The French government officially accepted the role of an imam as a profession on Tuesday, also adding it to the list of occupations by the French Employment Agency, based on an Anadolu report.
While the closing session of the second meeting of the French Islam Forum (FORIF) was held that time, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau made the announcement, and he emphasized the necessity of the recognition. He said in his speech that dialogue between representatives of the state and Muslim religious should depend on trust and responsibility. Muslims reject the misrepresentation of their faith by extremist ideology. He also highlights that the state should not interfere in religious institutions.
The position of an imam has been formally added to France’s official list of recognized professions as a part of the effort. As a nation’s first such acknowledgment, he called the action a historic step. He also revealed that imams would have employment contracts and formal job descriptions, which would give their work a more organized framework. Concerns over Islamophobia in France were also discussed by Retailleau, who said that 173 anti-Muslim incidents were reported last year.
The government will launched a new complaint mechanism for reporting Islam phobic occurrences in an effort to curb the crime. In order to ensure that their roles are publicly recognized inside state institutions, Muslim chaplains serving in hospitals and the military will be officially reorganized as members of the public service.
Source: Anadolu Agency, Middle East Monitor
