French minister under fire for racism

On Saturday, French presidential candidate Hollande’s spokesman, Manuel Valls called Gueant comments “nauseating”, while centrist candidate Francois Bayrou accused Gueant of scaremongering.

Gueant, a hardliner close to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, told an audience near Nancy in eastern France on late Friday that “We don’t want foreign town councilors making Halal food obligatory in canteen meals …. Or regulating mixed bathing in swimming pools.”

French immigrant aid group France Terre d’Asile condemned “the pathetic quest of a minister who forgets his official duties in the hope of adding the votes of a few extremists to his side.”

This the second time in a month that Gueant, who is a strong supporter of Nicolas Sarkozy’s bid for a second term, comes under fire for comments deemed racist by French liberals.

Last month, Gueant sparked outrage when he said “for us all civilizations are not of equal value,” at a meeting with right-wing students.

“Those which defend humanity seem to us to be more advanced than those that do not,” Gueant who is responsible for immigration in France said.

Last April, Gueant declared that an increase in the number of Muslim faithful in France posed a “problem”. In January he claimed the crime rate among immigrants was “two to three times higher” than the national average.

PG/JR

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