The East Brabant court has upheld the expulsion of three eleven-year-old handball players by their association PSV. That shows a verdict which was published on Thursday afternoon.
The girls’ expulsion has caused a stir in recent months. The parents claim that their daughters were expelled because they refused to shower (naked) after competitions. They therefore went to court, supported by the Islamic interest group Muslim Right Watch Netherlands (MRWN), to overturn the club’s decision.
MRWN also posted one message on her Instagram account in which it was stated that PSV Handbal created an “unsafe situation” by forcing the girls to undress and shower. The organization also started a petition.
According to the handball club, the discussion about showering at the club has nothing to do with the expulsion and the girls were sent away because of their parents’ misconduct. They are said to have been involved on several occasions in “serious incidents” around matches, such as the “transgressive treatment” of coaches and supervisors, which created an unpleasant and unsafe atmosphere within the team.
The judge did not attempt a substantive assessment of the conflict. The ground for rejecting the parents’ demands is technical. They should first have used the internal appeal option included in the association’s articles of association within one month. They failed to do so, and summary proceedings, according to the judge, “do not provide an opportunity for an extensive factual investigation.”
