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Posted on: February 22nd, 2010French secularism takes the bull by the horns
No end is in sight to the fierce debate raging in France over an imminent move to ban the wearing of the burqa in public establishments. On the contrary, just about any matter involving Muslims adds fuel to it. Right now the media are focused on an issue that, on the face of it, is of little relevance to the sartorial choices of an insignificant number of Muslim women.
Last December, Quick, a fast-food chain, introduced ‘halal’ hamburgers in six of its 300-odd outlets. It contained smoked turkey instead of beef and pork. The chain took care to ensure that the birds were slaughtered under the supervision of a duly-qualified cleric. Commercial interest clearly dictated its decision for the six outlets are all located in towns and cities with a large Muslim population.
That, however, was of no concern to Quick’s critics. The right-wing, xenophobic National Front led the charge against it. But others who are known for their hostility to the Front joined in the chorus of criticism as well. The burden of their dirge was two-fold. One, the food chain, by serving only ‘halal’ burgers, effectively discriminated against non-Muslim customers. And two, they included in the bill money that would go to cover the cost of the services of the cleric.
Both factors, the critics argued, were an affront to something that is a matter of life and death to the French: secularism. They saw in the food chain’s decision yet another instance of a supine surrender to the diktat of Muslim extremists. In his blog, a well-known journalist pointed out that in a large city in the north of France, swimming pools run by the municipality had reserved some hours exclusively for women, and some others exclusively for men. Another cited the case of male gynaecologists who were assaulted for examining female Muslim patients. Yet another blogger railed against Muslims for offering prayers out in the open. Christians, he wrote, pray only in a church and Jews only in a synagogue. Why have Muslims been given a special dispensation? And why can’t Muslims convert to other faiths when ‘infidels’ are free to embrace Islam?
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