Le Figaro Lyon
Built among the large complexes that surround it, the Debussy foyer, located at the foot of the Vénissieux towers, resembles all these small kiosks reserved for neighborhood associations in France.
It fell into municipal hands in the mid-2010s, at the end of the long lease from which the social landlord Alliade benefited on this part of the Minguettes plateau.
Already at the time, the place stood out for the presence in the courtyard of a locker to hold the shoes of the Muslim faithful who came to pray.
Among the associations which benefit from the premises, two have a religious aim, and use it as a place of worship.
A poster even specifies “Es-Salam Mosque” in white letters on a green background at the entrance.
A name taken up on the internet, where 1 rue Claude Debussy is identified as a mosque.
Comments on sites dedicated to Muslim worship refer to it.
On the right side, we find indicators testifying to the presence of the Es-Salam mosque in the municipal building.
Google Street View
It is precisely this situation that the opposition group at the Vénissieux en better municipal council is denouncing today, made up of two elected representatives Les Républicains, Aurélien Arnould and Cyril Santander.
Quentin Taïeb, employed by the party in this sector, filed a report with the public prosecutor of Lyon and the prefect of Rhône on this subject on Wednesday February 21.
He points out
“a worrying situation which undermines the principle of secularism and public order”
.
“The town hall of Vénissieux makes the Claude Debussy room available to the Es-Salam Mosque for religious activities, in flagrant contradiction with the legal provisions in force because this provision is continuous and long-term,”
he says in the statement. report consulted by
Le Figaro
.
Read also: Investigation opened against the communist mayor of Vénissieux, targeted by several complaints for illegal taking of interests
Conventions “completely legally” according to the mayor
Contacted by
Le Figaro
, the mayor of the town, Michèle Picard (PCF), insists on the legality of the situation.
“Two associations out of the ten which use the premises have religious activities but they are associations of the 1901 law type, with an occupancy agreement, like a sports club.
These associations pay the charges, completely legally.”
The councilor says he worked in conjunction with the prefecture when his municipality recovered the premises, in 2015, to bring the premises, enlarged without authorization, into compliance, and signed occupancy agreements.
At that time, another room that had fallen into the municipal domain and housed a place of prayer, in the pyramids district, had been destroyed for security reasons.
If the law of 1905, codifying secularism, prohibits the financing of worship, town halls regularly find themselves confronted with requests to make rooms available to associations, some of which may have a religious or political purpose.
In his report, Quentin Taïeb recalls that the local authorities code provides that this type of favor is possible but must remain limited in time.
“This decision must not take on an exclusive and lasting character as specified by the Council of State
,” he insists.
The prefecture received the report and told Le
Figaro
that it would study it.
“They have been there for years and it posed no problem to anyone
,” sighs a religious leader who deplores this controversy.
But Quentin Taïeb asks to
“liberate the Claude Debussy room from its exclusive use by the Es-Salam Mosque”
and points out
“the propensity of Michèle Picard to practice communitarianism”
.
The LR manager had already filed a report in December to denounce the presence in the municipal majority of an elected official invested in the Millî Görüş association, close to Turkish power, which manages numerous mosques in Europe, including that of Décines in Lyon suburbs.