Ankara slams EU court ruling on headscarf ban for not following freedom of religion and belief

A ruling by the top EU court allowing the banning of headscarves under certain conditions is against the freedom of religion and belief, the Turkish parliament speaker said on Monday.

"These decisions clearly violate the fundamental rights and freedoms of Muslims living in Europe. These decisions will have negative consequences in terms of social peace, the coexistence of people of different faiths and faith-based discrimination," Mustafa Şentop said in a statement.

He said that the decision by the Court of Justice justifies the deep concerns caused by the practices that seek to prevent Muslims from freely existing in the public sphere all over the world, especially in Europe.

"The main responsibility of decision-makers all over the world, especially the EU Court of Justice and international human rights courts, is to try to ensure that all members of religion and belief benefit from the freedom of religion and belief without discrimination, instead of justifying interferences in fundamental rights and freedoms on the basis of abstract concepts," he added.

The European Court of Justice on Thursday ruled on two cases brought by Muslim women in Germany who were suspended from their jobs for wearing headscarves.

It ruled that companies in member states can ban employees from wearing headscarves if they "need to present a neutral image to customers."