Austria’s Headscarf Ban Faces Setback as SPÖ Blocks Constitutional Push
VIENNA — Austria’s plan to expand a ban on Islamic headscarves for schoolgirls has hit a major obstacle, with the opposition Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) refusing to back a constitutional amendment sought by Integration Minister Claudia Plakolm of the ÖVP, according to ORF News.
Plakolm had proposed anchoring the law in the Constitution to secure it against legal challenges after Austria’s Constitutional Court struck down an earlier version introduced under the previous ÖVP–FPÖ government. That 2019 measure banned headscarves for girls in primary schools, but the court ruled it violated equality rights by targeting only one religion.
The new proposal would extend the ban to girls up to the eighth grade, but critics warn it still singles out Muslim students and risks another constitutional defeat.
“We want a constitutional headscarf ban, not an unconstitutional one placed in the Constitution,” SPÖ parliamentary sources told Die Presse. Without SPÖ support, Plakolm’s plan to secure the required two-thirds majority is effectively dead.
The Greens, part of the governing coalition, have already said they will not back a “clearly unconstitutional” law. The NEOS and far-right FPÖ might support the amendment, but their votes alone are not enough to pass it.
Political observers say pressing ahead without the SPÖ could destabilize Austria’s governing coalition, since the ÖVP–Greens–NEOS pact allows no “coalition-free” votes.
For now, Austria’s contentious debate over religious symbols in schools remains unresolved, caught between constitutional limits and the government’s political ambitions.
