How Swimming Classes Became an Integration Issue in Switzerland

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled unanimously Tuesday in favor of a Swiss school’s decision not to exempt two Muslim students from its obligatory mixed-gender swimming lessons, finding that the school did not violate the students’ religious freedoms as their parents claimed.

Here’s what happened: In 2010, Aziz Osmanoglu and Sehabat Kocabas, Swiss nationals of Turkish origin, did not want to send their two daughters, aged 11 and nine-years-old at the time, to compulsory mixed-gender swimming classes at the girls’ school in the northwestern city of Basel. The couple said the lessons, which would involve their daughters wearing swimsuits in front of their male peers, violated their Muslim faith, which in some interpretations requires separation of the sexes. School authorities said exceptions could only be made for students who have reached puberty—the school determined the girls in question had not—and offered the, a full-body swimsuit, to class, as well as access to female-only dressing areas. The school authorities warned the parents could face fines of approximately $1,292 euros ($1,364) if the girls continued to skip the lessons.