‘Unacceptable’: Marine Le Pen condemns removal of female staff during Hindu group’s visit to Eiffel Tower | Today’s news
Paris authorities have launched an investigation into the alleged ejection of female staff at the Eiffel Tower during Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha’s (BAPS) visit on Sunday. The matter came to light on Monday after workers went on strike, which closed the Eiffel Tower, one of the world’s most visited monuments, for the day.
According to Reuters, signs at the base of the tower on Monday read: “The opening of the Eiffel Tower is postponed for operational reasons.”
Paris mayor Marine Le Pen condemns
Paris Mayor Emmanuel Gregoire said an investigation would be launched “as soon as possible”. In a post on the social media platform, X said he was aware of the employees’ anger and agreed that their discontent was legitimate.
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National Rally leader Marine Le Pen also condemned the incident and called for an investigation.
“In France, we will never accept that the presence of women is ‘limited.’ All light must be shed on what happened during this visit to the Eiffel Tower,” Le Pen said in a post in X.
What the operator of the Eiffel Tower said
In a statement, Eiffel Tower staff condemned what they described as “professional guidelines that led to female employees being sidelined, replaced and made invisible because of their gender” during the delegation’s visit, according to AFP.
“Instructions have been given to Eiffel Tower employees and supplier employees to become invisible to welcome this delegation,” the staff said in a statement, adding that they were shocked to find themselves in such a situation.
“Some were asked to leave their posts and retreat to other areas. In some places they were replaced by men. And all female employees were instructed not to enter or cross certain areas while the delegation was present.”
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SETE, the operating company that runs the Eiffel Tower, acknowledged that the delegation had requested that the visit be organized to limit “interactions with women” and said “these conditions should not have been accepted”.
The conditions “were not in line with SETE’s values, nor with the principles of equality between men and women,” the company said, according to AFP, adding that it would accept “consequences”.
“This is clearly not an acceptable practice,” SETE president Ariel Weil, who is also a Socialist elected representative in Paris, told AFP.
“I reiterate the commitment of the Eiffel Tower to republican values and to the equality of men and women.”
BAPS issues a statement
According to Reuters, a BAPS delegation of around 100 members was on a private visit to the Eiffel Tower on Sunday.
BAPS, whose representatives were in France for celebrations related to the inauguration of a Hindu temple in a Paris suburb, said in a statement that the visit to the Eiffel Tower was arranged at the beginning of opening hours to avoid disturbing others, given the size of its delegation.
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“To our knowledge, at no time was anyone prevented from accessing the Eiffel Tower. However, we sincerely apologize for any pain or inconvenience caused,” the statement said.
What is BAPS?
According to its website, BAPS was founded by Shastriji Maharaj in 1907 and is rooted in the spiritual teachings of Bhagwan Swaminarayan. It claims to have a presence in more than 50 countries and operates more than 1,300 temples worldwide. This includes the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi, which was inaugurated on 14 February 2024 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
