PARIS NOMINEE FOR 2008 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN OF

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 004352 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR G/IWI, EUR/WE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SCUL PHUM KWMN KPAO PREL FR SUBJECT: PARIS NOMINEE FOR 2008 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN OF COURAGE AWARD REF: SECSTATE 126072 PARIS 00004352 001.2 OF 002 Sensitive but unclassified, please protect accordingly. ¶1. (SBU) Per reftel action request, Embassy Paris nominates Fadela Amara, Secretary of State for Urban Policies and founder of the NGO "Ni Putes Ni Soumises" for the 2008 Secretary of State's Annual Award for International Women of Courage (IWOC). Born in France to an impoverished family of Algerian descent, who lived in a housing project, Amara has fought for two decades for the rights of women and minorities at the grassroots level. "Ni Putes Ni Soumises" ("Neither Prostitutes Nor Submissives"),whose name was/is intended both to shock and to mobilize, was founded in response to violence targeting women, particularly in the suburbs and housing projects of France's larger cities. The group focuses, particularly, on fighting sexual abuse, pressure to wear the hijab (Islamic head scarf),pressure for girls to drop out of school, or to be compelled to marry against their wishes. On June 19, 2007, Amara was named in a surprise appointment by President Sarkozy to be Secretary of State for Urban Policies. Embassy points of contact for this nominee are Human Rights Officer Stephen Wells and Cultural Affairs Officer Lora Berg ( WellsWS@state.gov, BergLJ@state.gov , 33 1 43 12 27 85). ¶2. (SBU) NAME: Fadela Amara TITLE/ ASSOCIATION: Secretary of State for Urban Policies DATE OF BIRTH: 04/25/1964 COUNTRY OF BIRTH: France CITIZENSHIP: French ADDRESS/ TELEPHONE/ EMAIL: Secretary of State for Urban Policies, 3, place de Fontenoy, 75007 PARIS; 01 44 49 80 00 PASSPORT NUMBER: ? ¶3. (SBU) Amara has actively devoted her life to fighting for the rights of women from underprivileged backgrounds, including, but not restricted to, Muslim women in the French suburbs. One of eleven children born to an Algerian family in an impoverished housing project in France, Amara became politically active at an early age. She attributes her activism to the experience at 14 of watching police defend a reckless driver who had hit and killed her younger brother. She founded her first organization, the "Women's Association for Intercommunal Exchange," at the age of 18. In 1986 she became an activist with the civil rights organization, "SOS Racisme." In 1989 she established a women's empowerment association called the "Women's Commission," and in 2003 the organization "Ni Putes Ni Soumises" ("Neither Prostitutes nor Submissives"). ¶4. (SBU) Many French suburbs are composed of immigrant and lower income communities, whose residents have become increasingly marginalized. Crime, unemployment and tension between traditional values and modern French society have placed Muslim women in a difficult and sometimes even dangerous environment. In 2002, Amara founded "Ni Putes Ni Soumises" following a spate of "honor killings" and attacks on young Muslim women. After one particularly brutal killing of a young Muslim girl, Amara, along with 2,000 other men and women, took part in a silent march. She then organized gatherings at which girls and women could speak openly about violence in their districts. In February 2003 she initiated a "March of Women from the Suburbs". This march went through a total of 23 cities and drew the nation's attention to the repression of young women in the French suburbs. ¶5. (SBU) Today "Ni Putes Ni Soumises" has more than 6,000 members in 60 local committees. The organization campaigns for gender equality, women's empowerment and the end of violence against women. The organization founded by Amara is fighting to break the law of silence that tacitly permits the continuation of violence against women in the suburbs. ¶6. (SBU) Amara's grassroots work eventually drew the attention of French society and French government authorities. In 2004 she was appointed a member of France's Consultative Committee for Human Rights, and in 2005 she was named to the "High Authority for the Fight Against Discrimination" by then-President, Jacques Chirac. In 2007 she was appointed Secretary of State for Urban Policies by the Sarkozy administration, and she now is working on government solutions to the problems of the suburbs. "SOS Racisme" expressed its support for Amara's nomination in a June 19 press statement: "Fadela will devote her experience to the betterment of a project that France has neglected for too long - the battle against ghettoization and multiple discriminations that afflict inhabitants of the country's underprivileged neighborhoods." Beyond a doubt, Fadela Amara is an international woman of courage, who is leading the way both as an activist, as a role model, and now as a high ranking government official for the new generation of young women in France to grow to their full potential. In our view, her selection as an international woman of courage would further signal to girls and young women in the suburbs of France that their full PARIS 00004352 002.2 OF 002 participation in society is both needed and welcome. Stapleton