(Brussels Times) The two rulings handed down by the lower court in Ghent against banning the burkini in swimming pools are a first and thus constitute a precedent, the Interfederal Centre for Equal Opportunities, UNIA, stressed on Friday.
The court ruled that wearing the long swimming garment could not be banned for reasons of hygiene or security. The municipal swimming pools of Ter Wallen and Van Eyck in Ghent cannot prevent Muslim women from wearing the burkini, according to the court, which found that the ban had no legal basis. Establishments must adapt their regulations in that sense, the court decided, granting moral damages to the women who filed the complaint against the ban.
