March 12 (UPI) — German officials have announced that women will be officially allowed to swim topless in Berlin pools after a complaint had been filed for discrimination.
The Berlin government said in a statement Thursday that an unnamed woman had said she was not allowed to swim topless at a pool in the city despite regulations not making gender-specific requirements for swimwear.
Regulations for Berlin’s public pools only stipulate that swimmers must wear “commercial swimwear.”
Berlin’s government said in an article on its news portal that the woman was expelled from a swimming pool in the Treptow-Köpenick district of Berlin in the summer of 2021.
Doris Liebscher, the head of Berlin’s Office for Equal Treatment Against Discrimination, hailed the decision because it “creates equal rights for all Berliners, whether male, female or non-binary.”
Liebscher added that the decision also creates “legal certainty” for swimming pool staff.
“It is now a matter of ensuring that the regulation is applied consistently and that no more evictions or house bans are issued,” Liebscher said.
“The decision shows once again how successful the establishment of the independent LADS ombudsman is: It supports citizens and administration in settling complaints of discrimination quickly, free of charge and out of court.”
