Construction is underway, but local elected officials and the Ministry of the Interior are opposed to the project for a French-Turkish cultural and religious centre to be built in Seine-et-Marne, between Valenton and Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, reports Le Parisien on Saturday September 11. Although the project was approved by the departmental council in 2019 and a building permit was issued in 2020, the 2,000 square metre building has come under fire.
Initially, the mayors of the two municipalities denounced a project that was poorly conceived or did not respect certain design recommendations, and there were rumours of dubious funding. The French-Turkish Cultural Association of Val-de-Marne (ACFT 94), which initiated the project, assures Le Parisien that the work will continue. In addition to these technical debates, there is also a political issue. Indeed, after decades of communist leadership, both the department and the commune of Valenton took a shift to the right in the last municipal and departmental elections.
The Ministry of the Interior has also taken up this sensitive issue. On Thursday September 9, in a letter published by Le Parisien, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin asked the president of the Val-de-Marne department, Olivier Capitanio (LR), to withdraw the decision adopted by the previous majority. This time, the issue is that the management structure for the project, co-created by the ACFT 94, benefits from a loan partially guaranteed by the ministry. However, ACFT 94 is a branch of the Coordinating Committee of Turkish Muslims in France (CCMTF). The latter has not adopted the Charter of the Declaration of Principles on Islam in France.”All projects associated with associations that have not signed the Charter or with structures affiliated to these associations, as is the case here, are subject to special monitoring by the state,” the ministry explained. The text, presented last January, aims to prevent political Islam and foreign funding of religious associations. It also provides a framework for the appointment of imams and recalls that the principles of the Republic take precedence over religious beliefs.