Macron Unveils Bill to Combat ‘Islamist Separatism’
French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday detailed the government’s proposed bill to fight manifestations of radical Islamism in the country, tightening control over the foreign influence on Islam and funding for mosques, and promoting the domestic training of imams.
The ambition to train and promote in France a generation of imams and intellectuals who defend Islam [that is] fully compatible with the values of the republic is a necessity”, Macron told a press conference in the Mureaux commune in the Ile-de-France region.
The bill will include intensified control over schools. Starting in 2021, homeschooling will be strictly limited in line with health reasons. The measure comes amid numerous closures of unregistered educational structures promoting radicalism, the president said.
Macron also said the bill would imply the mandatory rule of neutrality for employees of public service companies that they must follow while performing their work to avoid manifestations of separatism.
In addition, the bill will provide more grounds for dissolving associations in which manifestations like the “attack on dignity of a person” or “psychological or physical pressure” are detected, Macron said.
“Any association applying for a grant from the state or local authority must sign a contract respecting the values of the republic. If the contract is broken, its officials will have to repay”, he indicated.