WeSpeakOut is extremely disappointed that a judge in Michigan has struck down a 22-year old federal anti-FGM law in the United States.

In some parts of the Bohra community, it is being hailed as a victory by the pro-fgm campaigners, when clearly it is not.

Image Courtesy: CNN

On November 20, 2018, the Eastern District Court of Michigan declared the federal anti-FGM statute in the U.S. unconstitutional. The order was made on a technical ground under US law, since federalism limitations impose restrictions on the kinds of activity which can be regulated by the federal government as opposed to the states.  When a law is declared unconstitutional, it’s declared unconstitutional from the time the law was originally passed.

To be clear, the federal law and the charges against Dr. Nagarwala et al have been discharged NOT because there was no FGM/C performed on the Bohra girls, and NOT because FGM/C is not a crime but because of a technicality. The judge clearly states that “FGM is a ‘local criminal activity'”.

The ruling of the District Court has no impact on the debate on FGM/C within the Bohra community in India, as the criminal charges in the U.S. were dismissed on a technicality under U.S. law. In the order, the district Judge has specifically referred to FGM as a “despicable practice”, and noted that it was a form of physical assault. 27 U.S. States already have state anti-FGM statutes which continue to be valid and legal. There is also a good possibility that the U.S. Government will appeal the decision of the Judge in this case, and the Government has confirmed that they are considering this option.

WeSpeakOut will steadfastly continue its fight to end the practice of FGM/C in the worldwide Bohra community, which involves the cutting of the clitoral hood of a girl child. We are gratified that more and more Bohras understand the potential harm it causes girls and women and urge all Bohras to give up this ancient harmful traditional practice.

http://wespeakout.org/posts/wespeakouts-statement-on-the-michigan-court-decision/

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An overwhelming number of the participants (81%) said they would like to see an end to this practice within the community. A similar percentage (82%) said they were “unlikely” or “extremely unlikely” to continue khatna on their daughters.

While releasing their report, ‘Understanding Female Genital Cutting in the Dawoodi Bohra Community: An Exploratory Survey’ at a press conference in Mumbai, Sahiyo members said theirs was the first large-scale, online global survey on the issue of khatna as practiced among the Dawoodi Bohras. The significance of the survey lay in the fact that there has been almost no research of the prevalence of this practice within the Bohra community, they added.  

Asked what they thought were the reasons for “female genital cutting” (Sahiyo prefers to use ‘cutting’ to the more commonly used term ‘mutilation’), 56% felt it was for religious reasons, while 45% felt it was intended to decrease sexual pleasure.

Over one-third of those who were cut claimed that khatna affected their sexual life. Out of those women, 87% said khatna had a negative impact on their sexual life.  “Some women suffer from such mental agony that they are not able to get intimate with their partners”, said Aarefa Johari at the press conference.

Sahiyo sees its online survey as just a beginning, a preliminary and exploratory study of khatna. The survey results point to the need for much more in-depth field research, both qualitative and quantitative, on the practice of khatna among Bohras. In the future, surveys of Bohra men’s attitudes towards khatna are also needed. “We hope that this pioneering survey becomes a base for future research on Khatna”, it was stated.

Dawoodi Bohras have been practicing khatna as a secretive ritual for centuries, and the silence around the practice has broken only recently, in the past four or five years. Even though many women from the community are now speaking out about their personal experiences of khatna and pushing for an end to the practice, there has been little to no scientific research on the subject.

As Sahiyo rightly points out, without research and representative data, it is difficult to determine the degree of prevalence of khatna and to understand the complex social norms and cultural value systems that shape the practice of khatna within the community. The lack of research also makes it difficult to pass legislation and policies, and to design outreach and education programmes to push for an end to the practice.

The full report may be accessed here.
 

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The death of a 13-year-old Jain girl who fasted for 68 days raises questions about how community traditions can impinge on the well-being of minors.'

A mother takes her seven-year-old daughter for circumcision, allowing a part of the child’s clitoris to be cut with a blade in the name of religion. A family allows their 13-year-old daughter to go on a 68-day fast – a tapasya that eventually leads to her death – also in the name of religion.

As the co-founder of Sahiyo, an organisation working to end Female Genital Cutting in my Dawoodi Bohra community, I cannot help but notice the parallels between the two cases.

On October 4, two days after she completed an allegedly voluntary 68-day religious fast, 13-year-old Aradhana Samdhariya died of a cardiac arrest on the way to a Hyderabad hospital. The family labelled her death as “natural” and hundreds of Jains attended her funeral, celebrating the girl as a young saint. Once this news hit the headlines, it led to widespread national outrage, and Samdhariya’s parents were booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

This was clearly an extreme case, one in which a minor girl paid a fatal price for religious indoctrination. But away from the media glare, perhaps in less severe ways, thousands of children in India continue to suffer the consequences of their parents’ religious faith.

The most glaring example, for me, is the secretive practice of female circumcision, or khatna, in the Bohra Muslim community.
 

Cutting the body, for religion

The Bohras are a small Shia sect, predominantly from Gujarat, who enjoy the reputation of being educated, wealthy and fairly progressive. But for centuries, little Bohra girls have been made to undergo khatna – the ritual cutting of the clitoral prepuce – for reasons that are not even uniform across the community. Depending on which family you speak to, girls are cut either because “it curbs her sexual urges”, or “it prevents urinary infections”, because it is hygienic, or simply because “it is a religious obligation”.

It is well known that the practice of khatna predates Islam and finds no mention in the Quran. So far, no other Muslim sect in India has been known to follow this ritual. But Bohras have clung on to this tradition, carrying it with them even when they migrate to other countries. In many cities and towns, the dingy homes of traditional midwives and cutters have given way to sanitised clinics and Bohra-run hospitals, but the cutting continues.

Snipping the clitoris, unlike male circumcision, has no known medical benefits. On the contrary, it could lead to bleeding, infections, reduced sexual sensitivity or long-term psychological scarring. Khatna also falls within the World Health Organisation’s definition of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, a practice illegal in several countries because it is a human rights violation. In fact, in November 2015, three Bohras in Australia were convicted under the nation’s anti-FGM law for carrying out the circumcision of two minor girls. Despite this, the Bohra religious leader – whose headquarters are in Mumbai – publicly endorsed the cutting of minor girls as recently as June.

For the past year, there has been an increasingly vocal opposition to khatna from within the community, but Bohra girls are still taken by their mothers, grandmothers or aunts to get cut, most often at the age of seven. And there is no law against the practice in India so far.
 

Not old enough

How does this practice compare to the death of young Aradhana Samdhariya in Hyderabad?

According to news reports, Samdhariya’s parents have claimed that they never forced their daughter to go on the 68-day fast. They claim she had always been “religiously inclined”, had done a 34-day fast before and was adamant about doing a longer tapasya this year. Samdhariya’s grandfather has stated that the family had first opposed her decision, but eventually had to choose between allowing her to fast or allowing her to take diksha (more on that later) at an older age. Some reports also claim the girl took up the fast on the advice of a spiritual guru, to help her family business grow, although her relatives have refuted this.

But none of these attempted rationalisations should matter at all. This issue is about the religious fervour of families and cultures impinging on the well-being of those too young to give informed consent or understand the long-term implications of certain rituals and practices.

At 13, Samdhariya may have been older than the little Bohra girls taken for khatna, but she was still unarguably a minor, both legally and culturally.

Legally, her parents were clearly responsible for ensuring her health and safety, and 68 days of surviving on just warm water is neither healthy nor safe. (One would expect Jains to know this well, given that many elderly Jains undertake the controversial santhara fast for the sole purpose of waiting for death.)

And culturally, in a country where even legally-adult children are often not allowed to choose their own careers or spouses, an adolescent would certainly not be considered old enough to choose such a risky fast.
 

Religious relativism

But India is a country where religious and cultural relativism often trumps all logic and rationality. Legally, a 16-year-old may be considered too young to have consensual sex, but if she’s been forced into an illegal child marriage, even marital rape would be considered permissible.

Culturally, a seven-year-old would be deemed too young to be told about sex, but if she’s a Bohra, her parents would willingly cut her clitoris – her centre for sexual pleasure – without questioning the logic behind it.

We celebrate the innocence of childhood and uphold the idea that children shouldn’t be made to bear adult burdens, but many Jains are happy to allow children – some as young as 11 or eight – to give up all worldly life for complete asceticism in a controversial practice known as bal diksha. This is a practice that requires children to give up school education, family life and material pleasures and take up the austere life of monks. Supporters of the bal diksha claim children are never forced into it – they are allowed to become ascetics only if they want to.

Should a child be allowed to take such a decision, though? Jains themselves are divided on this issue, and the legality of bal diksha is still being disputed in the Bombay High Court. But disappointingly, in 2009, the Delhi Women and Child Development Department actually recognised bal diksha as a religious right.

Booking Samdhariya’s parents for culpable homicide is definitely a step in the right direction. But should it really take the death of a 13-year-old for us to question the dangers of practices like this?

This article was first published on Scroll.in
 

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Egypt is considering tougher sentences and stiffer fines for doctors and parents who perform female genital mutilation on their daughters. But will that change anything?

This past month, a doctor who is both a member of the Egyptian parliament and a member of its health committee stated that, “leaving women uncircumcised is unhealthy”.

These shocking words came during discussions of the female genital mutilation (FGM) law amendments presented by the National Council for Population (NPC) to the People’s Assembly—the lower house of Egypt’s parliament. The suggested amendments include increasing the imprisonment sentences and fines—under Article 246 of the Egyptian Penal Code, FGM is punishable with a minimum of three months to a maximum of two years in prison, and a maximum fine of LE 5,000. The NPC proposal came as a reaction to the recent death of a young girl, Mayar Mohamed Mousa, while undergoing FGM by a medical doctor at one of the hospitals in the Al-Suez governorate. The tragedy received widespread national and international media attention, but this is not the first time a young girl has bled to death as a consequence of FGM. In June 2013, a 13-year-old girl, Soheir El Bataa, died while undergoing circumcision also performed by a medical doctor in a private clinic. In a country where more than 65% of the girls between the ages of 15-17 are circumcised, countless girls have either died or have suffered from permanent disabilities as result of performing FGM. But because families do not usually report these cases, statistics are hard to verify and perpetrators are not punished.

In a country where more than 65% of the girls between the ages of 15-17 are circumcised, countless girls have either died or have suffered from permanent disabilities as result of performing FGM. But because families do not usually report these cases, statistics are hard to verify and perpetrators are not punished.

The original 2008 law and ministerial decree on FGM were issued in response to the death of Bodor Ahmed Shake’r, from Minya governorate, who died after undergoing FGM in a private clinic in June 2007. The state’s inability or unwillingness to uphold the law is reflected in the fact that only one case has been pursued since the 2008 law came into place. Raslan Fadl, the medical doctor who performed FGM on Soheir El Bataa, is the only doctor who has been prosecuted so far. The first court in Daqahlia acquitted both the doctor and the victim’s father of involuntary manslaughter, which sparked an international outrage and pushed the state to appeal. After the appeal, Fadl was sentenced to two years in jail for involuntary manslaughter, and issued an additional three-month sentence for illegally performing FGM. He was also fined LE 500.

Despite the overall failure of the state to enforce the current FGM laws and persecute perpetrators of FGM, NPC’s proposed amendments include increasing the punishment of performing, or assisting in performing, FGM to a minimum of 2 years in prison and a maximum 3 years, with a minimum fine of 10,000 LE and a maximum of 50,000 LE. The amendments also include more serious penalties (minimum of 3 years and maximum of 15 years) in cases of permanent disability and 25 years in case of death.
 

A Tadwein cartoon portrays a young girl running from doctors performing FGM as she states, "I did not forget." Courtesy: Tadwein
 

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However, these proposed harsher sentences likely will not help in prosecuting more medical personnel, or in deterring parents from circumcising their daughters. Instead, the stricter measures will probably lead more often to FGM being performed “underground”. Furthermore, the amendments aim to penalize the parents of circumcised girls, which will probably discourage people from reporting incidents of FGM.

The work on FGM needs to be situated within a wider framework of rights.So far, the state has not only failed to properly create and utilize measurement to legally enforce the FGM law, but it has failed to create a wide societal debate on FGM that discusses social, cultural, and sexual perspectives. The state’s campaigns have mainly addressed FGM from either a religious or medical perspective, as a way to deliver conservative and non-confrontational discourse on FGM. In Egypt, FGM is widely practiced to control women’s sexual desire and protect what is known as her “honor”, but the state institutions working on FGM shy away from addressing issues like sexual pleasure or promiscuity and its linkages to men’s “honor” and masculinity. The work on FGM needs to be situated within a wider framework of rights and the practice understood  as a violation of  women’s sexual rights. We must challenge FGM by asserting a woman’s right to a healthy sexual life and of control over her own body.

Using health and religion as the main pillars against FGM in Egypt takes away women and young girls’ agency to create change. The recent TV interview with Egyptian parliamentarian Ahmed Al-Tahawy, is a clear example: he stated that the government needs “to have a specialist doctor and religious leaders to tell us whether or not to continue with FGM”. He seems to have forgotten that Egypt has signed several international treaties condemning the practice of FGM, issued a law banning the practice in Egypt, and has recently released a national anti-FGM strategy where the state commit itself to 10% drop in 5 years.

The state’s unsuccessful attempts in shaping a convincing and consistent anti-FGM discourse have massively contributed to the inability of the state to stop or even tangibly decrease FGM.

The state’s unsuccessful attempts in shaping a convincing and consistent anti-FGM discourse have massively contributed to the inability of the state to stop or even tangibly decrease FGM. Current statistics show that 92% of ever-married women between the ages of 14-49 years have undergone FGM. Between 1994-2014, there was only a drop of less than 5% in the overall prevalence rate of ever-married women. In addition, according to 58% of Egyptian women and 50% of Egyptian men support the continuation of the practice, (EDHS 2014). Perhaps even more alarming, according to the recent Survey of Young People in Egypt (SYPE), 70.7% of young females and 68.6% of young males surveyed intended to circumcise their future daughter(s). The majority of the girls in Egypt (75%) are circumcised between 9-12 years old, with 14% having the procedure before the age of seven. More than 70% of cases are performed by medical personnel.

The NPC needs to reconsider amendments that threaten parents with imprisonment, as this will force people to be secretive about FGM in fear of prosecution. Instead, the Egyptian state needs to develop a strong and consistent anti-FGM discourse and create a societal debate around it, where FGM is widely addressed from a rights perspective. The anti-FGM programmes implemented by the state should adopt a bottom-up approach in its design and implementation by involving more youth and local NGOs. Finally, employing a wide discussion on sexuality in relationship to FGM will have a major impact on the discontinuation of the practice.

(Amel Fahmy is the managing director of Tadwein Gender Research Center in Egypt www.tadwein.com  and co-founder of HarassMap. She has worked on gender-base violence with the World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund).

This story was first published on openDemocracy.

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Following the conviction of a Bohra priest and two others in Australia for ‘circumcision’ of two minor girls, the clerics of the Australian jamaat promptly issued a firman last month prohibiting the abhorrent practice. The jamaat in UK was quick to follow suit. The community members are now wondering how what is prohibited in Australia and UK can continue to be obligatory for Bohras elsewhere.

Meanwhile, the ban in two countries has energised the campaign for an end to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). Giving impetus to the campaign to end the practice of ‘female genital cutting’, is the platform, www.sahiyo.com, started by a group of 5 women over a year ago. Perhaps for the first time, as part of International Women’s Day celebrations, Bohri women joined demonstrated alongside other women, Muslim and Hindu, in Mumbai, to voice their demand.

 Is the community’s head priest listening?

We reproduce below the disturbing narratives of two Bohri women who had to undergo ‘khatna’ (circumcision) in their childhood, followed by an account by Sahiyo activist, Aarefa Johari of her engagement with fellow Bohris as part of Sahiyo’s ‘Each One Reach One’ campaign.   

‘If Allah has sent us whole, why should we cut for the sake of God?’

Saleha Paatwala, Noida, India, Age 23

I was 7 years of age when one day my grandma took me to an unfamiliar place. I was informed that it would be a huge gathering and children like me would come as well. We came to the second floor where we were advised to sit by a woman as old as my grandma. It didn’t appear to be exceptionally happening, and out of sheer interest I asked her why we were there – to which she just grinned and said that everybody was en route. What happened next will continue to haunt me until the end of time.

After an hour, one more woman came in and asked us to follow her. It was a miserable room on the terrace, small and messy. My grandma and I sat on the little bed. The woman took out some cotton, blade and some harsh fabric and I just couldn’t comprehend what was occurring. She asked me to lie down, but I was very young and could never have imagined anything terrible could happen. I just couldn’t understand what was happening. I believed my grandma and sat down when she insisted. The other woman now began removing my underwear.

This sickened the hellfire out of me. I began fighting back, at which every one of the women, including my grandma, held my hands and feet tight so that I could not move. I was yelling as loud as possible, but no one was listening. After she had successfully taken off my underwear, the second woman spread my legs, grabbed the blade and cut something between my legs. The pain was anguishing and intolerable and it gave me an injury. She then put some cotton on that part and put my clothing back on. My grandma and two other women began giggling and saying, “Mubarak ho, iska khatna ho gaya hai.” (Congratulations, she has been circumcised).

All these years, I never had the boldness to open up and discuss this. My grandma told me that ladies get to be devout after completing khatna, and I accepted that. Then one day, we were shown a film on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) at my college.

At that age, who has ever considered going through such an agony in the most intimate area that no youngster would even like anybody to see or touch? I didn’t really see the amount of blood that had gushed out because I had no courage to. Only after I reached home and went to pee, I saw the cotton and figured it out. I couldn’t urinate properly for three days as it tormented me that much.

All these years, I never had the boldness to open up and discuss this. My grandma told me that ladies get to be devout after completing khatna, and I accepted that. Then one day, we were shown a film on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) at my college. It gave me goose bumps and took me all the way back to my childhood when I had been through this assault. In that film, my own community members were spreading awareness and battling this practice. It made me realise, unmistakably, that what happened wasn’t beneficial for me, wasn’t useful for anyone. That little film gave me so much courage that I can now share my dim story with everybody, even though it is still a taboo.

There is no religious aspect to this ritual. It is only a practice, a hazardous and destructive custom which is being perpetuated by individuals. It wasn’t just a little piece. It was a piece of me, my private area that no one has a right to touch without my consent. If Allah has sent us whole, why should we cut for the sake of god, to make a lady pious?

'Last generation to lose a Pinch of Our Skin'

Mariya Ali, London, UK

I was born and raised in London, England and have been a lifelong member of the London Jamaat. Although FGM has been illegal in the United Kingdom since 1985, myself and many other girls have been subjected to this barbaric ritual, despite it being outlawed.

After the Australian court case and subsequent convictions for circumcising two minor girls, the Sydney Jamaat issued a notice urging followers not to circumcise their daughters in Australia or abroad. On February 15^th (2016), the London Jamaat followed suit and issued a similar notice.

The letter, similar in wording to the one that was issued by the Sydney Jamaat, points out that Islam mandates that its followers be loyal, contributing citizens who abide by the law of the land in which they reside.

Despite the UK law explicitly stating that it is illegal to take a UK citizen outside of the UK for the purpose of circumcision, I know of many minors who were circumcised while abroad. It is important to note that this has also been addressed by the letter issued by the London Jamaat. It states that “You must not take your children outside UK for purpose of khafd [FMG] as that is equally prohibited by law”.

As a woman who has undergone this barbaric ritual, and on behalf of all of the other women who have suffered, do suffer and continue to suffer, I hope that this is the first of many Jamaats to follow suit and finally stamp out this practice.

The London Jamaat is the first Jamaat after Sydney to publicly discourage followers from performing this procedure on girls. Although this is a huge step in the right direction, the notice that was issued does not condemn the practice itself, but rather it discourages followers from breaking the law.

As a woman who has undergone this barbaric ritual, and on behalf of all of the other women who have suffered, do suffer and continue to suffer, I hope that this is the first of many Jamaats to follow suit and finally stamp out this practice. I thank the decision makers of the London Jamaat for taking this step and I sincerely hope that my generation is the last generation to lose a pinch of our skin.

‘The Bohra community desperately needs a women’s movement’

Aarefa Johari, Mumbai

I have been speaking to Bohra family and friends about khatna for a few years now, but in the past 18 days, having khatna conversations as part of the Each One Reach One campaign has been a very different, heart-warming, emotional experience. Initially, when I approached Bohra relatives, the response was unenthusiastic – I was mostly just ignored. Then the Sydney Bohra jamaat decided to issue a landmark notice asking Australian Bohras to obey the nation’s laws and stop practicing khatna. This proved to be the trigger that dozens of Bohras needed to respond to khatna conversations, and suddenly, a number of cousins and friends reached out to me themselves, offering words of support.

My mother was reaching out too, by sending news articles about khatna and the Sydney jamaat decision to her own Bohra circles. Responses have been varied – some believe that the issue is insignificant, some see it as a religious tradition that must be followed, some asked questions to know more about the impact of the practice. A Bohra father told me he would never let khatna happen to his daughter.

The 'Each One Reach One' campaign has also given me an opportunity to bond with relatives I barely spoke to before – I found myself having long conversations about traditions, religion, society and patriarchy with cousins who I have not even met yet. And I discovered that there are many others who share my views and care about critically evaluating the world.

The question of khatna is essentially a question of women’s rights within religion, and it has been particularly heart-warming to see that many of those who had conversations about khatna also spoke to me about iddat – the practice of making widows mourn in isolation, dressed in white and cut off from male company for more than four months.

The question of khatna is essentially a question of women’s rights within religion, and it has been particularly heart-warming to see that many of those who had conversations about khatna also spoke to me about iddat – the practice of making widows mourn in isolation, dressed in white and cut off from male company for more than four months.

This has been the most rewarding part of the ‘Each One Reach One’ campaign. The Bohra community, like most other religious groups, desperately needs a woman’s movement. And thanks to these conversations, a debate has been triggered somewhere in minds that had so far not even given a thought to these issues.

The above content has been republished with permission from Sahiyo.
 

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The November 14 Paris attacks that killed 130 persons, fast on the heels of the Baghdad and Beirut bombings that also cost many lives, have, once again raised questions within the fold of Islam. Earlier this year, Dr Tawfik Hamid an Egyptian scholar famously wrote “From the heart of an honest Muslim” which he began with, "I am a Muslim by faith, a Christian by spirit, a Jew by heart, and above all I am a human being."

Islamic leaders and scholars are risking lives and seeking strongly, a reformation within Islam, some even saying that the political content needs to go and the compassionate and just part, emphasised. Closer home, Mumbai to Kerala, Delhi to Lucknow clerics and leaders have been sending a strong and similar message.

(Preachers denounce ISIS in Friday sermons,
http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31804&articlexml=Preachers-to-denounce-ISIS-in-Friday-sermons-27112015011025 and In war against IS, clerics to add 1k Instagram accounts, FB pages
 http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/mumbai/in-war-against-is-clerics-to-add-1k-instagram-accounts-fb-pages/
 
In January this year, the rector of the main mosque in Paris, Dalil Boubakeur, speaking to the CNN had reverted from the French to English to make his point. He said that Islam has to reform. There is a need to take out the political content of Islam and the compassionate part emphasised.
 
In the early days of Communalism Combat when it was published in a tabloid format, we had met Dalil Boubakeur in Paris who had spoken to us of the difficult role he has had to play, teaching tolerance and respect for the belief of others to his people and struggling for the rights of a migrant Muslim population, victim of both racial and religious prejudice, on the other. This account was published in November 1997 and we reproduce it here for the benefit of our readers to help contextualise a difficult and painful issue.
 
(sub head) Fighting phobia, teaching tolerance
 
(Intro) As head of the Muslim clergy in France, a country where phobia against Islam and its followers is on the rise, the rector of the Muslim Institute and the Mosque of Paris, Dalil Boubakeur, has a difficult double role to play: teaching tolerance and respect for the belief of others to his people and struggling for the rights of a migrant Muslim population in France which is a victim of both racial and religious prejudice. Excerpts:
 
The role of religion, religious heads and religious institutions in a secular state are indeed complex. France is a democratic country where secularism and human rights are of prime concern to the state. All religions in turn respect the state. We are not to interfere in the political business of the state just as the state and its administration does not interfere in matters of faith.
 
In 1905, France passed a law making a formal separation between religion and state. For Islam, a new religion in France, also a religion of the migrant community, to realise and maintain this equation is not easy. Christianity and Judaism have reached an equilibrium after co-existing with the state for hundreds of years when Islam was not here in France. They have their churches, their synagogues. They have consolidated their institutions, the Church has for long had a sophisticated organization.
 
Islam came here much later and was, therefore, always considered an “outside” religion of the migrant worker whose focus of worship and religion was, in turn, “outside” the nation. The mosque of the Muslim worker was in Africa, their religious feast was in Africa, their women were in north Africa.
 
Only men from the community first came here to work. Families arrived much later after the French government enacted a law, the Familie Rapprochement Act through which families were allowed entry. After the families came, population grew and there has been a demographic explosion since the 1970s.
 
This caused a revolution in the suburbs of the cities of France and the authorities coped by building buildings, kilometers of them, “quick” buildings, to accommodate the growing numbers.  These were buildings without any social, human or cultural dimensions. Outside Paris and Lyon, these buildings look like barracks. This was not good. As the young grew up or came to France, they found little or nothing to welcome them.
 
Also, Islam had to make specific adjustments to integrate because the French constitution relates to the individual, with no concessions to communities of people or religious communities. All of us must integrate into the general population. This is very important and I think, very natural. If a country relates to different nationalities within its geographical area, say Italian, Indian, Spanish, whatever, what you will get is a splintered image of the mirror and no unified image will be visible.
 
There is no priority given here to anyone. No distinction in the application of laws is made, as long as you are a French citizen. Polygamy, female circumcision and other such practices are downright illegal here.
 
Now, is the French state genuinely secular towards all, especially migrants? Or does it have a bias? While the theory of secularism and the secular state exists, in reality there are many human problems. Muslims here, are poor, disadvantaged, the migrant working population is ignorant of the systems of law and the principles of secularism that operate here. Hence, they find it extremely difficult to adapt.
 
They assume, for instance, that expenses of their mosques, the salary for the imams, land for cemeteries will come from the state, little realizing that it requires legislation. A law needs to be enacted to give salaries to any section of the clergy, a law is needed to grant a piece of land for a mosque.

The question of Muslims and Islam in France is linked critically to the immigrant problem. The March 1996 amendment in French immigration law has titled the balance against immigrants, and is even being used to victimise people. As rector of the Paris Mosque, our role as mediators between our community and the state is very sensitive in this political situation.

 
There are economic difficulties faced by a disadvantaged migrant community, for whom there are little facilities. Then, there are many imams (preachers) who, coming from Africa, from a different background, who don’t always have a message of tolerance or the message for the good and wise voyage of the Muslim in this life. This is largely because there is a very low level of secular education for many of our imams: traditionally, they are just taught the Holy Scriptures.
 
In all these contexts, our role is crucial. The Mosque, of Paris has made all efforts to train 130 “good” imams, to give a religious, non-political, spiritual message to followers: to realise their ideals through education, good conduct and behaviour: to be a good Muslim, respecting all religions, other people’s beliefs, men of other religions, and above all respecting the state they are living in. This is critical for co-existence between different religions.
 
The financial upkeep of the imam, mosque and other religious institutions remains an ongoing difficulty. The imam is a religious man with a family, with childen, he too needs social security, where does it come from? The social service cell of the Paris Mosque is thus very active. We organise health camps, special camps for some Muslim migrants in prison. There are about 40-50 persons, including women, who are involved in the social service leagues that collaborate with the 20 mosques in Paris.
 
The only problem that we face are financial. We are trying to make adjustments through money generating activities like running a cafe, hamaam (public bath); there is also donation from visitors, income from the conferences that we hold.
 
The question of Muslims and Islam in France is linked critically to the immigrant problem. The March 1996 amendment in French immigration law has titled the balance against immigrants, and is even being used to victimise people. As rector of the Paris Mosque, our role as mediators between our community and the state is very sensitive in this political situation.
 
Things are very difficult now because the recent amendments, have not only stopped immigration but also placed severe restrictions on access to means of livelihood. In this scenario, it is our hope that Muslim people will behave with responsibility for only then will the negative attitude against them reduce. For example, if they don’t terrorise people in the suburbs, the negative image people have against the migrant population will slowly disappear. As rector of the Paris Mosque in this situation, I inspire the community against bad examples of terrorism and preach non-violence. The Friday sermon is a message of peace, non-violence, a lesson to Muslims on how to behave as good citizens.
 
We know that the number of Muslims here is high and an upswing in racist or xenophobic attitudes can only be tackled if our community listens to us and makes conscious efforts to respect the law, to enjoy rights just as all other French people do. We hope that there never is a “Muslim problem” in France.
 
The French national commission for women has been looking into the question of representation of Muslim women, as all others, in the different professions. The Mosque of Paris, also hopes in future to be the voice of Muslim women and seeks to represent their cause in France to the government.
 
Other related questions arise. In France, Muslim women and men who are French citizens have to live under French law, not the Shariah. This does not affect their religious laws and practices, however. As long as basic principles of law are maintained, there should be no problem in following other laws laid down by the nation state.
 
As the rector of the Mosque of Paris, in a country that sets store by its secular foundations equality of all religions – I agree that the primary French law should apply to all communities. Our religious practices are never interfered with, anyway. When it comes to marriage, for example, we first have to register then perform the nikaah ceremony. In case of any dispute, they go before the French Tribunal.
 
Women have a separate space to pray within the Paris Mosque. They move around freely, no one controls of directs their movements. Freedom is the first principle of Islam for women. Some come with only a scarf, that is their right. We prefer that the heads of the faithful be covered as a sign of respect within the mosque. But outside, all Muslims are free to dress as they choose. No one inside will try and dictate or control their behaviour outside. They are free to do wear what they want, work wherever they like.
 
We recognise that women have much more capacities and capability than only that of the homemaker, though of course this is also important. In France we find Muslim women generally showing great aptitude for academics and have a particular talent in the field of diplomacy.
 
Crucial for any community is the nature and quality of the institutions it generates. The mosque is meant to be the veritable hub, the centre of the community just like the first mosque of Islam at Madina was. The first statutes of Islam, the relationship between Jews and Christians, issues or war and peace, etc., were all deliberated upon inside the Madina mosque soon after it was constructed.
 
The mosque of Paris, built in 1922, has a curious history. It was established first in recognition of the sacrifices of Muslims in the service of the French nation during the First World War. In the late 19^th century (1870), many Muslim groups were active in France. Again, 1914, when France mobilised soldiers from Algeria, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia it was the second major participation of Muslims in the French national struggle.
 
This painting that has its pride of place behind the rector’s chair in the mosque here depicts Muslims fighters from north Africa meeting French diplomats.
 
The design of the Paris mosque was also thoughtfully and approximately chosen. It is an amalgamation of the best of all the existing architectural traditions. It is both an Islamic institute open to everybody and a mosque.
 
(As told to Teesta Setalvad, co-editor of Communalism Combat and published in the Ethos section of the issue, November 1997)

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