Court: Muslim girls in Switzerland must attend mixed-sex swim classes

The European Court of Human Rights upheld a Swiss court ruling ordering a Muslim couple to enroll their daughters in a mandatory mixed-gender swimming class. Swiss courts delivered the initial ruling in 2008, but the couple, originally from Turkey, failed to comply with the order. The parents were fined about $1,380 in 2010 for refusing to send their daughters to the swimming class. Officials said the girls could wear burkinis and that they could undress during the class without any boys present. “The public interest in following the full school curriculum should prevail over the applicants’ private interest in obtaining an exemption from mixed swimming lessons for their daughters,” the court said.