A Geneva teacher fired for controversial comments he made in an article for a French newspaper will receive SFr255,000 in damages from the canton of Geneva. The canton announced yesterday it is paying the amount to Hani Ramadan, a French teacher from a junior high school (cycle d’orientation) in Meyrin. The sum is the equivalent of two years’ salary for the teacher who was sacked in November 2004 after defending the stoning of men and women guilty of adultery.
His opinion piece was published in the fall of 2002 by Le Monde, the Paris-based newspaper, causing a storm of controversy. The canton ruled that Ramadan had violated his professional principles in making public such views. Ramadan, who has since worked as director of Geneva’s Islamic center, subsequently contested the decision to fire him. An appeal commission of the education department sided with Ramadan, annulling the termination to the embarrassment of cantonal decision-makers.
The canton opted to pay the maximum indemnity to guarantee “peace” over the issue, Laurent Moutinot, cantonal president, told a press conference. The government has also agreed to pay Ramadan’s legal fees, which have amounted to SFr90,000 in the affair. In all, the canton has paid more than SFr1 million to deal with the conflict.