(Canadian Press) The Quebec government does not believe its secularism law violates freedom of religion, but rather it serves to frame it, one of its lawyers told a court Wednesday.
As those defending the law began final arguments in the court challenge, Quebec government lawyers said the ban on religious symbols is very specific and doesn’t infringe on people’s right to practise their religion outside the workplace.
The law, known as Bill 21, forbids the wearing of religious symbols such as turbans, kippas and hijabs for employees of the state deemed to be in positions of authority, including police officers and teachers.
Eric Cantin, a lawyer for Quebec’s attorney general, told Quebec Superior Court Justice Marc-Andre Blanchard that the debate over religious symbols is an emotionally charged one that’s been around a long time.
