Ex-Archbishop Denies Muslim Dress Court Case is about Religious Clashing

Following the success of a 16-year-old Muslim schoolgirl in appealing for the right to wear a traditional Islamic "head-to-toe" dress, or jilbab at the British Court yesterday, a former Archbishop of Canterbury warned that the sensational report may trigger tension between faiths which will be very "unfortunate", according to the Scotsman newspaper.

Lord Carey made his remarks during an interview with the GMTV Sunday Programme, which will be broadcast at the weekend.

Quoted by Scotsman newspaper, Lord Carey explained the false message that has been mistakenly conveyed in the case, "She (the Muslim schoolgirl) appears to have made this a clash between the secular world and the Muslim world. I don’t think we should see it like that, or put it up like that."

He clarified, "This is a fight she’s been having with her own school, which is a very tolerant school, very successful Muslim school, 80% of the children are Muslims."

"So it is a very unfortunate issue."

The court ruling yesterday has immediately hit the headlines of many newspapers and was widely reported in a very sensational way.

The Guardian Newspaper quoted the Muslim schoolgirl after "wining her battle", "I really feel like screaming out of happiness... I don't regret wearing the jilbab at all. I'm happy that I did this. I feel that I have given hope and strength to other Muslim women."

"Our belief in our faith is the one thing that makes sense of a world gone mad, a world where Muslim women, from Uzbekistan to Turkey, are feeling the brunt of policies guided by western governments. I feel I've made people question the jilbab issue again," she said.

"Today's decision is a victory for all Muslims who wish to preserve their identity and values despite prejudice and bigotry," she declared.

While Lord Carey welcomed the ruling of the British court for affirming one’s basic right to adopt any religious dress code according to his faith, he emphasised, "at the primary level this is not about religions clashing."

"This is essentially a dress code for religious Muslim girls but she has made it extremely political and very sensitive problem from a religion point of view," he explained.

Lord Carey is deeply concerned that the ripple effect (of the ruling) could well be a growing tension between the Muslim world and the non-Muslim world in the UK.

Compared to France, which has adopted a ban on all "conspicuous religious symbols" including Islamic head scarves, Jewish skullcaps and large Christian crosses from state schools last year, Lord Carey believes that Britain will never go that way.

He disagreed with what the Muslim schoolgirl said as she described the UK as a "bigoted" country in her statement after the court ruling. He also said that the widely debated religious hatred bill is unnecessary in the country.

Yesterday, the British Court of Appeal called on the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to give schools more guidance on how to meet their obligations under the Human Rights Act in the wake of the Muslim girl’s case.

DfES stated, "Governors should bear in mind their responsibilities under sex and race discrimination legislation and the Human Rights Act, be sensitive to pupils' cultural and religious needs and differences and give high priority to cost considerations."