Jay Currie

France has denied citizenship to a veiled Moroccan woman on the grounds that her “radical” practice of Islam is incompatible with basic French values such as equality of the sexes, a legal ruling showed on Friday.

The case will reignite debate about how to reconcile freedom of religion, which is guaranteed by the French constitution, and other fundamental rights, which many in France feel are being challenged by the way of life of some Muslims.

Le Monde newspaper said it was the first time a Muslim applicant had been rejected for reasons to do with personal religious practice.

“She has adopted a radical practice of her religion, incompatible with essential values of the French community, particularly the principle of equality of the sexes,” said a ruling by the Council of State handed down last month and sent to Reuters on Friday to confirm a report in Le Monde. reuters via Kathy

While there is much to be said for tolerance and reasonable accomodation, there is also a great deal to be said for essential principles. Basically the woman in question was kept in close confinement and had nothing to do with France and knew nothing of France. Not unreasonably she was denied French citizenship.

Now the language of the decision suggests that the woman “adopted a radical practice of her religion”. Did she? Or was this forced upon her by her husband and male relatives force this practice upon her with the full approval of their particular segment of the Muslim community?

The poor woman was ignorant of the essential principles upon which France is governed; but that is unlikely to have been her fault. Rather it is more likely to have been the fault of the males in her life who, to a degree, would have been aware of those principles and chose to directly reject them.

If anyone is at fault it is the anti-assimilationist males who kept this woman isolated. If anyone should get the boot it is the people who created the environment where this poor woman was denied the basic human dignity – or even the knowledge of such dignity.

It might well be a good idea to kick the husband and male relatives as well as the other husbands and male relatives and any religious leaders involved right back to Morocco where they would not have to deal with the interfering French state.

The poor women might be better off being allowed to stay in France in a shelter where she can be deprogrammed from the beliefs of this nasty cult.