The French Council of Muslim Faith (CFCM) expressed its “astonishment” on Sunday upon learning that a young French citizen who had passed the entrance exams and was otherwise qualified had been denied entry into the police academy for no other reason than a “mark” on his forehead presumably associated with a “sign of identity withdrawal” and “regular practice of prayer,” according to a CFCM press release.
The CFCM is a national elected body founded by former President Nicholas Sarkozy that serves as an official interlocutor with the French state in the regulation of Muslim activities. In its press release, it pointed to the increasing use by French authorities of Arabic terms such as “tabaa” for “mark” and “abaya” for “dress,” saying that this is “a worrying trend.”
This arbitrary decision to deny an applicant on the apparent basis of religion, “unprecedented in the 5th Republic, has added to the climate of suspicion that now weighs on any Muslim wishing to practice their faith peacefully, without proselytism or provocation,” stated CFCM.
A mark on the forehead or any other part of the body, it asserted, is not “proof” of intensive or regular prayer. Such a mark could be a result of prostration during prayer or a skin condition. Some individuals may develop such marks after a few prayers, while others may never get them despite a lifetime of prayer.
The CFCM criticized French government authorities for “assuming expertise” in Muslim theology while seemingly losing sight of the true nature of Islam, which it asserted has led to growing persecution of Muslims in France.
The Council further questioned why such a mark should be associated with radicalization or “identity withdrawal” at all, even if it is a symbol of religious devotion. “Should we now consider the mere practice of the Muslim religion as synonymous with radicalization?,” it asked.
It pointed out the utter irony in being accused of “separatism” when in fact one’s intention is to “serve the Republic by wearing the uniform.”
The Council cautioned that excluding practicing or presumed Muslim individuals from schools and police academies would only “fuel a feeling of exclusion and contribute to the rise of extremism.”
It asked rhetorically, what message is being sent to the millions of practicing Muslims in France by this kind of “grotesque and dramatic controversy.”
The Council concluded by saying, the “strong forces of our country must speak out against this abusive use of one of the fundamental principles of the freedom of the Republic, which is secularism.”