Eight years after its creation, the Observatory of secularism, criticized by certain politicians who reproached it for not doing enough against Islamism, will be replaced in the next few days by an “interministerial committee on secularism”.
"The decree establishing the interministerial committee", which must be published in the next few days, "will repeal (...) the one creating the Observatory", which had been set up in 2013, said the services of the Prime Minister on Friday. Minister for the Press.
Its purpose will be to "coordinate the action of the government in order to ensure the respect and the promotion of the principle of secularism by all the public administrations", specified Matignon in a press release.
This will happen as soon as the bill confirming the principles of the Republic has been definitively adopted by Parliament, in principle by the summer truce.
This text provides for "an obligation of training in the requirements of the principle of secularism for all public officials" and "the creation of secular referents in all administrations", among others.
First meeting on July 12
The new body, "placed under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister", will bring together the ministries concerned (Interior, National Education, Civil Service).
It will take over the missions, in particular administrative and advisory, of the Observatory of secularism.
A "secretariat" will be placed under the responsibility of the Ministry of the Interior, the form of which will be specified in particular during the first meeting of this committee, on 12 July.
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The Observatory of Secularism, chaired by the former Socialist Minister Jean-Louis Bianco until last April, was again accused of complacency towards Islamism after the assassination of Professor Samuel Paty last October and then during the examination in Parliament of the bill to combat separatism.
