A Berlin court ruled Tuesday that a city high school must provide a room in which Muslim students can pray or it would be violating Germany's guarantees of freedom of religion.
The Berlin administrative court, ruling on a suit brought by a 16-year-old Muslim student, said that the constitution guarantees "not only the inner freedom to believe or not to believe, but also the freedom to express this belief."
Relying on expertise from a scholar of Islam, the court ruled that specific hours of prayer had a high significance for Muslims and therefore "a devout Muslim could not be expected to pray only outside of school hours."
The ruling was a single-case decision, and is subject to appeal. School department spokesman Jens Stiller said that the city planned to take further "legal steps" but would not be more specific.
Still, court spokesman Stephan Groscurth said that Muslim students could refer to the ruling as precedent if they file suits in similar situations.
The student, who was not identified by name, sued the school after it refused to provide him with a separate room for prayer.
The school has allowed him to pray in an assigned room during breaks since March 2008, however, after the court issued an interim order while the case was pending.
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий