Brussels, 09/06/2008 (Agence Europe) -On Friday 6 June, nearly 150 members of the European Parliament sent a petition to the French Justice Minister, Rachida Dati, criticising the "dangerous precedent" created by the judgement of the French court which annulled a marriage because the Muslim bride had lied about her virginity.
" Contrary to the decision of the District Court of Lille, we the undersigned consider that the virginity of a woman is not an essential personal quality, any more than it is for a man", the petition explains (our translation). It goes on to state that "this is a dangerous precedent, which must be a great comfort to certain fundamentalists in their archaic battle, when the law should be one of the bastions against this kind of fanaticism. We see this as a serious step backwards, against which we protest strongly".
The first to sign this text include the French MEP and vice-president of the EP Martine Roure (PES), Margie Sudre (EPP, France), British Labour member Michael Cashman (PES) and Gérard Deprez (ALDE, Belgium). The text has been signed by nearly 150 MEPs so far.
In the letter to Rachida Dati accompanying the petition, Martine Roure writes that the signatories of the text do not challenge the decision delivered by an independent court. However, she says that they are opposed to the fact that, in France in 2008, virginity can be considered an essential quality for a person, and especially a woman. She concludes by saying that this issue goes beyond political divisions and serves only one cause, that of human dignity.
The District Court of Lille annulled the marriage on the grounds that the bride, having lied about her virginity, had deceived her husband on “the essential elements” of the marriage. The husband's lawyer, Xavier Labbée said that the ruling had been perfectly justified since “the bride acknowledged that she had lied”. Initially, Dati seemed to support the court's decision, saying it was “also a way of protecting the person”. In the wake of criticism from the opposition and women's rights groups she called on the public prosecutor to appeal against the decision. (L.C./transl. rt)