SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: For months the French have been embroiled in a public debate centered on their national identity and a possible ban on the burqa. Immigration Minister Éric Besson, a former Socialist, is the man behind the aggressive debate, making him one of France's most controversial politicians.
Temperatures were below freezing and the winter sky was a frosty gray when French President Nicolas Sarkozy arrived at the Notre-Dame-de-Lorette military cemetery in northern France last Tuesday. He had come to pay his last respects to another Frenchman, a man named Harouna Diop, a soldier and father of six children. Born in Senegal, Diop was only 40 years old when he died in Afghanistan on Jan. 13, when insurgents blew up his armored military vehicle.
"Harouna Diop was a Frenchman. Harouna Diop was a Muslim," Sarkozy said, facing a field of white crosses. "He died for France."
Sarkozy's eulogy was a rescue attempt, a rhetorical maneuver at the height of a heated debate being conducted in France over national identity. It has divided the country for months, has led to racist gaffes and has contributed to an atmosphere of heightened suspicion against French Muslims.
The debate revolves around the values of the republic, the French nation, the burqa and the question of what this country is proud of and what is important to it -- in short, many of the things that unite, or once united, the French.
The man who triggered this debate is standing next to Sarkozy at the military cemetery: Éric Besson, 51, minister for immigration, integration and national identity. The Nouvel Observateur calls him a "shameless servant of his master," while the weekly magazine Marianne concludes that he is "the most hated man in France." As for the president, he calls Besson "my blade."
Besson is a suave politician. He wears lilac-colored shirts with purple ties, has a habit of pressing the fingertips of both of his hands together while speaking and likes to pose for photographs in his office, between gilded stucco and an antique globe. Besson, who calls himself a patriot, has just written a book, "For the Nation," a literary hymn to his native France, which he says he has "loved and idolized" since his adolescent days. The immigration minister was born in Marrakech, Morocco and only came to France he was 17.
Three months ago, the minister announced the beginning of a constructive debate in the "motherland of human rights." He was convinced that ownership of the concept of the nation had been left to right-wing extremist Jean-Marie Le Pen and his Front National (FN) for far too long. There was nothing wrong with launching into this debate, which is currently raging in many European countries, partly as a reaction to the growing number of Muslims living in Europe.
The discussion centers on their rights and obligations, and on their acceptance of Western values. A burqa ban is not just being debated in France, but also in Denmark and Italy, and in December the Swiss voted in a referendum against the construction of minarets. 'Fear of Arab Domination' >>> Stefan Simons | Monday, February 01, 2010
