Controversial Dinner Debate in Paris Canceled Over Tariq Ramadan’s Inclusion

"I was asked to cancel this event, which I deeply regret," Elisa Kitson, founder of the Anglo-Saxon think tank The KitSon, a think tank that regularly invites journalists, intellectuals and international decision-makers to geopolitical debates in Paris, told Capital.

The reason for this cancellation is explained by the announced presence at this event of one of the co-speakers, Tariq Ramadan. This invitation provoked the anger of many Internet users. "One can question the choice of their star guest, Tariq Ramadan, indicted for rape, just as one can question the discernment of the decision-makers who would give some credit to a notorious Islamist and a sexual predator," writes the essayist Céline Pina on Facebook.

According to her, the objective of this closed-door debate is to bring together Islamists and decision-makers, in order to do business together and create networks. "Welcome to a country where those who want to manipulate the elites think that they can rely on their total indifference to their country and common decency," the essayist indignantly.

Clearly, Tariq Ramadan is unwelcome in France. In 2019, similar controversies had led organizers to cancel two of his conferences in Corbeil-Essonnes and Montpellier. After spending nearly 10 months in pre-trial detention, the Swiss Islamic scholar is currently on conditional release and under house arrest.