Paris: Minister of the Interior, Mich_le Alliot-Marie encouraged mayors to develop confessional burial spaces in their municipal cemeteries. Currently, the majority of Maghrebi immigrants continue to be buried in their countries of origin. While Algerians often assisted one another for the onerous financing of burying their loved ones in Algeria, the Tunisian government financed the return of ashes while Moroccans often have some insurance to cover such costs through their banks. According to a recent study conducted by FASILD (Fonds d’action et de soutien pour l’int_gration et la lutte contre les discriminations), 85% of Maghrebians continue to be buried in their countries of origin. Times are changing, however, as second and third generation migrants seek to have their parents exhumed and brought to France says Mohamed Bechari, a director at the Conseil fran_ais du culte musulman (CFCM). Bechari sees this change as a sign of integration. While city officials must attempt to find solutions for Muslims who seek to be buried in pairs faced toward Mecca, they are not obliged to find to accommodate them.
