Category Archives: France

Racist graffiti on French mosque for sixth time

Posted on by Bob Pitt

BougneFrance’s main Muslim group says a mosque has been defaced with racist graffiti in the sixth such incident this year.

The head of the French Council of the Muslim Faith says racist words were painted over the weekend on the walls of the mosque in Sorgues, in the picturesque Vaucluse region.

It is the sixth time this year that a French mosque has been tarnished by racist graffiti. Mohammed Moussaoui says that Muslims now have a right to ask about the “real objectives” behind these acts.

He noted that his group which brings together various Muslim tendencies has called numerous times for a parliamentary inquiry into Islamophobia, to no avail.

Associated Press, 18 February 2010

NPA denounced for standing hijab-wearing candidate

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Ilham MoussaidOlivier Besancenot, the postman-turned-revolutionary at the helm of France’s anti-capitalist movement, has been fiercely criticised from all sides of the political spectrum for fielding a headscarf-wearing candidate in forthcoming elections.

Ilham Moussaid, a 21-year-old Muslim woman who describes herself as “feminist, secular and veiled”, is running for the far-left New Anti-Capitalist party (NPA) in the south-eastern region of Avignon. But, despite her insistence that there is no contradiction between her clothing and her political role, Moussaid’s candidacy in the regional vote due in March has angered other feminists and politicians.

In an echo of the controversy raised by recent moves to ban the full, face-covering veil in public places such as schools, hospitals and buses, critics have said that the young activist’s headscarf, which conceals only her hair, goes against values of laïcité – secularism – and women’s rights.

Today, in a sign of how deep concerns are running, a leading feminist group announced it would file an official complaint against the NPA’s list of candidates in the Vaucluse département to protest against what it called an “anti-secular, anti-feminist and anti-republican” stunt.

“In choosing to endorse ‘open’ laïcité, the NPA is perverting the values of the Republic and suggesting we reread them in a manner which conforms with regressive visions of women,” said the Ni Putes Ni Soumises (Neither Whores Nor Submissives) association in a statement.

Others have expressed their shock at Besancenot’s attempt to field a candidate who sees no problem with making an overt statement about her religion in the public sphere, a practice considered taboo.

Guardian, 11 February 2010

Migrants must renounce veil if they want to live in France, says minister

Posted on by Bob Pitt

02/13/2007. Le couple Christian Estrosi, ministre delegue de l'amenagement du territoire et Nadine Morano, depute UMP de Meurthe et Moselle en visite a Nancy.Immigrants should sign a “no burka” contract before being allowed to live in France, the country’s families minister has said.

It would be added to an “integration agreement” that all newcomers already have to commit to, which also bans forced marriages and polygamy.

Nadine Morano said: “Equality between men and women is a fundamental principle of French society. “This applies to polygamy, forced marriages, female mutilation and the full-face veil.”

Her proposal came at a government conference yesterday following a three-month debate on national identity. Last month a government committee said women who wear the garment should be barred from using public transport and outlawed from public buildings like schools and hospitals.

Ms Morano has the backing of many prominent MPs in her call to have immigrants who wear burkas banned from staying in France.

French interior minister Brice Hortefeux said in December that both women who wear veils and their husbands should be “systematically refused” French residents’ permits. And President Nicolas Sarkozy has branded face veils “a sign of debasement” and said they were not welcome in France.

Daily Mail, 9 February 2010

France unveils national identity plans

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Newcomers to France will be made to sign a declaration of values as part of a new campaign to define national identity, France’s Prime Minister says. Francois Fillon announced the initiative after three months of public debates around the country.

Other measures include the flying of the French flag and the singing of the national anthem – La Marseilleise – at schools, to promote patriotism. Critics say the debate simply provoked anti-Muslim sentiment and racism.

Polls showed many French people found the discussions were not constructive and President Nicolas Sarkozy, originally a keen supporter of the initiative, quickly began to distance himself from the debate. The promised grand presentation of the findings was downgraded to a low-key event.

BBC News, 9 February 2010

Swastikas and racist graffiti smeared on French mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Saint-Etienne mosque graffiti

Swastikas and racist and anti-Moslem graffiti were discovered Monday on the Great Mosque of the city of Saint-Etienne, French media reported.

About a dozen inscriptions, such as “Dirty Niggers,” “France for the French,” “No Arabs Here” and “We will get you” were scrawled on the mosque’s walls with the type of spray cans commonly used by graffiti artists.

The discovery came as several ministers of the French government met under Prime Minister Francois Fillon to draw conclusions from the controversial nationwide debate on national identity the government has led for the past few months.

The debate, which has been slammed by opposition politicans as a political ploy, gave rise to a wave of anti-Islam declarations, by anonymous individuals on the website dedicated to the debate, as well as by several conservative politicians.

The umbrella body French Council of the Moslem Religion (CFCM), which reported the inscriptions, urged the government to set up a parliamentary commission to investigate the recent increase of anti-Moslem incidents.

DPA, 8 February 2010

See also “Profanation de la grande mosquée”, AFP, 8 February 2010

 

NPA stands hijab-wearing candidate

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A candidate for a radical French anti-capitalist party in the forthcoming regional elections wears a headscarf as a token of her Islamic faith, something that has raised eyebrows in this rigidly secular society.

All the more so because the NPA (New Anti-capitalist Party), led by Trotskyist postman Olivier Besancenot, is a party that generates headlines for its extreme left wing position on issues including militant secularism.

Scarf-wearing Ilham Moussaid, a student and a party treasurer, is NPA candidate for the regional council of Vaucluse in southern France, Besancenot confirmed to French daily Le Figaro.

“A woman can be a feminist, can uphold secular values and wear a [Islamic] headscarf at the same time,” he told the newspaper.

France 24, 3 February 2010

Via Lenin’s Tomb

French Council of the Muslim Faith calls for action against Islamophobia

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Islam dehorsA French Muslim organisation has condemned a weekend attack on a mosque north of Paris.

The phrases “Islam get out of Europe” and “France is for the French” were scrawled on the walls and entrance of a mosque in Crepy-en-Valois.

The mayor’s office of Crepy-en-Valois denounced what it called a “horrible, idiotic act”, while the French Council of the Muslim Faith said the attack was the latest in a long line of incidents that had targeted mosques in France. The organisation called on authorities to take action to end the “series of shameful and hateful profanities that target houses of prayer.”

The Council, whose members are elected by French Muslims, also called for French President Nicolas Sarkozy to back a parliamentary commission that would examine the rise of Islamophobia in France. The proposal was dropped from last week’s report that called for a ban on the full Islamic veil in official public spaces like government offices, hospitals or schools.

Last month a mosque in the southern town of Castres was targeted and had swastikas and the phrase daubed Sieg Heil on its walls.

RFI, 1 February 2010

French Catholic Church speaks out against veil ban

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The French Catholic Church warned Paris today against banning Muslim full-face veils. It said France must respect the rights of its Muslims if it wanted Islamic countries to do the same for their Christian minorities.

Bishop Michel Santier, the top French Catholic official for inter-religious dialogue, said very few women in France wore full veils and Muslim leaders agreed it was not obligatory in Islam.

“The French, including the Catholics among them, should not let themselves be gripped by fear or a ‘clash of civilisations’ theory,” he said in a statement calling for distinctions between the majority of peaceful Muslims and a minority of radicals. “If we want Christian minorities in Muslim majority countries to enjoy all their rights, we should in our country respect the rights of all believers to practice their faith.”

Daily Mail, 1 February 2010

Veil ban will increase Islamophobia, boost far right and oppress women

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“Raphaël Liogier is right to point out the problems with France’s proposed ban on the veil (Comment, 27 January), which will pave the way for similar moves against other visible expressions of religion. Shutting down the right to choose to wear the veil will only further embolden Islamophobia, the far right and fascist parties. The debate has had the net effect of demonising a minority of Muslim women, who number less than 2,000 in France. It will mean the only option for many of these women will be to stay confined to their homes. All this, ironically, in the name of integration and the liberation of women. We are one society and many cultures; respecting and allowing all cultures freedom of expression, as long as this does not impinge on the rights of others, means all communities can fully contribute to society. The debate in France is already impacting here, with Ukip calling for a ban on the burka and niqab.”

Letter from Ken Livingstone and others in the Guardian, 29 January 2010