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Citizens in Name Only
By Hwaa Irfan
18/06/2001
Muslims apparently out-number both Protestants and Jews in the predominantly Roman Catholic countries of Belgium, France, Italy and Spain (Dickey, p.14).
Belgium alone, is home to a growing community of 350,000 to 450,000 born Muslims and new Muslims (DeLey, p.2 and HWCN, p.1). It had special immigration treaties with Morocco and Turkey from 1964-74 and has invited Muslims and their families to come as cheap labor replacement for the Italian, Spanish, Greek and Portuguese immigrants. "It was favorable for the economy," says Anne Morelli - a professor at the Free University of Brussels. "The government encouraged them to have children to rejuvenate the population. Propaganda leaflets painted a picture of a Belgian utopia, with green horizons, healthy accommodations and packed shelves. Then they actually came, and they actually had their kids like they were supposed to," says Morelli. "It was then that people started talking about the problem of immigration" (Dickey, p.16).
Belgium had done well as far as putting pen to paper goes, but has failed in practice. As early as 1974, a law was passed giving the Islamic form of worship the same status as those of Catholicism, Protestanticism and Judaism. It included financial provision for the cost of infrastructures, like places of worship. This included the required salaries and pensions of personnel, e.g. the Imam. This form of contribution applies to all religions; for instance, the Catholic Church receives 10 billion Belgian francs annually which is paid by all taxpayers regardless of their religion. Since 1975 Islam has been taught in public schools. Seven hundred Muslim teachers give Islamic instruction in both primary and secondary schools where salaries are paid by the State. Currently there are over 250 mosques and prayer halls (DeLey, p.2).
Today, bigoted documented world history and the Israeli propaganda machine have forged a formidable force for 'visible' Muslims in Belgium, who are mostly concentrated in towns whilst Christians recede into the countryside. There are those who wish to exploit this for increased votes. Jesuit priest Tom Michel - head of the secretariat for inter-religious affairs for the Jesuit order said, "The numbers get exaggerated by everyone. Politicians want to make the numbers seem larger because it generates fear they can exploit" (Allen, p.5).
A vast majority of European Muslims are decent, hard-working and on low incomes and living in segregated communities. Belgian Muslims could not bury their dead in their own places, have had no religious rights at school and in hospitals, and the women are not free to dress Islamically and to celebrate or commemorate religious events is problematic despite the rights laid down by the Constitution (DeLey, p.2).
Repeated daily infringements of rights (such as hassles at school over hijab) contribute towards internalized frustration and anger. In Brussels, the air was heavy with tensions and a strong sense of grievance from the riots in April of '95 when 8 police officers were wounded and 35 young people were arrested. "The police are no longer welcome here. We just try to stay away from trouble," says 37-year-old Ahmed at the Moroccan Youth Café. But they come all the time with their guns, checking our papers" (Dickey p.15). Muslim neighborhoods have arisen in the face of constant police visits (Dickey and Theil p.15).
The effect of such living conditions creates mistrust and compounds misunderstanding and suspicion. 'Ali Allawi argues that, "A Muslim in Europe must see himself primarily as a mohajir (immigrant), in the fullest meaning of the word. The peoples of Asia and Africa understood Islam while the mohajir(s) adjusted over time to the culture of the lands in which they settled. The final result has been the endlessly fascinating and varied world of Islam, familiar in its key elements but wonderfully varied and adaptive in its local content. This is how Muslims have always adapted and adjusted to a new environment. A mohajir in Europe, from this perspective, should be no different than his predecessors from Gujurat in East India, the Arab in Spain, the Berber in Senegal or the Iranian in China. The choice for us mohajir(s) in Europe is between an introverted insecure and culturally rigid life; or one where we adapt to our environment but encourage our hosts to accept Islam" (Allawi p.11). The question is: how much of true Islam do we lose in the process between the generations that arrived and those that are born in Europe; and what kind of problems does that create in the family structure?
Things began to change in 1998, when the Belgian government accepted a proposal for the election of a representative council of the Belgian Muslim communities, followed by the passing of a law allowing for burial grounds for Muslims (DeLey, p.3).
Positive self-esteem is the seed of creativity and constructive social contributions. When one has a sense of human rights and values them, one is able to protect and defend the rights of others. Europe is currently seeking economic partnerships in the Middle East. No better opportunity could have been presented than when a group of Lebanese, Moroccans and Belgians filed a suit this month against Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon through the Belgian courts for the slaughtering of 800 - 2000 Palestinian refugees at the Sabra and Shatila camps in Lebanon in 1982. The suit was filed under a unique 1993 Belgian law that allows Belgium to put on trial individuals in Belgium, regardless of their nationality, for genocide and other unique crimes against humanity committed abroad (Middle East Times, p.6). Against the odds this shows what is possible, and Allah (SWT) says, "And seek assistance through patience and prayer, and most surely it is a hard thing except for the humble ones (Surat ul Baqarah, 2:45)."
The final goal should be the interculturalization of our society. Muslims themselves, it should be said, whatever their ethnic affiliations, are playing more of an active role in this process of cultural and social interaction by running their own social and cultural organizations and working together with non-Muslims. They are demonstrating the correctness of the view that far from being a threat, the West once again has much to gain from the new Muslim presence" (DeLey, p.3).
*Professor, Dr Herman DeLey is the director of the Center for Islam in Europe at the University of Gent.
Sources
Allawi, 'Ali. "Assimilation or Integration?" Al-Noor. London. 24:12 (1993) pp.10-11.
Allen, John, L. "Europe's Muslims Worry
Bishops". 1-6. Cover Story. National Catholic Reporter Online. 10/22/99.
DeLey, Herman. "Muslims In Belgium Enemies from Within or Fellow Citizens?" pp.1-4. ISIM Newsletter. 6/14/01.
Dickey, Christopher. "Muslim Europe." Newsweek. 125:22 (1995) pp.12-19.
HCWN. "Muslims in Numbers". 1-2. HCWN. 6/14/01.
"Sharon Sued in Belgium Over 1992 Massacres." Middle East Times. 109.23 (2001)
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