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FRANCE Intolerance towards Jehovah’s Witnesses HRWF Int. (14.12.2004) – Email: info@hrwf.net - Website: http://www.hrwf.net -97.87% of the inhabitants of Deyvillers, a small village in the Vosges mountains, have voted against the construction of a meeting place by Jehovah’s Witnesses on their territory. Only sixteen people were in favour of their settlement.
On December 11, 2004, the Association for the Defence of the Environment of Deyvillers (Aded) organised a referendum about this building project. Out of a population of 1470 inhabitants, there were 1082 registered voters and 795 votes were cast in the ballot box. Jehovah’s Witnesses bought a plot of land of 6 hectares to build a meeting place and a car park for 500 spaces. They introduced an application for a building permit in August of this year. The residents now urge the mayor not to sign the permit. Aded plans to hold a demonstration next weekend. On January 8, 2004, UNADFI, which is a member of the Fecris, an international umbrella organization for anti-sect movements in 27 countries, will hold a meeting in the village. Interviewed by the French radio station RTL on December 11, 2004, Mgr Barbarin, a member of the social commission of the Catholic Episcopal Conference of France, commented the events as follows: “The people always have the right to express their opinions. Of course, the problem is ‘What is a sect? This is an awful and diabolizing word. Who can decide that this is or this is not a sect?” And concerning the question whether Jehovah’s Witnesses are or are not a sect, he answered “We should have a closer look. There are remarkable people among them. They must know that they are loved, they have their place in town and in society. I often have the opportunity to talk with them and I see they are wonderful people. At the same time, I think we can say “yes” to some groups and “no” to others. In this regard, I think that our legislation is not appropriate yet. Consequently, people diabolize in an outrageous way.” The referendum of Deyvillers has no legal value but is a good indicator of the lack of openness of French society to cultural and religious diversity. In a press release issued before the consultation, the Information Bureau of the Jehovah’s Witnesses assured that “the inhabitants of Deyvillers have nothing to fear” and “ask not to be treated in a discriminatory way” and “to be able to enjoy their freedom of assembly.” Jehovah’s Witnesses and other religious minorities are not the only religious movements to have experienced such reactions. Muslims face the same sort of opposition when they plan to build mosques. Human Rights Without Frontiers recommends to the French authorities - to identify the factors that foster religious intolerance in their country and to take the necessary corrective measures; - to educate the French public in a spirit of multiculturalism. Source: Le Figaro, December 13, 2004 – RTL, “Le Journal inattendu”, December 11, 2004 |