Dozens of civil organizations have called on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to initiate formal infringement proceedings against the French government’s enshrinement of Islamophobia.
In a written complaint to the UNHRC, 36 groups from 13 countries outlined the “clear violation of a number of fundamental rights protected in a draft law ratified by Paris.”
France’s actions and policies regarding Muslim communities also violate international and European laws, according to these civil organizations.
“France has witnessed a shocking level of state-approved Islamophobia in recent months. The country has accelerated the closure of mosques, Muslim schools, Muslim-run charities and civil organizations,” said Muhammad Rabbani, Cage’s executive director, who co-signed the complaint.
“As a member of the United Nations, France must not so openly violate its international legal obligations while trying to present itself as a country of “liberty, equality and fraternity,” Rabbani said, referring to France’s national symbol: “liberty, equality, fraternity.”
The 28-page complaint, seen by London-based online news agency Middle East Eye, stresses the need for formal infringement proceedings against the French government because there is no effective means within the French legal system to stop structural Islamophobia.
by Xavier Cuesta – European Correspondent – EN