"I am confident that a new law on hijab would be the best solution to such a controversial issue," said Raffarin

By Hadi Yahmed, IOL Correspondent

PARIS, October 18 (IslamOnline.net) – French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin reiterated on Friday, October 17, his support for passing a law banning hijab in French schools, as his Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy asserted that French Muslims must respect the country's secularism.

Speaking to the members of the French Muslim Council, Raffarin said "all kinds" of hijab should be banned in state schools.

"France has proved that it has all powers to impose this decision and this what happened recently," he said, referring to the expulsion of two Muslim sisters, Lila and Alma Levy, from their school after they refused to take off their hijab.

The two sisters were expelled from Henri Wallon lycee in the Paris northern suburb of Aubervilliers, after the school claimed they were wearing clothes "of an ostentatious character."

"I am confident that a new law on hijab would be the best solution to such a controversial issue," the premier argued, hinting at a report on secularism and religion to be submitted to President Jaques Chirac by the end of this year.

Chirac set up the secularity commission in July to rule on whether new legislation was needed to handle a growing debate over religion in schools, particularly Muslim schoolgirls wearing hijab.

Raffarin made no bones about Islamophobia phenomena, which had its toll on Muslims in France "just like anti-Semitic incidents."

He asserted that Islam poses no threat to the French society, adding that there was a dividing line between "Islam (as a religion) and some Islamic groups."

"France holds Islam in great esteem," said the premier.

Last month, Raffarin underlined that there would be no room for religious symbols such as hijab in French educational institutions.

Respect Secularism

For his part, Sarkozy asserted that French Muslims must respect the principles of secularism in France.

"No to hijab in schools when it has an ostentatious character…And to hijab inside state-run offices," Sarkozy told the French magazine Le Nouvelle Observateur Friday.

But he voiced anew his opposition to the hijab-banning law, warning it would provoke a backlash among Muslims, who would view it as an "insult and punishment."

"Are we expected to pass a new law when it comes to harassment?" Sarkozy wondered. "Hence, we are required to pass a myriad of laws."

The minister stressed that his opposition to the new law did not mean he totally rejected it.

Sarkozy noted he would support such legislation if dialogue with Muslims ended in nothing and hijab became "an organized movement" and not personal.

He said French-born Muslim girls wear hijab because either it makes them feel secure in some districts, or as a sign of confirming their Muslim identity.

Speaking to the French Muslim Council on October 13, Sarkozy suggested a bandana as a possible alternative to hijab.

The issue of hijab was become the center of heated debates between a sizeable and increasingly assertive Muslim minority in several European countries and the long tradition of secular education in the continent.

So far, most countries do not have any specific legislation on whether or not hijab can be worn in schools or other public establishments.

Major exceptions are Turkey, whose founder Ataturk banned hijab as part of a sweeping plan of modernization.