The latest book by Roger Garaudy, a French former Communist and now
muslim philosopher, is just out. It is a lashing against Islamic
fundamentalism, published in Paris by a Muslim publisher, Alafabeta.
Meanwhile his <The Founding Myths of Israeli Politics> is a
stunning success in spite of the near general media campaign against
it. He received the support of the Abbe Pierre, a French priest with
an enormous charisma, the book has already sold 17.000 copies
(according to "Faits et Dcouments, nr 9, just published). The book is
available in many bookshops throughout the country and is distributed
by the Romanian "Librairie du Savoir", 5 rue Malebranche in Paris
5.
Although they announced they would sue the author, the two main
French antiracist organizations , LICRA and MRAP, have failed so far
to act in accordance with their words. A trial, instigated by two
obscure former camps inmates association is supposed to take place
later this year. Many intellectuals have criticized the Gayssot Act
which allows to condemn revisionist views expressed in public.
Meanwhile, La Vieille Taupe, the original publisher of Garaudy's
controversial book, just published, as issue nr 3, a French
translation of Dr. Israel Shahak's <Jewish History, Jewish
Religion>, a book which also raises a vivid controversy by one of
the oldest militants for Human Rights in Israel.
Garaudy's book is published already in Italian and soon in German. An
English translation is available on Internet. Only part II will be
made available in a matter of days. It can be seen on
<http://www.psnw.com/~bsmith/zionweb/zionmythgar.html>
A chronicle of the Garaudy affair is written by a collective of
authors under the name "Un pieton de Paris" (a Paris boulevardier).
The first two parts (together around 250 K) are available at the
followings URLs:
http://www.psnw.com/~brsmith/inter/intchron1.html
http://flashback.se/~rislam/french/chron1.htm
http://lewebcafe.com/pages/chronfre.htm
They developped a new discussion method: controversial articles or
extracts are reproduced with intersped commentaries located right at
the spot where assertion demand a response.
Never since the war has the gap between the small world of the press,
sick with its obsessions with power and correctness, and the general
feeling of the ordinary people been so wide. The campaign to demonize
the abbe Pierre and Garaudy is a total failure. This will have
long-term consequences in the French society.