Prime Minister Manuel Valls says the swimsuit reflects a worldview based on “the enslavement of women”.
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Three French Mediterranean towns have banned the garment on beaches this summer, citing security concerns after a season marred by deadly extremist attacks.
“Beaches, like all public spaces, must be kept free of religious claims”, he said, though he added that he does not plan on pushing for a countrywide ban on the burkini.
According to the French PM, the idea that women are not pure by nature and that they should be completely covered is archaic.
Before the brouhaha over burkinis, French laws banning face-covering veils in public and headscarves in schools – also based on view that they violate French secularism and oppress women – had alienated many among France’s 5 million Muslims.
Much of the French political class, from the left to the far right, agrees – including the government’s proudly feminist women’s affairs minister.
The women were all stopped by police in Cannes where a ban on the conservative swimming attire came into place on 28 July. It can not be considered only as a question of fashion or individual liberty, ‘ Laurence Rossignol said.
Ten Muslim women have been apprehended by French police for wearing a burkini to the beach, with four having to pay a fine, a French official said on Wednesday.
Valls said he understood the mayors’ decisions to ban the burkini for the sake of public order, but added that “a general regulation of dress requirements can not be a solution”. The organizers, the Smile 13 group, which describes itself on Facebook as a sports and social event group for women and children, said they had received death threats, with one person even claiming they received bullets in the mail.
“Women’s rights imply the right for a woman to cover up”, said Alouane, a Muslim who was born and raised in France.
The Prime Minister’s comments arrive in the wake of an all-out beach brawl in Corsica, where tourists taking pictures of burkini-wearing got into a heated discussion with locals.
The burkini “was created by Western Muslim women who wanted to conciliate their faith and desire to dress modestly with recreational activities”.
The mayors of Oye-Page and Le Touquet in the north of France have been similarly outspoken, with MP Daniel Fasquelle saying: “There are no burkinis in Le Touquet at the moment, but I don’t want the town hall to be caught offguard if we are affected by this phenomenon”.
France is a secular country and authorities seek to remove displays of religiosity in public.
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Valls called for calm in Corsica, where clashes between villagers and three Muslim families broke out over the weekend. His statement comes as more French towns announced plans to ban the female Muslim swimwear.
