Local government administrators in Grenoble have claimed that an activist group supporting the sharia-compliant swimwear known as the “burkini” has disrupted several swimming pools in the city.
Grenoble has seen activists from the group “Citizens’ Alliance” disrupt swimming pools several times over the course of the summer by entering the pools or attempting to enter them while wearing the burkini, which is prohibited in the French city.
The city released a statement on Sunday, confirming that the swimming pools were bound by municipal regulations, saying: “Only considerations related to hygiene and safety can determine which bathing suits are allowed or prohibited in pools. Unlike public schools, no arguments related to Laïcité [French State secularism] can be used to establish this distinction.”
According to a report from the French newspaper Le Dauphine, the city also noted that of the seven activists who were kicked out of a pool during the last protest, none actually resided in Grenoble.
“If these deplorable provocations were to recur, offenders would be solely responsible for the temporary closure of public facilities,” the city added.
In March, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin accused Citizens’ Alliance of “promoting rules compatible with sharia law” and called on the European Commission — the EU’s powerful executive branch — to stop funding the group.
“Under the guise of combating ‘Islamophobia’, [Citizens’ Alliance] is putting pressure on public authorities to promote rules compatible with sharia […] The members of this association are followers of conspiracy theories and express no compassion for the victims of terrorism,” Darmanin said.
Citizens’ Alliance has been protesting at swimming pools in Grenoble for years, and in 2019, counter-protesters called on people to swim in pools naked in response to the pro-burkini activists.
While the French supreme court overturned a ban on the burkini on public beaches in 2016, pools in cities like Grenoble and other countries have maintained a ban on the controversial swimwear.