France: The threats facing Jews

A few months ago I wrote an opinion article about the threats to Jews and Judaism in Europe today. I pointed out that while the ‘anti-Jihadists’ focus on the ‘new’ Islamic antisemitism and expect Jews to join them, there are several reasons why it’s not a Jewish interest to do so. First, the Muslims are not the only ones who hate the Jews. And second, they cannot support efforts to assimilate minorities and join the fight against religious laws since assimilation and anti-religion laws could also lead to the decimation of the European Jewish community.

The Jerusalem Post interviewed two French Jewish leaders, and though they differ on which threat is worse, they basically say the same thing.

They might support a ban on burkas, but their reasons for doing so are not because they’re anti-Islamization.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

What’s the single most important issue affecting the Jews of France, Europe’s biggest Jewish community and the third largest in the world? Ask two Jews and you’ll get three opinions, right? Well, not quite.

Joel Mergui, president of the Consistoire Central, the body charged by the government with organizing the community’s religious affairs, and Richard Prasquier, the president of CRIF, the umbrella organization for Jewish advocacy groups, agree on the big issues but disagree over their order of importance – just as you’d expect from a leader who heads a religious organization and one helming a nonreligious political organization.

In separate interviews with The Jerusalem Post on Monday at their offices on opposite sides of the French capital, the leaders of the French Jewish establishment outlined the challenges, fears and hopes of the community as they see them.

Mergui believes assimilation is the biggest problem French Jewry has to take on.

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Prasquier, too, believes assimilation is an important issue worth reckoning with.

However, he believes the main problem facing the Jewish community is the unholy marriage of anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism by extreme leftists, rightists and Islamists.

“My predecessor called it the Red-Green Alliance,” he said. “Some on the left don’t mind being allied with Islamic extremists like those who were on the Mavi Marmara [Gaza protest ship]. And many people in the center are being influenced by their views of Israel, so much so that they question their own policy toward it.”

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Mergui and Prasquier agree that Islamic veils completely or mostly covering women’s faces are contrary to the notion of being French and support the bill that would ban them in public. Yes, they both worry government interference over Jewish issues like shehita ritual slaughter, which some animal rights groups want to ban citing cruelty. But burqas are a another matter, they say.

“A majority of Muslims in France say these veils have nothing to do with Islam,” Mergui said.

“To me it is a breach of the social contract,” Prasquier said. “Women are separated from society in such a way that you cannot even see their faces.”

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Surrey: Muslims pay less for burial

Via Telegraph (h/t NRP):

Christian churchgoers have complained about the “discriminatory price” of burial plots in the Greenlawn Memorial Park cemetery in Warlingham, Surrey.

The cemetery – which is managed by Croydon Council – offers Muslims a graveyard plot for £2,383, but charges non-Muslims £2,927 – a hike of £544.

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This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

The cemetery has a specially-designated area of land for Muslims, who as part of their religion only allow one body to be buried in any one plot and must be buried apart from non-Muslims and facing Mecca.

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A spokesman for Croydon Council said that the reason for the price difference was that Muslims only allow one person to be buried in a grave, whereas people of other religions can use the plot for more than one person.

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Leicestershire: Increase in report abuse against Muslims

Via BBC:

Muslims in Leicestershire are facing increasing abuse, according to figures from the police.

Between April 2008 and March 2009, officers recorded 25 offences against Muslims but in the following 12 months, the figure rose to 42.

Most incidents involved verbal abuse but there was a small number of cases in which veils were pulled off.

Police said they treated all types of hate crime as a priority and urged victims to report any problems.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

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Rehana Sidat, from Leicester, who wears the niqab, said: “I think there are two things going on. There is more Islamophobia, people are becoming more intolerant.

“But also more people are reporting this sort of thing, having more confidence to bring it to the police.”

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Netherlands: Muslims upset pig picture was removed

About a month ago, a Muslim local councilor in the city of Venray got upset at a sculpture depicting a pig, and demanded that the feelings of Muslims be taken into account in the future.

Is it that preposterous, then, to assume that Muslims would be insulted by a picture of a pig? It’s a no-win situation for non-Muslims. It would be interesting to see how the SMN responds next time a Muslim will complain about pig depictions. Unless I missed it, last time they did not say a word.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

The Dutch Moroccan Alliance (SMN) is ‘furious’ about the decision of the Linge Polyclinic in Leerdam to remove a picture of a pig because it would suuposedly insult Muslims.

On Thrusday the clinic said that they hang picutres for them to be pleasing and that they are no interseted in problems. A spokesperson said they get visitors of all kinds, and that therefore they removed the artwork if they get complaints.

The clinic removed the picture after a non-Muslim patient complained and said that it would offend Muslims.

Nonsense, says Habib El Kaddaoui of the SMN. “”Most Muslims are not offended at all by it,” he told AD Friday. “They have been living here for thirty, forty years, and know that the majority do eat pork. Moreover, many Muslims have worked in slaughterhouses where pigs were also slaughtered.”

(Photo, AD)

El Kaddaoui says that just a small group of ultra-orthodox Muslims might have trouble with such a pig. The ethnic Dutch complainer might have meant well, but complaining in the name of Muslims wasn’t useful.

It says the wrong message, says El Kaddaoui. It’s not prudent to think and feel for others, and the clinic went along with it.

Maurits Berger, an Islam researcher from Leiden, also doesn’t understand the exaggerated understanding position of the clinic. “This went too far. Muslims don’t eat pigs because they’re impure animals, but pictures are not impure.”

Despite all this, the clinic does not regret removing the picture. They just wanted to solve the complaint. Artist Sylvia Bosch is surprised that the pig picture won’t be returned. “We’re living in the Netherlands, aren’t we? You don’t expect such things here.”

Source: Elsevier (Dutch)

Italy: The Catholic Church theology of helping immigrants

Via LA Times:

Visually speaking, the John Paul II Canteen is more IKEA cafe than soup kitchen. Tucked away in a pleasant hillside neighborhood in Rome, it has clean lines, attractive furniture, track lighting and framed photographs, making it a welcome oasis for the immigrants who stream in daily from shelters, homeless camps and overcrowded apartments.

Strolling down the cafeteria line on a recent day, canteen coordinator Maurizio deStefano boasted about the quality of the free food, which today included farfalle pasta and meatballs, spinach, boiled eggs, cheese, bread and apples.

“The thing is,” he said, “there are so many Muslims that the menu often doesn’t have pork on it.”

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

That may be sacrilege in some Italian culinary circles — no prosciutto? no spaghetti alla carbonara? — but it’s hardly unexpected, considering Muslims are the largest group of immigrants in Italy. Still, as the name suggests, the John Paul II Canteen is run by Roman Catholics, not Muslims. Therein lies an interesting dynamic.

In Europe, as in the United States, the Roman Catholic Church has assumed a leading role as a protector of, and advocate for, immigrants. But whereas the largest bloc of migrants to the United States are Catholic, the majority of European immigrants are Muslim.

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“For the church, the perspective is … the right of the human person to be treated with dignity,” said Father Federico Lombardi, the chief Vatican spokesman. “It is a general principle; it’s not just a religious principle. It is more profound.”

European nationalists, Catholics among them, worry about the Islamicization of Europe, but the Vatican itself has been steadfast in its support for immigrants. If anything, Vatican officials see the growing secularization of Europe as a greater threat.

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“It’s a theological conviction,” said Luigi Accattoli, a veteran Vatican correspondent for the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

“But,” he added, “there’s also a very modern reason. It’s due to the strong convictions that [ Pope] John Paul II had on this subject, and this was due to his experience as a Pole. The Poles immigrated all over the world, and the Poles were political refugees who were escaping communism. And so John Paul II formulated a kind of right to immigration, and he did it very forcefully.”

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There are those who believe the church could reap some benefits in showing kindness to Muslim immigrants in Europe.

For one, Pope Benedict XVI has spoken out recently about his concern for the treatment of Christians in predominantly Muslim countries. By treating Muslims well in Europe, one line of thinking goes, the church could influence the way Catholics are treated in the Mideast and elsewhere.

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Some European Catholics also suggest that the presence of so many Muslims, who are more visible in their faith than others in Europe, might, in effect, shock non-practicing Catholics back to their faith.

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Netherlands: Wilders forming international anti-Islam alliance

Via AP:

An anti-Islam lawmaker in the Netherlands is forming an international alliance to spread his message across the West in a bid to ban immigration from Islamic countries, among other goals.

Geert Wilders told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday he will launch the movement late this year, initially in five countries: the U.S., Canada, Britain, France and Germany.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

“The message, ’stop Islam, defend freedom,’ is a message that’s not only important for the Netherlands but for the whole free Western world,” Wilders said at the Dutch parliament.

Among the group’s aims will be outlawing immigration from Islamic countries to the West and a ban on Islamic Sharia law. Starting as a grass-roots movement, he hopes it eventually will produce its own lawmakers or influence other legislators.

Ayhan Tonca, a prominent spokesman for Dutch Muslims, said he feared Wilders message would fall on fertile ground in much of Europe, where anti-Islam sentiment has been swelling for years.

“So long as things are going badly with the economy, a lot of people always need a scapegoat,” Tonca said. “At the moment, that is the Muslims in Western Europe.”

Tonca called on “well meaning people in Europe to oppose this.”

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Norway: Pakistanis grapple with questions of identity

Via DAWN:

For the first time since 9/11, about 4,800,000 Norwegians were threatened by a possible Al Qaeda terror plot . In a country generally associated with the Nobel Prize ceremony, the 160,000 Muslim population – which includes 30,000 Pakistanis – are now questioning their identity.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

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Deputy speaker of the Norwegian Parliament, Akhtar Chauhdry, is a Pakistani immigrant who has made a name for himself in Norway. He is of the view that the Muslims in Norway, particularly more and more Pakistanis, are leaning towards religion which could be why their views have changed.

Even though there has been some talk of making an Islamic Emirate of Norway among some of the more radical fringe of Muslims in the country, the representatives from the Muslim community want more rights for Muslims in Norway.

One such individual is a second-generation Pakistani medical student, Bushra Ishaque who told DawnNews that efforts were being made to fight for the rights of Muslims. Ishaque said, “We want to be identified as Muslim, without explaining our identity, without the label of ‘terrorist.’”

In response to a question as to who has imposed the identity of terrorist on Muslims, Ishaque said, “This is due to circumstances such as the war on terrorism, 9/11, the ongoing war in Afghanistan, Palestine conflict, Iraq, how ethnic Norwegian see Muslims. They don’t care about your skin color. But if you’re a Muslim, that’s your identity. [To be honest] that scares people. A survey taken of the Norwegian attitude towards Islam showed that Norwegians are more afraid of a Muslim majority in Norway than they are about the current climate crisis.”

However, not everyone thinks like that. Maimoona Khan is a journalist and author who told DawnNews that immigrant Muslim communities were relying on more organisations which have religion as their common ground.”

Khan stated that although she was a religious person, religion is a personal affair. “I don’t have to defend my religion because I feel that is something between me and my God. I feel that identity is linked with a lot of things [and not just religion]. I have an ethnic background of which I’m very proud, I’m also proud of being Muslim [and at the same time], I’m living in Norway and this is the society I’m part of,” said Khan.

Khan also said all Norwegians are not Islamophobic. “I feel that it’s very important that we understand the fear on both sides, it’s not just us who are afraid of being stigmatised. It’s also the Norwegians who are afraid of losing their values. It might be irrational, but there is a fear. I mean we have to try to put ourselves in their shoes and try to understand why they are afraid.”

A member of the Norwegian parliament and a Pakistani, Hadia Tajik, stated that unfortunately there were some elements in society who wanted more space for themselves.

“They call themselves as Muslims but they have a very fundamentalist view of Islam and of our traditions. I think that generally, Norwegian Pakistanis do not share this view,” Tajik told DawnNews.

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Netherlands: Muslims unfazed by rise of anti-Islamic party

Via Hurriyet:

The rise of an anti-Islamic political party in recent Dutch elections leaves some Muslims in the Netherlands concerned for their future. Others, however, say the hostility is unlikely to last long because it is only a symptom of a lack of knowledge about the religion and does not reflect the day-to-day reality of their experience

Although Dutch voters gave the anti-Islamic party a boost in recent elections, Muslims in the Netherlands predict the hostile political atmosphere will be short lived, an idea bolstered by the fact that they are facing no increase in discrimination.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

In the recent general elections, Geert Wilders’ far-right Party for Freedom, or PVV, recorded significant gains and ended in a strong third place, with 24 seats out of 150 in parliament. Wilders campaigned on a platform that included ending immigration from Muslim countries and instituting a ban on new mosques and the Quran.

With coalition talks ongoing since the shock of Wilders’ election victory and debates continue over his possible participation in the Cabinet, many immigrants and Dutch people think the far-right’s surge in popularity is a temporary situation and does not reflect what they encounter in daily life. And, generally, they don’t take Wilders seriously.

“Although we don’t receive the anti-Islam party’s election success favorably and describe Wilders as a racist, we believe that this was not because of increasing discrimination in this country,” İslam Erkal told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review. He also said he thought the political atmosphere would change soon.

The negative image that minorities in Holland – especially Turks – face is nuanced: Religious stereotypes, as evidenced by Gert Wilders’ party, that depict Muslims as criminals and the question of whether immigrants are integrating into European society remain as obstacles.

The Turkish Institute in the Netherlands serves to eradicate these prejudices by informing Dutch society about Turkey and its people. “It’s been two-and-a-half years since we were founded,” Turkish Institute Director Lily Sprangers said. “We still need time to change Turkey’s image.”

Whether Turkish immigrants have integrated into Dutch society is still debated, even within the Turkish community. “We can’t say Turkish immigrants have integrated into Dutch society yet,” said Zihni Özdil, program manager at the Turkish Institute. He said Turks in the Netherlands rank lowest among immigrants in the country when it comes to participating in social activities.

“The question is whether Turkish immigrants are going to become Turkish Dutch or whether they will segregate themselves,” he said. Integration means “the Dutch will become a little bit Turkish and the Turkish will become a little bit Dutch. But except in some underdeveloped countries, there is no example of this kind of ideal integration.”

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London: Gay nightclub owner slammed for Muslim boycott

Community leaders have slammed XXL club owner Mark Ames today after he vowed to boycott British Muslims.

The London nightclub entrepreneur promised to snub Muslim-owned businesses in response to racial unrest in East London. He also tried to justify his decision by reference to the death toll of British troops in Afghanistan, which has risen above 300.

He wrote on Facebook: “From today I will be boycotting any shops, petrol stations restaurants or businesses I know are owned by Muslims this also includes holidays to muslim [sic] countries today see [sic] our death toll up to 300, so why the hell are we not just flying this scum back out to there beloved states and pull out and let them fight out there [sic] own issues!”

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

PinkPaper.com has repeatedly invited Ames to speak to us but he has refused saying he has already been “tried and convicted” and adding, in an email to us, “i [sic] dont [sic] want to see anyone race or creed [sic] being kicked out of the country.”

There is no suggestion that others involved in XXL club share his views but one representative did say they would be supporting his right to freedom of speech.

Now, leading members of London’s gay community have criticised his original comments.

Ali Hili of IraqiLGBT said: “I don’t think it’s acceptable from anyone, especially someone with a high profile. This is especially when the people he’s talking about could be deported to a country which, in turn, may cause them harm. I am in this country because I have fear for my life and I still face discrimination – even here.”

Royston Ford, secretary of gay group Imaan, agrees: “If he [Mark Ames] holds the views attributed to him, he has shown himself to be a rather unpleasant, but unrepresentative example of the LGBT community in London and further afield.

“Whilst racist and Islamophobic views like this do exist amongst a minority of LGBT people, he is not representative of the majority of fair-minded and decent people. If Mr Ames chooses – whilst most of are preparing to celebrate the diversity of our communities in Pride 2010 – to descend into his own gay shame, then that is his loss.

“He is as representative of LGBT people as the drug-peddling, murdering gangsters of Afghanistan are representative of ordinary Muslims – whether gay, straight, in this country or elsewhere. Imaan, and LGBT Muslims are preparing to celebrate Pride 2010 with our brothers and sisters of all communities, both in the parade and with events in London and in Bradford. We suggest Mr Ames is best ignored.”

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And Joseph was worried that the comments would make gay Muslims feel unwelcome at XXL.

“Gay Muslims are a minority amongst a minority and we should be supporting them,” he said. I hope gay Muslims stand up against what he says because their voice isn’t heard enough in this country. I would say boycott XXL if you support gay Muslims.”

However, some PinkPaper.com readers have backed Ames. In response to our exclusive yesterday, one forum user wrote: “whats the big deal? [sic] and why does a phoney pc liberal, pink paper [sic] reader find it disturbing? the reader should be more disturbed by the evil persecution and hate murder on a par to genocide of lgbt people in islamic states.” [sic]

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Source: PinkPaper

France: PM urges Muslims to reject “hijacked Islam”

Prime Minister Francois Fillon urged France’s Muslims on Monday to reject full face veils as a sectarian caricature of Islam, a week before parliament debates a law banning burqas and niqabs in public.

Inaugurating a mosque in a northwestern Paris suburb, he said French Muslims should combat a tiny radical minority using face veils as a way to combat the integration of a tolerant Islam that respects the separation of church and state.

This article was prepared by the Islam in Europe blog – islamineurope.blogspot.com

“The Islam of France, the Islam you practice daily, has nothing to do with this caricature that dims the lights of your faith,” Fillon, the most senior French politician to inaugurate a mosque in decades, said to applause from the crowd.

“You should stand in the front line against this hijacking of the religious message … it’s up to you to make intelligence triumph over obscurantism and tolerance over intolerance.”

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Fillon defended the plan to ban full veils, saying the government had to defend some groundrules of society.

“This minority practice, which flouts the basic rules of living together and scandalises our citizens, amounts to radical behaviour that does not reflect the reality of Islam,” he said.

The prime minister made clear he recognised Muslims’ concern about a growing trend of anti-Muslim feeling they saw in France, noting that six mosques had been defaced or attacked last year and several Muslim graves vandalised early this year.

“Thirty percent of all acts of racist violence (last year), mostly threats, were made against Muslims,” he said.

Mohammed Moussaoui, president of the French Muslim Council (CFCM), said Fillon was welcome after the tensions raised by the national identity and veil debates. “His presence is a gesture of recognition and respect,” he told the daily La Croix.

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Source: Reuters