Why Sarko gets it and Obama doesn't
The everlasting debate over a piece of clothing deemed demeaning and humiliating by most people in the western world, is on yet again in France.
Following a request made by a communist member of parliament in the Rhône region (home to several heavily-immigrant-populated areas), French president Nicolas Sarkozy has officially appointed members to a commission which will debate the legality of wearing the burqa (which covers the entire body) and the niqab (which has an opening for the eyes).
The commission - formed by 58 elected representatives - is diverse and includes members of all political parties, left and right combined, which are represented in the French government. Sarkozy is asking for the government's support of the discussion and hopes it will bring, "legal propositions (in order to) counter a system which endangers individual freedoms in France." They have six months to investigate and present their official report to the government.
Two weeks ago during the Obama/Sarko press conference in Normandy at the D-Day commemorations, a journalist asked Obama what he thought about the controversial headscarf issue in France. The journalist was referring to a law passed in France in 2004 banning headscarves, veils or any other visible sign of religion in public schools (excluding universities).
Obama's response was homogeneous and consensual : "... as I said in the speech, I think that freedom of religious expression is critical... I will tell you that in the United States our basic attitude is, is that we’re not going to tell people what to wear ... my general view is, is that the most effective way to integrate people of all faiths is to not try to suppress their customs or traditions; rather to open up opportunities and give them a chance for full participation in the life of their country."
Many Americans feel the same way and believe that banning religious apparel seems intolerant. However, what appears unjust in the United States, is in fact necessary in France.
It is estimated the number of women in France who choose to wear the niqab or the burqa are a tiny minority, perhaps between 1,000 and 3,000. It is impossible to get an exact count but officials here agree it is on the rise.
If the number is so small, then what's the big deal?
The president of a women's rights organization "Ni Putes, Ni Soumises", Sihem Habchi, was one of the first to react. Her statement was that a debate should be encouraged to demonstrate what the reality of the situation is in France and to take a closer look at the deterioration of the condition of women in general.
In fact French women's rights' organizations are all for a reform which would completely ban the niqab and the burqa in public. Many feminists feel the legislation passed in 2004 was not specific enough and did not fully protect women who could be forced by husbands or family members into wearing the niqab.
Habchi went on to say that France has a responsibility to show on which side it stands, in particular at a time when Iranian women are fighting for their own rights.
While France's left wing is divided over the issue, about half of Sarkozy's opposition (socialist) agree that the niqab and burqa should not be allowed in France.
Mr. André Gerin, a member of the French communist party, (he is the congressman who brought the debate to the public spotlight), said that today, people in certain neighborhoods in France are confronted with a growing number of Muslim women who wear the burqa, which cloaks and veils the head and the entire body, in what he described as a wandering prison. He considers such apparel to be degrading.
"The sight of women imprisoned in the burqa or niqab from Iran, Afghanistan or Saudi Arabia is already intolerable, but it is totally unacceptable when it happens in France," said Mr. Gerin. "We are not talking about an ostentatious display of religion but a serious infringement of the dignity and respect for women," he pursued.
In an interview granted to Le Figaro newspaper, Dalil Boubakeur, the superintendent of the Paris Mosque, said that "the burqa is not prescribed in the Koran." He further notes that in pre-Islamic times, women in Afghanistan already wore the burqa, thereby explaining it is wrongly associated with his religion. Boubakeur said he supports the governmental commission as long as a dialog with Islamic officials is included. He told the newspaper, however, that because of religious and individual freedoms in France, he remains skeptical that a law banning the burqa will actually work. He believes a better understanding of the root of the problem, which in his view is due to a "hyper-affirmation" of identity and dysfunctional integration into French society, would be more successful.
On the streets of Venissieux, a town near Lyon (Rhône) which is often designated as an example in newscasts because of its large immigrant population, the controversy seems to exasperate most. "They should look for a solution for unemployment instead," one woman was quoted as saying in the daily La Croix, as she scurried away with her fully-cloaked mother, in the sweltering June sun. No one seems willing to talk much much about these women, primarily identified as Salafists, a particularly fervent branch of the Muslim religion, assumed to be a very small minority.
Mr. Gerin, however (quoted above), disagrees. The former mayor of Venisseux says he has seen too many instances where women wearing the niqab have caused problems. In particular he says an increasing number of women want to go through the civil wedding* procedure, which takes place at the town hall, but refuse to show their faces. In addition, niqab-clad women are demanding ID cards and other official documents with photographs in which they are veiled.
Equally as alarming, the "Ni Putes, Ni Soumises" organization has had a growing number of complaints from kindergarten schools, where teachers cannot recognize mothers coming to collect their children.
In a country which is built on the principles of separation between church and state, and which has always prided itself in a free, secular, public school system, open and welcoming to all, it is outrageous to imagine a young girl having to bear the brunt of the burqa at school.
The law passed in 2004 applies to minors attending public school in France, it does not concern students over 18 who attend universities, and are free to dress as they please. The idea was to protect younger girls who would suffer discrimination in public schools if they were being pressured to wear a veil. Furthermore, parents have a choice in France whether to send their children to public, secular schools or to private, religious ones. The measure was taken in order to keep France's public school system free of any outward signs of religion.
While it is hard to imagine anything similar preventing people from dressing as they please in the United States, it is difficult for women who live in the country which founded human rights, and who have fought so long themselves for equal rights, to be confronted to such an obvious and visible outward symbol of restraint.
The United States' Muslim population estimated at seven million people, represents less than 1% of its overall population. France on the other hand, with its heavy colonial past, has an official Muslim population of five million people, which make up more than 9% of its overall population. It is the country's second largest religion.
* In France, as in most European countries, individuals must get married at the town hall in order to validate their marriage. Traditionally, a religious ceremony may or may not take place - it is optional but not obligatory. This practice is fundamental to French citizens as it clearly shows the separation of church and state.
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