Organisation says official investigation found no request to hide, remove or exclude women, but the controversy has raised serious questions over how employees were treated during the visit

LR Desk/Agenicies

Paris: The BAPS Paris organisation has sought to clarify the controversy surrounding its delegation’s visit to the Eiffel Tower, strongly denying that it had asked female employees to be hidden, removed or excluded from the visitor route.

In a statement issued following the publication of the official investigation findings, BAPS said it wanted to reiterate its concern for the employees affected by the events surrounding the visit.

The organisation maintained that it had never instructed or requested that female employees be hidden or excluded during the delegation’s visit. According to BAPS, the investigation has now established that no such request was made for women to be excluded from the visitor route.

The central controversy

The clarification comes against the backdrop of allegations and concerns surrounding the treatment of employees during the Eiffel Tower visit. The issue gained attention because of claims that female employees may have been kept away from, or excluded from, parts of the visit.

BAPS has categorically rejected that allegation, stating that it “never asked for female employees to be hidden, removed or excluded.”

The organisation said the findings of the official investigation support its position and demonstrate that no request was made by BAPS for women to be excluded along the visitor route.

However, the episode has highlighted a larger concern: what exactly happened to the employees during the visit, and why did the circumstances give rise to such serious allegations in the first place?

Employees remain at the centre of the issue

While BAPS has focused on denying that it issued any instruction to exclude women, the statement also acknowledges that employees were affected by the events surrounding the visit.

The organisation expressed concern for those employees and said it hoped the clarification would help provide a better understanding of what occurred.

This distinction is important. Establishing whether BAPS formally requested the exclusion of female employees addresses one aspect of the controversy, but it does not necessarily answer every question surrounding the incident or the experience of the employees involved.

For those affected, the key issue remains whether they were treated fairly, what instructions were actually communicated on the ground, and how the situation unfolded during the visit.

BAPS calls for respectful closure

BAPS said it hoped the official findings and its clarification would contribute to a better understanding of the circumstances and allow everyone involved to “move forward respectfully.”

The statement appears aimed at drawing a line under the controversy while making clear that the organisation does not accept the allegation that it sought to exclude women from the visitor route.

The episode nevertheless raises broader questions about workplace dignity, equal treatment and accountability, particularly when employees are part of official organisational visits or public events.

For now, BAPS's position is unequivocal: it says no instruction was issued to hide, remove or exclude female employees. The focus now shifts to the circumstances that led to the controversy, the findings of the official investigation and whether those findings adequately address the concerns raised by the employees involved.

Disclaimer: This news is written on the basis of information received from different authentic sources.