Secularism is back on the government's working table.

Jean Castex will set up the interministerial committee on this issue this Thursday morning.

In particular, it will have to endorse an action plan in 17 measures, ranging from the training of all public officials to monitoring the deployment of “secularism referents” in the administrations.

This first interministerial committee, bringing together around ten members of the government, marks the effective replacement of the Observatory of Secularism, a consultative body abolished by decree a month ago after being accused of lax vis-à-vis the Islamism, which its officials have always defended.

A bill expected to be adopted in a week

The committee aims, according to Matignon, to "set in motion the various administrations" with the approach of the final adoption next week of the "bill consolidating the republican principles", which contains several measures around secularism. "The challenge for the Committee is to make these provisions a reality as soon as the law is promulgated", insists the Ministry of the Interior, to which the secretariat of the committee will be entrusted in the form of a "secularism office". This office "will have the responsibility of being the reference administration" in matters of secularism, according to this source.

In the roadmap which will be validated this Thursday, there are therefore already known measures, such as the training of all the agents of the three sides of the public service (State, territorial, hospital) in the principles of secularism, by 2025. The looks turn in particular to National Education, marked by the beheading of Professor Samuel Paty.

Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer had also entrusted in February a mission to the former Inspector General of Education, Jean-Pierre Obin, intended to harmonize and improve secular training for teachers and school heads.

Help officials in a situation of "isolation"

Within all the administrations will be deployed, from 2022, "secularity referents" dedicated to "supporting agents who are in situations of isolation" or questioning, explains the Ministry of the Civil Service, specifying that the network would be run by the Interior. Likewise, sub-prefects will be appointed in each department to "animate local policies around secularism", adds Beauvau.

The bill currently being adopted also extends the principle of religious neutrality to organizations or companies delegated to public service (transport, etc.).

And creates a “deferred secularism” which allows the prefects to seize the administrative judge vis-a-vis an act of a local collectivity that they consider contrary to the principles of secularism, such as the establishment of differentiated schedules according to the genders in the swimming pools.

Finally, the committee will ratify the establishment of a “secularism day” on December 9, the anniversary of the famous law of 1905.

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  • Officials

  • Public service

  • Gerald Darmanin

  • Jean Castex

  • Secularism

  • Society