Since Charlie, we keep repeating that we are at war without ever really embracing this mindset.
To do so, we must put an end to the fiction of a handful of fanatics with bloody marginality. In reality, the terrorists are merely the frontline soldiers of the army of propagandists of political Islam.
Fighting against them is indeed necessary to limit the bloody consequences of their initiatives. But we must not deceive ourselves; with the modes of operation now in use, even with increased efficiency, the actions of the State will never be able to result in zero risk.
If the phrase “being at war” has any reality, it is indeed against the political project that mobilization is necessary. Of course, it is up to the State to adapt to resist and fight effectively against communautarianism, the breeding ground of Islamism. While in terms of intelligence and military protection, the services of the State have done a lot, they have been lacking by not being vigilant against the development of communautarianism (the drama of Conflans is the absolute demonstration of this). It is thus there that action must finally be taken (the Macron bill in its essence is a step in the right direction but it is terribly overdue!).
Beyond that, it is up to each one of us to be “at war.” We cannot be passive citizens; we must mobilize.
Thus, we must renounce the deadly cowardice of “not making waves,” often initiated by politicians and the administration (I think particularly of the National Education system, which rarely supports its teachers) but which often suits us just fine. Thus, we must refuse to accept through sheer fatigue the manifestations of communautarianism that contradict the law but also republican practice. Clearly, we must show courage (including physical) to resist daily intimidation. Neither a Vichy mentality nor a Stockholm syndrome: a peaceful and determined affirmation of our republican DNA.
For all this, we expect no less from our Muslim compatriots. Not more, but not less.
by Patrick Mottard
