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Algerian Entrepreneur Pays for French Muslims Fines

Close-up of female legs in hot tub
Close-up of female legs in hot tub

Summary: Rachid Nekkaz, an Algerian entrepreneur, has offered to pay the fines that French Muslims receive for wearing Burkinis as a sign of civil disobedienc e.

Rachid Nekkaz said he is prepared to pay the fines of French Muslim women who wear burkinis, despite his personal beliefs about the garments. He has set up a €1m fund to pay for fines, and has launched a legal challenge in both France and Belgium.

The entrepreneur, who is married to a French woman who does not wear the veil, said he does not personally support the burkini, but still wants people to have the right to wear them.

“Personally I am opposed to the niqab and to the burkini. They are not the right way to integrate into French society,” Nekkaz said. “But I believe in the right of the individual to be free in the public space to wear what they wish.”

He said the situation in France is delicate, and that it is important for upcoming elections.

“There is an explosive situation in France,” Nekkaz said. “It is such that the question of Islam will be the central issue in the presidential election next year.”

 

 

Read the full story @ International Business Times UK