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For a crime in court, and the indictment with a headscarf? Suspected criminals, regardless of whether they are atheists, Jews or Christians, now have to adjust to this in Berlin. What was previously considered impossible, because the state is obliged to be neutral, should become a reality in Berlin.
Responsible: Senator of Justice Dirk Behrendt (Greens). It is causing a scandal in the red-red-green coalition. Early Wednesday afternoon at the House Legal Committee, incredulous glances at the SPD MPs and the opposition: Behrendt commented on the latest decision of the Federal Labor Court in Erfurt on the Berlin Neutrality Law.
A Muslim woman received compensation of 5,129 euros for discrimination for not being employed in the Berlin State school service due to her veil.
The Erfurt judges criticized: If a future teacher is rejected for a headscarf according to Berlin law, the reasons why the headscarf disturbs the peace at school should be clearer: an individual decision,
School senator Sandra Scheeres does not rule out filing a constitutional complaint against the latest ruling from the Federal Labor Court. She said this during question time in the Berlin House of Representatives on Thursday. “For me it is important that we have a neutral situation in the Berlin schools so that conflicts are not brought to the schools. We have to do everything we can to make sure we have a quiet environment for the students, ”said Scheeres. As soon as the judgment is in writing, the next steps will be examined.
She was “not satisfied” with the judgment. This is a ban on religious signs as a whole, not just the headscarf. Scheeres reiterated that this was important for the overall school peace to be preserved. “If there is a conflict with a teacher, it affects the pedagogical work of all the teachers. I get letters from teachers and school administrators every day that we must stick to this line. “
Unlike Scheeres, Judicial Senator Behrendt draws entirely different conclusions, although the federal judges themselves have not explicitly declared the law unconstitutional. And although the neutrality law still applies in the state of Berlin.
In the future, Muslim faith-forming lawyers will be able to read the indictment with a headscarf in court. Justice Senator Behrendt announced on the legal committee. The only restriction: in addition to the woman wearing a headscarf as the accuser, the respective instructor must also sit down.
And for everyone in the courtroom it should be clear: the head scarf accuser is in training and is accompanied by a prosecutor in training, as Behrendt put it. And that is exactly how the representatives of the SPD and the CDU understood it.
SPD complains that the Senator for Justice does it alone
In the R2G coalition, Behrendt’s decision is seen as arbitrary and an affront. SPD legal expert Sven Kohlmeier told Tagesspiegel: “Here we as a coalition have to find a uniform line. Dirk Behrendt’s solo effort is not good. “
CDU legal expert Sven Rissmann hints that the Justice Senator “wants to create facts.” A veil for state officials, especially in the central area of state authority in the judiciary and the police, is politically and socially undesirable.
The SPD fears the consequences of Behrendt’s decision: Can a prosecutor be prohibited from wearing a headscarf in the future if he was allowed to wear a headscarf during his preparatory work as a prosecutor and as a probation officer ?
The opposition factions of the FDP and AfD also say: Behrendt breaks down legal and institutional firewalls on his own. In the current heated debate between left and right, the decision could lead to further radicalization.
Greens and the left emphasize diversity in Berlin
Independent MP Marcel Luthe (member of the FDP party) says: “Ideology and law never go hand in hand. If personal ideology is more important to the Senator of Justice than the state duty to be neutral, then it does not belong to the civil service. “
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The government red-red-green coalition is still divided after the ruling of the Federal Labor Court. The SPD insists on the state’s requirement of neutrality, especially in the courts or with the police. Social Democrats fear that a political dam will break.
Greens, on the other hand, see veiled teachers as a sign of the future in multicultural Berlin, for children to learn to “deal with diversity and difference.” This includes a “diverse college” in schools. The realities in schools are intended to generate acceptance “in society as a whole.”
“What someone has in his head and not in his head”
The current neutrality law goes against the grain for the Greens and the Left. After the Erfurt ruling, they ask for an amendment, due to the objective of the fight against discrimination. Judge Senator Behrendt had repeatedly criticized the law. “In multi-religious society it has to be about what someone has in their head and not in their head,” he tweeted.
Funny: As parts of the left and the Greens celebrate the verdict of the federal labor judges, other parts of the two parties lament the return of religion in the state. Especially since Christianity is losing influence in Berlin. Not even a quarter of Berliners belong to one of the two Christian churches. In contrast, Islam is gaining influence.
Public officials must maintain neutrality in service, politically, ideologically, and religiously. Therefore, Behrendt’s approach also has to do with the question: Should public servants be allowed to openly display their beliefs to citizens? Or to put it more clearly: Can a judge wearing a headscarf be placed in the courtroom despite the requirement of neutrality? Or a veiled policewoman on duty? So far this is not allowed.
As the Greens speak of a multi-religious society, the interest group of Berlin school administrators is sending a clear stop signal. The Erfurt trial is fatal. Because Muslim students were already pressuring Muslim students to put on their headscarf. Or because they didn’t accept unveiled teachers.
