PCF (French Communist Party) member André Gerin has addressed a letter to François Fillon against changing laws to allow “Shari’a compatible” Islamic banking in France, claiming that accommodation is not appropriate and that this new banking calls into question “democratic and republican values.” Le Monde reports that two laws which would have allowed for greater…
Sihem Habchi appeared as the first witness before a newly created parliamentary group studying Islamic clothing such as burqas and niqabs in the Republic, part of France’s effort to integrate its growing Muslim population while preserving its heritage and secular roots. The panel, chaired by Communist Party lawmaker André Gédron, will hold months of hearings…
A large pro-Palestinian protest in the shopping district in Paris turned violent. A pro-Palestinian umbrella group, including France’s Communist Party, led more than 21,000 demonstrators, according to reports, in a march Saturday afternoon protesting Israel’s military actions over the past week in the Gaza Strip. Police blocked the demonstrators from reaching the Israeli Embassy. Protesters…
In an opinion poll of 1,011 people representative of the French population, 44% reported that they favored a prohibition of the Islamic veil in streets and public buildings. 17% were “very favorable” and 27% “rather favorable”. 21% were “very opposed,” and the rest (35%) were “rather opposed.” The question, however, has two parts: whether the…
