Nice becomes latest resort to have burkini ban overturned

A COURT in Nice has suspended the city's ban on burkinis, ruling that the bylaw was based on false premises.
In its ruling, the administrative court of Nice said: "The mayor cannot, without exceeding his powers, enact a provision that prohibits access to the beach and the sea if it is not based on a proven risk of provoking public order, or established violations of hygiene, decency or safety.”
It also found that burkinis pose no risk to 'hygiene, decency or safety when swimming'.
Rejecting claims from the mairie's lawyers that the city was 'on the brink of civil war', the court said that there was no proven risk to public order.
Nice is the latest resort along the Riviera to have its prohibition on the beachwear overturned after the Conseil d'Etat suspended a similar ban in Villeneuve-Loubet. Similar bylaws in Cannes and Fréjus have also been suspended.
The ban in Nice was implemented on August 19.
But the Mediterranean city became the focus of international condemnation of the ban after images emerged of a woman being ordered by police to remove a long-sleeved article of clothing that resembled a burkini.
Despite the ruling of France's highest administrative court last Friday, a number of mayors had vowed to keep their bans in place.
According to regional newspaper Nice Matin, bans remain in place in around six towns along the Riviera.
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) has condemned the bans, saying that they were 'a grave and illegal breach of fundamental freedoms' and a 'stupid reaction' to recent attacks.