French imam: Wife-beating OK

2004-04-21 07:19

Paris - An Algerian Islamic cleric faced possible deportation from France on Wednesday after authorities arrested and moved to expel him following comments that wife-beating is authorised by the Qu'ran.

Abdelkader Bouziane, imam of a mosque in the eastern city of Lyon, caused an uproar when he told the April issue of a local magazine, Lyon Mag, that he was polygamous, believed that "beating your wife is authorised by the Qu'ran", and expressed the hope that "the entire world becomes Muslim."

The interior ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that Bouziane, 53, had been arrested and sent to a holding area at Lyon airport under a deportation order issued in February on the grounds of societal harmony.

It said "the government will not tolerate public comments against human rights, which attack human dignity and in particular the dignity of women, calls to hatred or to violence, or justification of terrorism."

It noted Bouziane's reported comments in the magazine and said: "They confirm the solid grounds for the deportation decision."

Bouziane's lawyer Mahmud Hebia said late on Tuesday he planned to lodge a court appeal for the deportation order to be stayed and his client freed from detention.

The court could hear the request on Wednesday morning at 10:00 (08:00 GMT), said Hebia.

The magazine interview outraged Islamic representatives in France.

"The associations should sack imams like him," Mohamed Bechari, the head of the National Federation of French Muslims, told reporters.

"We condemn this type of slip, which shows a fundamentalist reading of the Qu'ranic text that is not part of Islam nor the Muslims in France," he said.

"We're not showing what works, and we keep looking in cellars for forgotten imams with the aim of making others believe that Muslims in France are all Islamic extremists, and that all Islamic extremists plant bombs," he complained.

French politicians, however, expressed anger at Bouziane's comments and said they would make an example of him.

Justice Minister Perben, speaking on state television, said justice officials "can and must do something" and added that other people had also vowed legal action.

Sources close to the organisation that runs the mosque, Es Salem, said Bouziane had defended himself by claiming the interview had not been properly conducted, and had demanded the magazine either publish a retraction or face a lawsuit.

Hebia said Bouziane arrived in France legally in 1980 and holds a valid residence permit.

"He is the father of 16 children, all French, including 10 minors. He is worried for his young children," said Hebia.

- AFP