The Marrakech First Instance court on Friday issued a decision finding that Lycée Victor Hugo, one of the thousands of French mission schools in the Agence de l’Enseignement Français à l’Etranger (“Agency for French Teaching Abroad”) (AEFE) system around the world, may not deny entry to a female student who wears a headscarf.
On June 10, the school sent the girl home citing “internal policies” that prohibit the wearing of visible religious insignia. The student’s mother responded quickly, filing an emergency lawsuit on June 13 challenging the restriction.
In court, the AEFE’s defense counsel argued that denying the girl entry because of her hijab was consistent with the school’s policies and a 2003 cultural treaty between Morocco and France.
The court rejected the arguments. It held that the school’s policy was contrary to specific international conventions, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and Morocco’s Constitution, both of which prohibit all forms of religious discrimination.
In addition, the court found a lack of presentation of internal regulations.
The court ruled that the restriction on wearing the hijab “infringed upon fundamental rights” and ordered the school to allow the student to resume courses immediately.
The court also ordered the AEFE to pay the legal fees of the plaintiff and to pay a fine of 500 dirhams per each day of noncompliance with the decision.
The court here came to the same conclusion as another court in a decision handed down in November 2020 against the Don Bosco private school in Kénitra.
The AEFE is a national public agency under the administration of France’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs that assures the quality of schools teaching the French national curriculum outside France.