The French Model
The Threat of France’s Anti-Sect Laws to Religious Liberty in Europe & Beyond
by Joseph K. Grieboski
The countries of Western Europe have committed to the highest standards of freedom of religion and belief. They have ratified the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil a nd Political Rights, and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. They are all subject to the European Court of Human Rights and members of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Unfortunately, some of these countries are nevertheless becoming new and subtle arenas for religious discrimination.
In 1996 the French National Assembly released a list of 172 “dangerous sects and cults.” Included among these “perilous” groups are Hassidic Jews, Buddhists, the YMCA, the Pentecostal Evangelical Church, and other mainstream religious organizations that flourish in the United States under the internationally recognized basic human right of freedom of religion. Many Evangelical churches have removed the term “evangelical” from their titles out of fear of being placed on such a list and being targeted for prosecution or violence.
There is no legal definition for the terms “sect” and “cult” in French law. As the list shows, the terms have been applied to any religious group whose designation as a sect or cult has suited the French government.
Following the passage of the list, the government established the Inter-Ministerial Mission Against Sects (MILS), headed by former French deputy foreign minister Alain Vivien. “We are protecting freedoms at least as well as the Americans,” Vivien told Reuters News Agency in 1999. “In the United States, freedoms are crazy. In the name of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, which forbids the enactment of laws dealing with religious affairs, one can say and do anything he wishes, including practicing polygamy like some Mormons do.”
Vivien became France’s ambassador for anti-religiosity, and MILS developed working relationships with some of the most egregious violators of religious freedom and human rights in the world. In November 2000, representatives of MILS attended an International Symposium on Destructive Cults held in, of all places, Beijing. The People’s Daily reported that “the meeting is to focus on promoting international cooperation . . . for the prevention and control of destructive cults . . . and call for more attention from various governments, the general public and civil organizations to the issue of destructive cults, and to promote international cooperation in combating such evil forces and safeguarding human rights.”
Vivien and his staff traveled throughout the world exporting their anti-religiosity, even coming to “anti-cult” conferences in the United States. They visited at least 88 countries in three years.
A Worse Example
A bill enacted by the French government is an even worse example of France’s official limitation of freedom of religion. Signed into law in June 2001, the bill “to reinforce the prevention and repression of groups of a sectarian nature” aims to restrict the free expression, growth, and development of sects and cults.
While the law, known as the About-Picard Law after its sponsors, is specifically aimed at “groups of a sectarian nature,” it contains repressive measures that will have a chilling effect on freedom of religion, including the dissolution of targeted religious associations, the imprisonment of members of such groups, and the denial of their freedom of speech, including speech intended to persuade another person to a particular point of view, whether philosophical or religious. It provides drastic penalties for a “crime” described in terms subjective, unscientific, arbitrary, and vague enough to encompass any religious activity, including teaching and evangelizing.
Joseph K. Grieboski is founder and president of the Institute on Religion and Public Policy in Washington, D.C. The Institute, which has offices in Brussels and at the United Nations, is a nonpartisan, inter-religious organization that seeks to shape the public participation in policy of the community of faith.
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