A Montreal resident has filed a complaint against Quebec Court Judge Eliana Marengo over her decision not to hear the case of a Muslim woman because she was wearing a hijab.
Rania El-Alloul appeared in court Feb. 24 in an attempt to recover her vehicle, which had been seized by Quebec’s automobile insurance board, the SAAQ.
Marengo refused to hear El-Alloul’s testimony unless she removed her hijab, which El-Alloul would not do.
In his complaint to Quebec’s judicial council, Jean-Pierre Lussier says Marengo’s decision was decried by many citizens, politicians and groups that support the protection of civil rights across Canada.
Lussier, who doesn’t know El-Alloul, said that many people were surprised by the “rigidity” of the judge.
The judicial council, an independent body officially known as the Conseil de la magistrature, is mandated to examine complaints related to the conduct of judges.
The council will do an initial review, and if it “decides the complaint should be investigated further, it will look into the events that led to the complaint,” according to its website.
If deemed necessary, the judicial council will then set up an inquiry committee, which will “decide if any sanctions should be imposed.”
El-Alloul is considering taking legal action as well, but is meeting with lawyers and hasn’t made a final decision.
Fo Niemi, the director of Montreal’s Centre for Research Action on Race Relations, said he will also file a complaint with the judicial council. But he added that it’s inherently difficult to challenge judges on their ethics.
A major part of the issue, he said, is that Quebec’s code of ethics for judges doesn’t make any mention of discrimination.
“There’s no specific provision in there saying the judge shall not commit discrimination against people who come before him or her because of gender, religion, race and so on and so forth,” Niemi said.
He said the absence of that kind of provision in the code of ethics is problematic.
"[It] could create, shall we say, a vacuum in terms of how the complaint in her case will be assessed and eventually ruled upon by the Quebec judicial council, and that’s why we have to frame in such a way that the case will be dealt with as a case of violation of a constitutional right,” he said.
Welfare status
Meanwhile, a crowdfundingcampaign to buy El-Alloul a new car continued to gain traction through the weekend. It had raised almost $44,000 as of Monday morning.
While El-Alloul said she was grateful for the support, there’s also a possibility taking the money or the car could jeopardize her status as a welfare recipient, according to one expert.
“Welfare is going to say, ‘Well, you’re too rich to get welfare,’” Hans Marotte, a lawyer specializing in welfare and unemployment benefits, told CBC News.
“They’re going to consider all the money that you receive from any source.”
A friend of the family has helped them find a replacement car. El-Alloul is supposed to get her own back by the middle of the month.