THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
26 Friday, August 1 1980
2.5 Million Arabs in France to Become Political Force
Mack Pitt
and his
Orchestra
By EDWIN EYTAN
PARIS (JTA) — There are
plus
probably more Arabs living
in France today than in all
Disco
of Israel, including the
Music just for you
occupied territories. One-
and-a-half million are reg-
358-3642
istered as permanent resi-
ses
ohm es - — so um • • -al .:. • as
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dents _in France and an
additional million are be-
lieved to be living in France
either as illegal immigrants
or under the guise of tem-
porary visitors.
During the last 10 years,
France's Arab community
with its 43 mosques, 22
newspapers, dozens of
schools, hospitals and banks
has become a vital economic
force and an important
political factor. French
politicians and
businessmen take into ac-
count its political aspira-
tions and its economic
interests.
One Rolls Royce out of
every two registered in
France belongs to a Middle
Eastern Arab visitor, and
one industrial worker out of
.every 20 is a North African
immigrant. Lebanese refu-
gees float some of France's
major banking loans, others
own large blocs of shares in
major industrial
enterprises.
Many of these new-
comers now represent
large French corpora-
tions in Saudi Arabia and
the Persian Gulf states
handling huge sums and
indirectly controlling a
heavy share of France's
exports to the Arab
world.
Since January 1977, in
slightly over three years, 29
new Arab-owned banks
have opened in France to
handle the huge amount of
cash passing through the
country.
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All along the Champs
Elysees, Paris' main ave-
nue, Lebanese restaurants
have opened to cater to this
new clientele. The former
"Regine's," once the center
of the Paris jet set society,
has passed into new hands
and renamed The Beirut."
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41
LAWRENCE M. ALLAN
President
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in by special plane and Arab
bakeries throughout Paris
now prepare fresh pita like
in the suks of Cairo or
Damascus.
One of Paris' landmarks,
the world famous Ritz
Hotel, has been bought by
an Egyptian resident; the
Cafe de la Paix, where gen-
erations of tourists tradi-
tionally sat, is owned by a
Kuwaiti company. The ele-
gant Prince de Galles Hotel,
where many senior Israeli
government and Jewish
Agency officials stay, is now
owned by an Egyptian. On
the hotel's seventh floor,
Lebanese leader Raymond
Edde has his private apart-
ment and a 22-room office
suite which many describe
as a Lebanese government
in exile.
France's naval pride,
the "France," the world's
largest liner, was origi-
nally bought by Arab
businessman Akram Oj-
jeh. Another Saudi
entrepreneur, Ghaith
Pharaon, is the owner of
a 15th Century castle, the
Chateau de Montfort,
which he uses as an occa-
sional weekend home.
France's Arab population
is basically divided into two
communities: the North Af-
ricans who started off as
poor, unskilled workers,
and the Middle Eastern in-
vestors attracted not only by
the pleasant West Euro-
pean living standards but
also by their desire to
closely control their busi-
ness interests and financial
investments.
The massive North Afri-
can immigration to France
started at the end of the
Algerian war. Most of the
arrivals at the time, in
1961, were Algerians who
had collaborated with the
French and feared possible
reprisals. France, at the
start of a large-scale eco-
nomic expansion, was keen
for cheap, undemanding
and unskilled labor.
The North African influx
Continued over the years.
Today, according to official
statistics, there are close to
one million Algerians in
France, half a million
Moroccans and a quarter of
a million Tunisians. They
still remain the core of the
country's low paid labor
force — the men who sweep
the streets, build the roads,
and work at menial tasks in
the Renault and' Peugeot
automobile plants.
By their very penetra-
tion into French eco-
nomic life, the North Af-
ricans have become an
important factor both in
the consumer and in the
distribution process.
"Should the North Afri-
can merchants or con-
sumers decide to boycott
a certain product, its
producers would be out
of business within less
than a fortnight," a
member of the Paris
Chamber of Commerce
admitted recently.
The North African popu-
lation is politically_ highly
motivated and well-
organized within a mul-
titude of associations and
unions where political , in-
doctrination is the rule. In
most Algerian cultural cen-
ters there are regular
weekly lectures on such de-
licate subjects as
Jerusalem, the Palestinians
and the "Israeli aggression
against our Arab brothers."
For the time being, most
of this population is still too
busy to assimilate; it is still
fighting too hard for basic
economic well-being to find
time for political involve-
ment in France. In less than
a generation, however,
many of them will have
opted for French national-
ity, will vote, will bring
pressure to bear and will
openly make their voices
and political views heard.
Their natural leaders are
already on the spot. Two
generations of Arab-born
lawyers, doctors and intel-
lectuals who have studied in
France and have remained
are generally opting for
French citizenship.
This Arab strength is so
obvious that Khashoggi
declared recently in
Paris: "Whether you like
it or not, we are hence-
forth bound together."
The Arab economic
penetration in France is less
spectacular than in Britain,
where they concentrate on
prestige real estate, and
more in depth where Arab
money flows into industrial
projects and long-range
economic enterprises. Ojjeh
recently explained to the
French weekly, Le Point:
"French enterprises need
money and we ne ,
technology and grow
companies. We are boundi,u
link our destinies together."
* * *
Growth of Arab
Language Press
The permanency of the
Arab implantation in
France is symbolized by the
new Arab press. Among the
30-plus Arab publications
are such renowned news-
papers and periodicals as
* * *
"An Nahar"; "Al Mstakbal,"
Lebanese Refugees
with a self-proclaimed reg-
Boost Business
ular circulation of 90,000;
The arrival in France in "Al Watan Al Arabi"; "Al
1977 of some 20,000
Hawadess"; "Al Riyad", "Al
Lebanese refugees gave a
Iktissad we Almal Al
new impetus to the Arab
Arabi," and "Dar Assayad,"
business community. Most and at least 30 lesser-
of these refugees came with known publications.
money, with considerable
In chic Paris areas, or on
business experience and the Cote d'Azur, an affluent
with a practical kndwhow of Arab resident leaves his
Western economic prac- elegant eight or nine-room
tices. They took over hun- apartment, drives his
dreds of business companies Bentley or Lincoln Conti-
and now work as French nental car to his office when
representatives in the Per- he does not yet have a
sian Gulf states and Saudi
chaufeur and bodyguard,
Arabia and operate smaller has lunch at a Lebanese res-
but highly active banks in taurant, goes out in the
Paris, Lichtenstein and evening to an Arab casino
Geneva.
and meets friends over
French real estate agents drinks later at one of the
say that half of the -apart- chic clubs. On the way, he
ments they sell in the stops at a newspaper kiosk
10,000-20,000 Francs to pick up some Arab dailies
($2,500-$5,000) per square or weeklies published in
meter range are bought by France.
Arabs and mainly Lebanese
At the same time, a
refugees.
poor Arab worker, gen-
These refugees also re- erally from North Africa,
portedly now own 10 per- sweeps the streets or
cent of the Dumez indus- weighs fruits and veget-
trial empire, 44 percent of ables in a small dingy
various airline companies shop, but nonetheless
and 39 percent of the Dun- feels part of the same
kerque chemical concern.
"Moslem and Arab com-
Many of them have munity" in spite of his
joined older Arab estab- one-room flat with prac-
lished firms or business- tically no heating and
man such as the groups just one tap of running
led- by Akram Ojjeh, a water:
multi-
Syrian-born
Both worlds, the multi-
Adnam billionaires and the poor,
billionaire,
Khashoggi, a Saudi - Ara- are and feel part of the same
bian business wizrad, , family and Arab commu-
Ghaith Pharaon, the 38- nity. Many French Jews feel
year-old Saudi Arabian and fear that in less than P
who is an electronic generation from no
engineer and a graduate France's Arabs will become -
of Harvard, and the new a main force in French polit-
owner of the Intra- ical and economic life.
Investment Arab Bank
and the First Arab Cor-
How sacred and beautiful
poration (FAC), which
several years ago tried to is the feeling of affection in
buy 25 percent of the the pure and guileless soul!
Lockheed Corporation (a The proud may sneer at it,
bid turned down by the the fashionable call it a fa-
Washington Administra- ble, the selfish and dissi-
tion) and is now eyeing pated affect to despise it, but
the holy passion is surely
the Dassault Works.
Tamraz's FAC is also from heaven, and is made
openly bidding for half a evil only by the corruptions
dozen giant refineries in of those it was sent to
Western Europe, Canada preserve and bless.
— Mordaunt
and Puerto Rico. •