French identity debate overshadowed by immigration fears

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called the national identity debate an exercise in soul-searching but immigration fears are threatening to derail the supposed noble initiative.

The identity debate was launched with much fanfare last month by Sarkozy’s right-wing government in order for ordinary citizens to explain what it means to them to be French. Meetings at town halls across the country have been supported by a nationwide internet forum ahead of a national conference in February to discuss the findings.

From the beginning, the move has ignited controversy with opposition parties accusing Sarkozy of attempting to incite a wave of nationalism in the lead up to next year’s regional elections in March. Sarkozy, in the midst of falling approval ratings, has claimed that opponents of the debate are scared of addressing complex issues.

Not among them was one village Mayor who said that there are already 10 million immigrants in France who are being paid to do nothing. He was quickly renounced by Eric Besson, the Immigration Minister, who said such statements were unacceptable in a government sponsored debate.

Further scrutiny will be applied to the online forum which has seen a range of xenophobic and racist contributions, including claims that being French means to be white and be able to park one’s car on the street without fear of vandalism – a clear reference to the spate of car torching in high-immigration suburbs.

France is the largest Muslim country in Europe with Islam now ranked as the country’s second most popular religion. To date, over 40,000 comments have been posted online.