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Will Europe Resist Islamization? by Daniel Pipes [JP title: "A movie and a
conversion: Europe begins to resist?"] Some analysts of Islam in
Western Europe argue that the continent cannot escape its Eurabian fate;
that the trend lines of the past half-century will continue until Muslims
become a majority population and Islamic law (the Shari‘a) reigns. I disagree, arguing that there
is another route
the continent might take, one of resistance to Islamification and a
reassertion of traditional ways. Indigenous Europeans – who make up 95 percent
of the population – can insist on their historic customs and mores. Were they
to do so, nothing would be in their way and no one could stop them. Indeed, Europeans are visibly
showing signs of impatience with creeping Shari‘a. The legislation in France
that prohibits hijabs from public school classrooms signals the
reluctance to accept Islamic ways, as are related efforts to ban burqas,
mosques,
and minarets.
Throughout Western Europe, anti-immigrant parties are generally increasing in
popularity. That resistance took a new turn
last week, with two dramatic events. First, on March 22, Pope Benedict XVI
himself baptized, confirmed, and gave the Eucharist to Magdi Allam, 56, a prominent Egyptian-born Muslim long living
in Italy, where he is a top editor at the Corriere della Sera newspaper
and a well-known author. Allam took the middle name Cristiano. The ceremony
converting him to the Catholic religion could not have been higher profile,
occurring at a nighttime service at St. Peter's Basilica on the eve of Easter
Sunday, with exhaustive coverage from the Vatican and many other television
stations. Allam followed up his
conversion with a stinging statement in which he argued that beyond "the
phenomenon of Islamic extremism and terrorism that has appeared on a global
level, the root of evil is inherent in an Islam that is physiologically violent
and historically conflictive." In other words, the problem is not just
Islamism but Islam itself. One commentator, "Spengler"
of Asia Times, goes so far as to say that Allam "presents an
existential threat to Muslim life" because he "agrees with his former
co-religionists in repudiating the degraded culture of the modern West, and
offers them something quite different: a religion founded upon love." Second, on March 27, Geert Wilders,
44, released his long-awaited, 15-minute film, Fitna, which consists of
some of the most bellicose verses of the Koran, followed by actions in accord
with those verses carried out by Islamists in recent years. The obvious
implication is that Islamists are simply acting in accord with their
scriptures. In Allam's words, Wilders also argues that "the root of evil
is inherent" in Islam. Unlike Allam and Wilders, I do
distinguish between Islam and Islamism, but I believe it imperative that their
ideas get a fair hearing,
without vituperation or punishment. An honest debate over Islam must take
place. If Allam's conversion was a
surprise and Wilders' film had a three-month run-up, in both cases, the
aggressive, violent reactions that met prior criticisms
of Islam did not take place. According to the Los Angeles Times,
the Dutch police contacted imams to gauge reactions at the city's
mosques and found, according to police spokesman Arnold Aben, "it's
quieter than usual here today. Sort of like a holiday." In Pakistan, a rally against the film attracted only some dozens
of protestors. This relatively constrained
reaction points to the fact that Muslim threats sufficed to enforce censorship.
Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende denounced Fitna and, after 3.6
million visitors had viewed it on the British website LiveLeak.com,
the company announced that "Following threats to our staff of a very
serious nature, … Liveleak has been left with no other choice but to remove
Fitna from our servers." (Two days later, however, LiveLeak again posted
the film.) Three similarities bear noting:
both Allam (author of a book titled Viva Israele) and Wilders (whose film emphasizes Muslim violence
against Jews) stand up for Israel and the Jews; Muslim threats against their
lives have forced both for years to live under state-provided round-the-clock
police protection; and, more profoundly, the two share a passion for European
civilization. Indeed, Allam and Wilders may
represent the vanguard of a Christian/liberal reassertion of European values.
It is too soon to predict, but these staunch individuals could provide a
crucial boost for those intent on maintaining the continent's historic identity. Mr. Pipes, director of the
Middle East Forum, is the Taube/Diller Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the
Hoover Institution of Stanford University during the spring semester. |
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