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Most of the Muslims in Germany with a migration background follow the mainstream in social and political terms. |
Editor's Note: European Muslims Page would like to apologize to its audience for not being able to host the announced Live Dialogue session with Dr. Dietrich Reetz due to some technical problems. However, Dr. Reetz kindly replied back to IOL audience's submitted questions on the German elections and we are hereby publishing them infull.
Dr. Reetz is senior research fellow at the Zentrum Moderner Orient and senior lecturer of political science at the Free University of Berlin. He is also a Principle Investigator for Political Science / South Asia at the Graduate School of Muslim Cultures and Societies at Free University of Berlin starting 2008.
We hope you enjoy reading IOL audience's questions along with Dr. Reetz's answers infull. You may visit his website for more information about his German Islam-related publications.
Sayeda (Belgium): Dear Professor, I would like to know what main challenges are German Muslims facing?
Dr. Reetz: German Muslims, as far as I understand, are very diverse: some fully integrated, some not so; some speaking German fluently, others not at all; some with citizen rights and others foreign passport holders; some interested in a religious lifestyle, other less so. Accordingly, they also face diverse challenges, most of them not different from mainstream society, several more connected with their migrant status and rights, and some with the conditions of the observance of Islam.
Sayeda (Belgium): Based on the current candidates and their agendas, what are your expectations in terms of solutions for the challenges faced by Muslims after these elections?
Dr. Reetz: German-speaking Muslim websites, such as www.muslim-markt.de, have questioned political parties about their attitudes towards Muslims and Islam. The parties largely agree that Muslims' contributions to society have to be acknowledged more visibly. Conservative parties, such as the CDU, may be more reserved in this than the Greens which have a very clear pro-rights approach to migrant issues.
Tal Joe (United States): In my opinion, a minority Muslim should have a role in the German general elections. Are there Muslim candidates in this general election, or at least, does Merkel - or any other candidate - refer to Muslims in his/her campaigns?
Dr. Reetz: There are politicians with a Muslim cultural background in several parties; though they would not always project themselves as believers, they will still champion migrant rights. This is also true for the conservative CDU, where candidates such as Bülent Arslan in North Rhine Westphalia and Badr Mohammed in Berlin are engaged, though on a local level. Elections in Germany are a complicated mixture of selecting party lists and individual candidates. It will therefore be known with certainty, only after the elections are over, which candidates with a Muslim background enter the Federal Parliament. The largest number is probably affiliated with the Green Party. There is a working group called "Green Muslims" in the party. And the Greens run a series of public events under headlines such as "Green meets Green" discussing issues of Muslim life in Germany. Cem Azdemir is the co-chairman of the Green Party.
Uamar (PhD Student, United Kingdom): Turkish people represent the majority of the German Muslim minority and they are always reluctant to sacrifice their Turkish citizenship for any other one. How do you evaluate the German law in this regard? Do you think Germany should tolerate a dual-citizenship in some cases in order to support the integration of German-based Turks into the German community?
Dr. Reetz: According to German law, a choice of citizenship is to be made for Germany-born Turks at the age of 18. In practice, there are still a considerable number of dual citizenship cases. Some politicians, such as the Federal Minister of Justice from the Social Democrats, Mrs. Brigitte Zypries, support the recognition of dual-citizenship towards better integration. She also supports electoral rights for migrants in local elections, demands which are also popular among the Greens and the Left.
Yara I.r (Turks & Caicosis Island): I believe German Muslins should be represented in the Parliament through a couple of candidates. Are there Muslim candidates in this year’s local or federal elections? How do you see Muslims role in a time when German Muslims, especially after El-Sherbini case, believe that the German Gov. doesn't fight for their rights?
Dr. Reetz: Kindly see my reply above on this issue.
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German Muslims would favor a coalition of Social Democrats and the Greens (a Red-Green Coalition).
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Karol (Australia): I wonder what’s up with the verdict for Marwa El-Sherbini case. Also I want to know how do you evaluate the political situation of German Muslims, especially, their tendency towards participating actively in the political arena? Are Muslims in Germany keen to have their voices heard or they are not doing their job in this regard?
Dr. Reetz: According to news reports, the perpetrator of the crime - Alexander W., a German immigrant, born in Russia- will be prosecuted towards the end of the year. The newspaper TAZ expects that he will face a life term sentence. Muslim representation slowly evolves, probably lagging behind similar processes in France or Britain. There is no Muslim party but as explained above, the number of politicians with a Muslim background continues to rise, more on the left than on the right, but not exclusively so. Muslim politicians usually follow their party program and argue for better protection of migrants' rights. Issues of religion are at the centre of discussion at the new Islamkonferenz (Islam Conference) which has been convened by the Minister of the Interior, where Islamic associations and single activists, but also secular Muslims deliberate on how to better reconcile religion with education, representation and legal rights.
Kamal (Oxford): Could you please map the political participation of German Muslims in comparison with other European Muslims, especially, given that the German laws are not backing the minorities' participation clearly?
Dr. Reetz: News reports vary on likely electoral preferences of German Muslims, but usually agree they would favor a coalition of Social Democrats and the Greens, or what is called a Red-Green Coalition. Though the institutionalization of Muslim activism is somewhat behind that in other West European countries, the visibility of Muslims in German political parties is probably at par with them as this trend has markedly increased.
Ihsan (Turkey): I heard the Turkish union in Germany announced that no Turks will take seats in the Parliament this election, is this right? Will it be logical to have no single member representing millions of German Turks in the Parliament?
| The number of politicians with a Muslim background continues to rise, more on the left than on the right. |
Dr. Reetz: There have been demands for Turks and Muslims to abstain in the elections. But these have been countered by other appeals to mobilize and actively participate in the elections. Aiman Mazyek, from the Central Council of Muslims in Germany (Zentralrat der Muslime in Deutschland), makes such request on German Islamic Internet TV.
J. William: Dearest guest, how do you see the German Turks' willingness to isolate themselves in some German regions? I believe they are not willing to integrate. How do you expect them to act in the Parliament?
Dr. Reetz: I don't see the Turks as going to isolate themselves. Most of them play an active role in German society; their many businesses are an important economic factor, also. Still, they predominate in some districts of some cities. But problems usually come from social marginalization. Government programs now focus more than before on education opportunities for migrants.
Editor: Muslim religiosity has been perceived as very political, but studies show that in Germany their political attitudes appear to be relatively unaffected by religiosity. Is this the main reason for the absence of an Islamic Party in this country?
Studies in Germany show that most Muslims in Germany with a migration background, while they show interest in religion, follow the mainstream in social and political terms. To them, I believe, this is no contradiction, as most of their daily problems do not arise from the observance of their religion but from the lack of resources, from legal, economic and social issues as migrants and their descendents. As the example of Britain shows, an Islamic Party can only establish itself if it finds sufficient support. Most Muslims want to live as Muslims in Germany; they regard themselves as Turkish Germans or Muslim Germans.
Editor: Can you, please, explain how does the German electoral system affect the political representation of minorities?
Parties following minority views stand, in fact, a much better chance of success under the German system of proportional representation - if they manage to win more than 5 % of the vote. As explained above, Muslims are very diverse in their political loyalties, as well as their cultural and sectarian affiliations.
Editor: What motivates Muslim migrants, nowadays, to stay in Germany, or to return to their home countries?
I understand there is no significant wave of Muslim migrants returning to their home countries, even though economic opportunities have also dried up for them with the economic crisis. While everyone acknowledges persisting problems of accommodation and regulation for Muslim migrants; in the end, they vote with their feet when coming to Germany and look for opportunities to improve their lives. German and Muslim representatives are beginning to understand that this potentially represents more chances than challenges.
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