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Words or adjectives used by President Emmanuel Macron in an hour-long speech in an immigrant-populated area near Paris on Friday about Islam and French Muslims are rare in France.
He says he is introducing new legislation to deal with groups, institutions and individuals who threaten the unity of France and the “secular values” of the French Republic. He has clearly identified “hardline Islam” as the supposed enemy of French society.
President Macron said that the main bond of unity in France is “secularism.”
“We have to fight those who want to crack down in the name of religion,” he said.
Throughout the speech, Macron tried to say that he was not against Islam or Muslims. But at the same time, the French president expressed his deep concern about Islam.
“Islam is in crisis all over the world, even in Muslim majority countries.”
“We need to help this religion now so that they can be part of the Republic of France,” he said.
He said France needed to establish an Islam based on “the light of knowledge.”
In this context, he raised the question of the historical movement in France to separate the Church from the State.
In the face of French politicians, the reform of Islam, which is in line with the political culture of France, is not new.
Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy also planned to “restructure Islam.” A similar tone was heard in President Macron’s voice on Friday.
“It is important to protect the French Republic, protect its values and ensure that the Republic’s commitment to equality and liberation is fulfilled,” he said.
The French president said that a part of the 6 million Muslims in France were trying to establish an alternative parallel society, which was dangerous.
“The problem is with a (religious) doctrine that claims that its own law is superior to the law of the republic … French Islam must be protected from foreign influence.”
In recent years, there has been a flurry of criticism from leaders of France and other European countries about ‘hardline Islam’, but many have been surprised by the discourse on Islam by a moderate politician like President Macron.
Muslim leaders in France are outraged by his immediate response. They say the president has criticized anti-Muslim sentiments for petty political interests and that his bill would further alienate French Muslims from mainstream society.
Shamsuddin Hafeez, the rector of the Paris mosque, described the president’s entire statement and his bill as a “hoax” in a sub-editorial of the daily Le Monde.
He said that a united effort was needed rather than such popular rhetoric to improve the image before the elections. He says that the changes Macron speaks of “are not within the power of the state.”
Amr Lasfer, president of the French Muslim Association, told Reuters in an interview that the words and adjectives used by Macron about Islam and Muslims were offensive.
“He has tried to present a danger, a fear, in front of people, with which I do not agree. He could only speak of extremism. It is not correct to use the word ‘Islamic extremism’ to put all Muslims in a line.
Writer and researcher Bruno McAyes tweeted: “Mr. Macron has not repressed his attitude towards Islam. Now not only “hardline Islam” is your problem, Islam is your problem.
French Muslim human rights activist Yasser Luati tweeted: “Muslims are already under threat of attack. Now Macron has promised more attacks. In his hour-long speech, he denounced secularism and sang to the tune of far-right and anti-Muslim leftists.
What’s in the proposed law
A bill that President Macron has announced to protect French society from “hardline Islam” is expected to be finalized in mid-October. However, the statement from the president and government officials said plans were being made to monitor and control Islamic education, madrassas, foreign donations to Islamic institutions, and the spread of radical Islamic ideology:
The government will easily be able to intervene if there is any indication that someone in government service is being inducted into a ‘hard line doctrine’.
The government will strengthen its control over any attempt to spread religious fundamentalism under the guise of sports, entertainment or any other activity.
Going to school from the age of three will be compulsory and home study will be prohibited. There is an idea that many Muslim families avoid general education and send their children to approved madrasas in the name of home schooling. Surveillance of Arabic-language schools will be increased.
There will be a strict monitoring of the collection of donations from religious groups abroad, and any socio-religious project that conflicts with the values of the French State will be prohibited.
The training of magnets will be organized within France by ceasing to bring magnets from abroad. The government will establish an Islamic institute with science-based education.
Source: BBC
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