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Sarkozy Plays Islamophobic Tone
PARIS — French Interior Minister and Elysee aspirant Nicolas Sarkozy has taken a U-turn on his traditional backing of Muslim issues, sounding an Islamophobic tone recently that risks alienate Muslim voters in the upcoming polls, a French analyst said on Monday, February12 .
"Sarkozy's past achievements for Muslims have been eclipsed by his clear Islamophobic discourse recently," Vincent Geisser, a researcher at the French national centre for scientific research, told IslamOnline.net on Monday, February12 , February11 .
Positive discrimination, funds for mosques and helping establish the umbrella Muslim body for the sizable minority along with his support for immigrants threatened with deportation were seen as the trump cards of Sarkozy to win the votes of Muslims and immigrants in the April polls.
"Sarkozy once described himself as 'the lawyer of Muslims' in his book La Religion, La République, L'espérance," said Geisser.
Geisser, the author of Islamophobia, said the centre-right presidential candidate has raised the ire of Muslims recently.
"He staunchly rallied behind Charlie Hebdo, which reprinted the lampooning Prophet cartoons."
Sarkozy defended the publication of the blasphemous cartoons by the satirical weekly, saying he accepted that "in the name of freedom, you can laugh at everything."
The umbrella body French Council for the Muslim Faith (CFCM) denounced Sarkozy's stance in a strongly-worded statement.
Following an emergency meeting on Wednesday, February8 , the Council issued a statement denouncing the "politicization" of the case.
"More and more, Sarkozy angered Muslims when he criticized them for slaughtering sheep (in `Eid Al-Adha), echoing actress Brigitte Bardot," Geisser added.
Bardot, an animal rights activist, is known for her frequent condemnation of the Muslim ritual every `Eid.
In her recent book, A Cry in the Silence, she also warned against the "Islamization of France."
France is home to some six to seven million Muslims, the largest Muslim minority in Europe.
Tense
French journalist Michael Darmond said that Sarkozy's stance on the 2005 riots in the suburbs had strained his ties with Muslims, who make up the majority of immigrants.
"Sarkozy has been in troubles with the Muslim minority since the suburb riots," he told IOL.
More
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1170877877320&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout
Positive discrimination, funds for mosques and helping establish the umbrella Muslim body for the sizable minority along with his support for immigrants threatened with deportation were seen as the trump cards of Sarkozy to win the votes of Muslims and immigrants in the April polls.
"Sarkozy once described himself as 'the lawyer of Muslims' in his book La Religion, La République, L'espérance," said Geisser.
Geisser, the author of Islamophobia, said the centre-right presidential candidate has raised the ire of Muslims recently.
"He staunchly rallied behind Charlie Hebdo, which reprinted the lampooning Prophet cartoons."
Sarkozy defended the publication of the blasphemous cartoons by the satirical weekly, saying he accepted that "in the name of freedom, you can laugh at everything."
The umbrella body French Council for the Muslim Faith (CFCM) denounced Sarkozy's stance in a strongly-worded statement.
Following an emergency meeting on Wednesday, February8 , the Council issued a statement denouncing the "politicization" of the case.
"More and more, Sarkozy angered Muslims when he criticized them for slaughtering sheep (in `Eid Al-Adha), echoing actress Brigitte Bardot," Geisser added.
Bardot, an animal rights activist, is known for her frequent condemnation of the Muslim ritual every `Eid.
In her recent book, A Cry in the Silence, she also warned against the "Islamization of France."
France is home to some six to seven million Muslims, the largest Muslim minority in Europe.
Tense
French journalist Michael Darmond said that Sarkozy's stance on the 2005 riots in the suburbs had strained his ties with Muslims, who make up the majority of immigrants.
"Sarkozy has been in troubles with the Muslim minority since the suburb riots," he told IOL.
More
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1170877877320&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout
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