Stéphane Wilmotte, mayor of the UDI of Hautmont, gets himself into a tricky situation when he refuses to perform the wedding ceremony of a man of Algerian origin and a French woman on Saturday. This decision is linked to an explosive affair of state.
The news could almost be ironic if the situation were not extremely serious against the sensitive background of the affair involving Imam Hassan Iquouissen. At the time, in 2003, Joël Wilmotte, the former mayor of Hautmont, was convicted by the criminal court of racial and religious discrimination in marriage. This time it is his son Stéphane, the current mayor of the commune in the Val de Sambre, who refuses to perform the civil marriage of an Algerian man from Hautmont and his French partner scheduled for Saturday September 3 at 2.30 pm.
Father or son, the intention is of course not the same. But why does the politician, who in no way agrees with his father’s convictions, put himself in this difficult position? Stéphane Wilmotte, who is usually quick to get his opinions into the media, as with urban rodeos, feels uncomfortable this time. He categorically refuses to comment on his motives, but Hautmont is not such a big city and information that is cross-checked spreads quickly. The groom is a matter of concern for state security at the highest level, and is under pressure above all from a deportation order allegedly served on him in August.
The former president of the AsSalam association, which ran the Salafist place of worship on Rue Jules-Campagne in Hautmont, which was shut down in December 2018 for glorifying terrorism, is reportedly being targeted by the Ministry of the Interior. At this stage, absolutely nothing is on record. The deportation commission has not yet met and no official decision has been taken forcing him to leave France.
Could his marriage to a French woman be the sticking point in the proceedings initiated by the state? (…) La VDN
