France: March against Islamophobia bill
Chris Den Hond
Press TV, Paris
After the controversial law on global security and the massive protest against it, the French government has approved another controversial bill, this time called: "law on separatism", provoking another popular protest.
France's Prime Minister Castex openly said that this bill targets what he called radical Islam, enemy of the Republic. President Emmanuel Macron has promoted the bill to target separatists undermining the nation.
A rarely seen police cordon surrounded the demonstration entirely, from the beginning till the end. Every hundred meters, the police charged the demonstration and made arrests. Some were wounded.
Macron had said that the presumed radical black block has to be destroyed. Therefore the police had clear orders: zero tolerance. However, this time the violence did not come from the demonstrators.
Human rights groups have raised concerns over the law, saying it would discriminate and stigmatize French Muslims.
The bill in question requires that everyone strictly respects the French republican principles of secularism, whatever that might mean.
The funding of Muslim associations and mosques will be closely monitored. The main association in defense of Muslims, the CCIF, was dissolved. All organizations will have to sign a declaration on secularism if they want to receive funds from the state. In case of non-compliance, they would have to refund the money.
The proposed bill will be discussed in the French parliament and members of the majority party already declared that they want to modify the text; some want to soften it, while others want it to be even more repressive.
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