PARIS, France: Discrimination based on religion has increased in France, a report by the country´s rights ombudswoman found on Thursday, with one in three Muslims surveyed saying they had suffered from it.
France has a significant Muslim community through immigration from its former colonies, including in North Africa.
French law bans collecting data on a person´s race, ethnicity or religion, which makes it difficult to have broad statistics on discrimination.
But the office of rights chief Claire Hedon cited a 2024 survey of 5,000 people representative of France´s population.
Seven per cent of those interviewed said they had suffered discrimination based on religion during the past five years, compared to just five percent in 2016, it said.
The rate was highest among people of Muslim heritage.
Up to 34 per cent of Muslims -- or people perceived as Muslims -- said they had been discriminated against, compared to 19 per cent for other religions including Judaism and Buddhism, and just four percent among Christians.
The rate stood at 38 per cent for Muslim women, compared to 31 per cent for their male counterparts.
Discrimination could lead to exclusion, especially for Muslim women wearing a headscarf, the report said. “Stigmatised in public spaces, they face restrictions on their careers,” it said.
