The Eiffel Tower closed to the public on Monday after staff went on strike over the removal of female employees during a private visit by a Hindu religious group.
Members of the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (Baps) – an ultra-conservative Hindu denomination from India – visited the tower on Saturday as part of wider celebrations to inaugurate a temple built by the group near Paris.
During the event, Baps allegedly requested that female staff be “set aside”.
The General Confederation of Labour (CGT) trade union, on behalf of Eiffel Tower staff, said management told women they were not to enter or pass through specific areas while the delegation was present.
This is a strike I support. How hard is out to just say no?
All you have to say is “I appreciate you religious views, but France is a secular country by law, with guaranteed equality of the sexes, and if removing women from view is a condition of visiting the Eiffel Tower, then I’m sorry but we can’t and won’t do that”
David Farrar runs Curia Market Research, a specialist opinion polling and research agency, and the popular Kiwiblog where this article was sourced. He previously worked in the Parliament for eight years, serving two National Party Prime Ministers and three Opposition Leaders
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