PARIS, 28 October 2003 — Muslims across France all began the holy month of Ramadan yesterday this year after reaching a consensus for the first time on the start of the annual fast calculated according to the lunar calendar.
The consensus came about thanks to the newly-created French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), a government-backed body formed to represent France’s five-million-strong Muslim community on issues concerning Islam in public life.
The council was created in an effort to better integrate Muslims into traditionally Catholic but secular France where immigration and the role of Muslims in society have sometimes led to controversies.
Disagreements over the sightings of the moon mean the holy month starts on different days in different countries. It began on Sunday in Egypt, Yemen and the Palestinian territories but only yesterday in Gulf Arab states and Algeria.
Reaching consensus on the start of Ramadan was a small but symbolic victory for the CFCM, which includes Muslims ranging from moderate to fundamentalist in outlook and from backgrounds as diverse as North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa and Turkey. Dalil Boubakeur, who is head of the CFCM and rector of the Grand Mosque of Paris, announced the decision at the weekend. Ramadan is the most widely observed of Islam’s tenets among France’s Muslims.
