Muslim Workers Decry French Bigotry

"I was on vacation when I received a message that my access badge has been withdrawn," Mohamed Ali Louja told IslamOnline.net on Thursday, November16 .

"At first I thought the decision had to do with not paying some overdue bills," he added.

When Louja went to the Saint Denis police station seeking answers for the decision he was faced with a barrage of irrelevant questions.

"They asked me about my beard, whether my wife was hijab-clad, whether I have been to Pakistan before and whether I had any ties with Salafists," he said.

Louja is one of 72 seasonal Muslim workers who were barred on October 21 from working at the airport after police withdrew their access badges, which allowed them to work in airport customs zones.

France's Anti-terrorist Coordination Unit (UCLAT) said that the Muslim workers posed "a risk to the airport's security" or were simply deemed "dangerous."

But a number of the workers had challenged the decision.

Two workers regained their badges on Wednesday, November16 , after a court ruled that they were wrongly deprived of their security passes.

Five others who had also asked for their security clearance to be reinstated had their request denied by the court.

Two workers had earlier got their badges back through the court.

Sarkozy vowed Thursday to challenge the court orders return of badges to the Muslim workers.

More
http://www.islamonline.net/English/News/2006-11/16/05.shtml