FRENCH MUSLIM LEADER: YES TO FRANCE, BUT NO TO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 006442 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/25/2016 TAGS: SCUL PTER PGOV KISL FR SUBJECT: FRENCH MUSLIM LEADER: YES TO FRANCE, BUT NO TO SARKOZY'S 'OFFICIAL ISLAM' Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Josiah B. Rosenblatt for reasons 1.4 (b)(d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY AND COMMENT. A week after he was replaced on September 17 as a vice president of the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM),the body created with the support of Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy in 2003 as a vehicle to represent French Muslims, National Federation of Muslims in France (FNMF) President Mohamed Bechari criticized the CFCM as an organ of "official Islam" in France that does not represent French Muslims. Labeling the CFCM a political tool to further the Interior Minister's presidential ambitions, Bechari told us on September 22 that his organization is responsible "to the banlieues" and "the Muslims on the street" rather than to "Sarkozy and the Interior Ministry." Bechari stressed that while the FNMF, which is dominated by ethnic Moroccans (and is reputed to have ties to the Moroccan government),is committed to France and French secular constitutional principles, the organization does not trust the CFCM to represent France's growing Muslim population. While Bechari's views may to some extent reflect disappointment over the loss of his position on the CFCM, his consistent criticism of the CFCM underscores the difficulty of creating a cohesive body to represent France's diverse Muslim population. END SUMMARY AND COMMENT. OFFICIAL MUSLIM COUNCIL CHALLENGED BY INTERNAL DIVISIONS ¶2. (C) Meeting on September 22 in an unmarked mosque on a rundown street in the ethnically mixed Paris suburb of Clichy la Garenne, FNMF President Mohamed Bechari and several members of his organization criticized the CFCM as a tool of Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy. The CFCM "was created by Sarkozy, for Sarkozy," one man declared. The CFCM, created with Sarkozy's support in 2003 as a representative vehicle for France's Muslim population, has been riven by internal conflict since June, 2005 elections that highlighted divisions between the various organizations that are active within the CFCM. ¶3. (C) Some of these conflicts were reportedly over ideology, with liberal groups and more conservative Muslim ones, such as the Union of Islamic Organizations of France (UOIF) which is widely associated with the conservative Muslim Brotherhood movement, debating the direction of the CFCM. Tension also 
broke out between organizations dominated by ethnic Moroccans and Algerians, including the Grand Mosque of Paris, which is reputed to have ties to the Algerian Government, and Bechari's Moroccan-dominated organization. As a result, the CFCM has been paralyzed over the past year, with observers complaining that the council has not been able to agree on any course of action to represent France's Muslim population. On September 17, the CFCM moved to break the impasse on the council by approving leadership changes that resulted in Bechari's replacement as a CFCM vice president (though Bechari stresses that he resigned before the CFCM's internal elections that led to his replacement). The CFCM re-elected Paris Grand Mosque Rector Dalil Boubakeur, who is considered to be a moderate with ties to the Algerian Government, as president and Fouad Alaoui of the conservative UOIF as first vice president. While Sarkozy issued a statement backing the CFCM in the wake of its leadership changes, Bechari publicly criticized the CFCM, stating that he "could not remain in an organization that is not pluralist" and blasting Sarkozy for taking advantage of the CFCM to promote his presidential campaign. "WE ARE RESPONSIBLE TO THE BANLIEUES" ¶4. (C) "We are responsible to the 'banlieues'," Bechari declared, referring to the suburbs ringing France's large cities -- some of which host significant Muslim populations. As women in head scarves and devout young men moved in and out of the mosque housing his office, Bechari added: "I listen to the Muslims on the street. I am not responsible to Sarkozy, the Interior Ministry, the Moroccan Government, or anyone else." On the other hand, Bechari argued that the CFCM and the Grand Mosque of Paris, one of France's largest and most well-known mosques, are components of "official Islam" in France. "Official Islam does not represent Muslims in France," he stated. Bechari and his colleagues said they doubted the ability of any "official" institution, such as the CFCM, to act as a representative vehicle for France's growing and diverse Muslim population. The men were particularly critical of efforts by Sarkozy to create an "official Islam" to represent Muslims, and openly stated their support for Socialist candidates in next year's elections. "We are close to the Socialists," Bechari PARIS 00006442 002 OF 002 explained. "WE ARE FRENCH:" FRENCH MUSLIMS SUPPORT SECULAR CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLES ¶5. (C) While frequently expressing their views on political issues, Bechari and his colleagues repeatedly stressed their allegiance to "laicite," the term used in France for French secular constitutional principles that separate religion from politics. "The one thing I need people to understand is that the FNMF supports 'laicite.'" Differentiating his organization from more conservative Muslim groups operating in France, Bechari added: "We are not the Muslim Brotherhood, and we are not the Salafists. There is no other option for us beyond 'laicite.'" Speaking in French and Arabic, Bechari declared that the majority of France's Muslims support the separation of religion from politics enshrined in the French Constitution. "For us, it is France, France, France. Algeria and Morocco are finished for us." Despite his strident defense of "laicite," Bechari is conscious that some Muslims are uncomfortable with secularism, and the CFCM president stressed that adherence to "laicite" should not compromise the piety of French Muslims. Elaborating on how he reconciles his Muslim faith with French secular principles, Bechari stated: "I can explain to other Muslims why we support 'laicite.' We support 'laicite' because this is France. We don't want to live in Morocco, we don't want to live in Afghanistan. We want to live in France, and in France 'laicite' is the only way." FNMF FINDS COMMON GROUND WITH AMERICANS IN OPPOSING RADICAL ISLAM ¶6. (C) FNMF members told Poloff that they frequently oppose U.S. foreign policy in the Muslim world, arguing against American military action in Iraq and Afghanistan. Bechari stressed, however, that he has gone on Arabic television stations to defend French foreign policy in the Middle East and is ready to defend the United States to radical Islamists. "We want a good relationship with the American people," he stated. "I could play nice music for you and tell you that we agree with the Americans all the time, but we don't. But we and the United States have a common enemy, and that is extremism. We can work together against extremism." ¶7. (C) COMMENT: Embassy contacts report that the divisions within the CFCM over the past year have been as much about personality conflicts and competition between organizations dominated by different ethnic groups as about ideological differences among the council's membership. While Bechari argues that the "official Islam" which he believes the CFCM represents cannot speak for France's Muslims, he may have taken a different view if he had been selected to lead the council. To some extent, his criticisms may constitute "sour grapes." Nevertheless, the internal divisions that have challenged the CFCM since its inception illustrate the difficulty of creating a single body to represent France's increasingly diverse Muslim population. END COMMENT. Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm STAPLETON