigger, but in fact it refers to both mosques and the hijab
He sees behind the initiative a “testing of the waters” by part of the political and security elites in Russia, however, according to the expert, the decision to ban the hijab in Russia at the highest echelons of power has not been made at the moment. “I perceive conversations about the niqab as a veil for seeding. In reality, we are talking about an attempt to promote the ban on the hijab in some places, first in educational institutions and further, given that this whole story with the niqab began with an interview with Fadeev ( head of the Presidential Council on Rights person - approx. "Caucasian Knot" ) In addition to niqabs, Fadeev spoke about the possibility of restrictions on Islamic centers, mosques and even MMA clubs, where visiting migrants and Caucasians can train, allegedly for some extremist purposes. Therefore, we can say that there is some kind. the idea of starting a campaign to limit the manifestations of Islamic identity and activity, to which the niqab simply became a trigger, but in fact it means both mosques and the hijab, and in this iceberg below there may be a lot of other things. The question is how serious are the grounds for all this in the first place. authorities, whether this is of a PR nature, more of a hardware game for now. There is an impression that a decision has not yet been made on this matter, or some group in power is already trying to push through this decision. Here we can talk about the degree of seriousness of the people who started these processes,” concluded Mukhametov.
THE LAWYER CALLED DAVANKOV’S INITIATIVE CONTRARY TO THE CONSTITUTION
No decisions or regulatory legal acts of the regions can contradict and/or detract from freedom of religion
The right that allows educational institutions to independently prohibit the wearing of religious paraphernalia, symbols or clothing violates the right to freedom of conscience and religion, says lawyer of the Moscow Bar Association Miki Arapiev. “Yes, such a situation will violate this right. The Fundamental Law on Freedom of Religion did not delegate the right to violate it to the regions. That is, no decisions or regulatory legal acts of the regions can contradict and/or detract from freedom of religion, that is, they cannot take precedence over this law,” Arapiev told the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.
The lawyer sees an infringement of the rights of Muslims in non-Muslim regions if such a legislative initiative is implemented. “This is exactly the result that this law will have in non-Muslim regions,” he said.
Arapiev also noted that even if the law made exceptions, that only religious clothing that completely conceals the body and face would be prohibited, it would also be discriminatory and contrary to the Constitution and federal legislation.
“The niqab is an attribute of Muslim clothing. If Muslims consider it (the niqab) as such, then violates their religious norms of clothing, the freedom to wear it, which, a priori, limits freedom of religion,” Arapiev concluded.
DAVANKOV PROMISED TO DISCUSS THE DRAFT LAW WITH DELIMKHANOV
Vladislav Davankov said today that he developed the bill personally, based on incoming requests from parents. He motivated his proposal regarding niqabs with security issues. "Often we see that people who come to our country become our citizens, but do not take this into account. There is always an emotional issue, and there is a security issue. There is a difference between hijabs and niqabs. Niqab is when the face is completely covered. Only visible only eyes. Niqabs should be prohibited,” follows from the video that Ksenia Sobchak published on her Telegram channel “Bloody Lady”.
At the same time, Davankov also mentioned Delimkhanov, agreeing with the opinion of Kadyrov’s ally that the culture of wearing niqabs is “imported.”
Davankov indicated that we could also talk about hijabs. "As for wearing a hijab, this is a question. Our regions are very different. There are national republics, which I have great respect for, where it is part of the culture. But there are a huge number of requests from regions in which they believe that wearing hijab is schools is unacceptable,” Davankov said.
In particular, he emphasized that parents from schools in Kotelniki opposed wearing hijabs in schools.
On July 7, 2023, security forces conducted a document check of visitors to a mosque in Kotelniki near Moscow. Ramzan Kadyrov was outraged by the raid during prayer, and on July 15 he demanded that the security forces be brought to justice. State Duma deputy Adam Delimkhanov met with the governor of the Moscow region about this and promised to punish those responsible. The head of Dagestan, Sergei Melikov, supported the Chechen authorities, noting that the competent authorities must assess the behavior of the security forces. On July 21, after Friday prayers in a historical mosque in Moscow, believers held a procession, chanting: “Allahu Akbar”, thus they protested against raids by security forces in mosques in the Moscow region. The head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, commented on the action, condemning its participants for the unsanctioned nature of the protest.
Davankov noted that he intends to discuss the bill personally with Adam Delimkhanov at a meeting in the State Duma.
The draft law, introduced with the aim of “consolidating the secular nature of education” and “creating equal conditions for all students regardless of their religious beliefs,” proposes, in particular, to supplement Article 38 of the Law “On Education in the Russian Federation” with a provision on the right to establish a ban on wearing educational organizations religious clothing, clothing with religious attributes and (or) religious symbols. “The corresponding local regulatory act of an organization carrying out educational activities must be adopted if more than half of the members of the council of parents (legal representatives) of minor students (in a professional educational organization and educational organization of higher education - student councils) voted for the adoption of the corresponding regulatory act,” - quoted the TASS bill.
DAVANKOV'S BILL CAUSED SHARP CRITICISM IN MUSLIM REGIONS
“I hope that Davankov’s discord-inciting bill will not come up for discussion in the State Duma, and if it does, I will vote against it!” - State Duma deputy from Chechnya Shamsail Saraliev wrote on June 3 in his Telegram channel.
A similar opinion was expressed by State Duma deputy from Dagestan Sultan Khamzaev. “In interethnic, interfaith issues, you need to act carefully. Politicians should not behave like bulls in a china shop, raising such topics,” he commented on the bill proposed by Davankov in his Telegram channel on May 27, calling not to stir up the topic artificially.
The head of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of Ingushetia, Akhmed Sagov, recalled that the proposed bill contradicts the Constitution. “I appeal to all deputies of the State Duma to treat this bill with responsibility. Otherwise, it will create a split in our society,” IslamNews quoted him as saying today.
The Mufti of Chechnya, Salakh Mezhiev, also criticized the bill, noting that the laws protect the rights of believers. “If Davankov wants to oppose Russia as a secular state to religion, this is wrong,” he said in a video that was published today on the page of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of Chechnya on Telegram.
In November 2020, the Mufti of Chechnya, Salakh Mezhiev, and the head of the Grozny police department, Aslan Iraskhanov, held an “educational conversation” with girls who wore a niqab (a woman’s headdress that covers the face with a slit for the eyes). Mezhiev demanded that the girls not confuse the precepts of Islam with the traditions of the peoples of the Middle East, where they wear niqabs. “To cover your face, as you do now, is the tradition of individual nations. Sharia does not provide for this. [...] The hijab is obligatory, but the face and hands must be left open,” said the Mufti of Chechnya. After his instructions, the girls removed the dark bandages covering their faces, according to a report by the state television company.
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