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| Rome Mosque |
Gatestone Institute, a Non-Profit organization based in New York, USA,
recently published an in-depth look at Islam in Europe, written by
Judith Bergman - a columnist, lawyer and political analyst.
Ms. Bergman gives some interesting insights into the political development of the Islam community in Europe.
The Gatestone Institute is a non-political international
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Ms Bergman in her report on "What do Islamic Parties in Europe Want?" writes:
*Sweden's Jasin party is not unique. Islamist parties have begun to
emerge in many European countries, such as the Netherlands, Austria,
Belgium, and France.
*In the Netherlands, Denk ran on a platform against the integration of
immigrants into Dutch society (instead advocating "mutual acceptance", a
euphemism for creating parallel Muslim societies); and for
establishment of a "racism police" that would register "offenders" and
exclude them from holding public office.
"I consider every death of an American, British or Dutch soldier as a
victory". — Dyab Abu Jahjah, leader of a group called Movement X and
possibly starting an Islamist party in Belgium. The Belgian political
magazine Knack named Jahjah the country's fourth-most influential
person.
*The "I.S.L.A.M" party, founded in 2012, is working to implement Islamic
law, sharia, in Belgium. The party already has branches in the Brussels
districts of Anderlecht, Molenbeek and Liege. The party wants to
"translate religion into practice".
*In France, as the journalist Yves Mamou recently reported, the PEJ has
already approved 68 candidates and wants to abolish the separation of
church and state, make veils mandatory for schoolgirls in public
schools, introduce halal food in all schools and fight "Islamophobia".
*Sweden's brand new first Islamic party, Jasin, is aiming to run for the
2018 parliamentary elections. According to the website of the party,
Jasin is a "multicultural, democratic, peaceful party" that is "secular"
and aims to "unite everyone from the East... regardless of ethnicity,
language, race, skin color or religion". Jasin apparently knows what the
Swedes like to hear.
In an interview, the founder and spokesperson of the party, Mehdi
Hosseini, who came from Iran to Sweden 30 years ago, revealed that the
leader of the new political party, Sheikh Zoheir Eslami Gheraati, does
not actually live in Sweden. He is an Iranian imam, who lives in
Teheran, but Jasin wants to bring him to Sweden: "I thought he was such a
peaceful person who would be able to manifest the peaceful side of
Islam. I think that is needed in Sweden," said Hosseini.
The purpose of the Jasin party, however, does not appear to be either
secular or multicultural. In its application to the Swedish Election
Authority, the party writes -- with refreshing honesty -- that it will
"firstly follow exactly what the Koran says, secondly what Shiite imams
say". The Jasin party also states that it is a "non-jihadi and
missionary organization, which will spread Islam's real side, which has
been forgotten and has been transformed from a beautiful to a warlike
religion..."
In mid-September, the Swedish Election Authority informed Jasin that it
failed to deliver the needed signatures, but that it is welcome to try
again. Anna Nyqvist, from the Swedish Election Authority, said that a
political party with an anti-democratic or Islamic agenda is eligible to
run for parliament if the party's application fulfills all formalities.
Nyqvist considers it unproblematic that the leader of the party lives
in Iran. "This is the essence of democracy, that all views should be
allowed. And it is up to them to choose their party leader", Nyqvist
said.
Sweden's Jasin Party is not unique. Islamist parties have begun to
emerge in many European countries, such as the Netherlands, Austria,
Belgium, and France.
In the Netherlands, two Dutch Turks, former members of the Socialist
party, founded a new party, Denk, only six months before the Dutch
parliamentary elections. Despite the short timeframe, they managed to
get one-third of the Muslim vote and three seats in parliament. T
he
party does not hide its affinity for Turkey: Criticism of Turkey is
taboo just as is their refusal to name the Turkish mass-slaughter of the
Armenians during the First World War a genocide. The party ran on a
platform against the integration of immigrants into Dutch society
(instead advocating "mutual acceptance", a euphemism for creating
parallel Muslim societies); and for establishment of a "racism police"
that would register "offenders" and exclude them from holding public
office.
In Austria, Turkish Muslims also formed a new party, the New Movement
for the Future (NBZ), established in January 2017. According to its
founder, Adnan Dincer, the NBZ is not an Islamic party or a Turkish
party, despite being composed mainly of Turkish Muslims. Several of the
party's Facebook posts are written only in Turkish. Dincer has made no
secret of the fact that his party strongly backs Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, whom it publicly supported at the time of the coup
attempt in August 2016, and the subsequent clampdown by the Erdogan
government.
In Belgium, several Islamic parties are preparing to run in the next
elections. Dyab Abu Jahjah, apparently behind one of them, while not
having presented a formal platform yet, has said he wants to "be part of
an egalitarian radical renaissance that will conquer Brussels, Belgium,
Europe and the whole world, with new politics of radical equality...
defeat the forces of supremacy... of sustained privileges ... of the
status-quo... in every possible arena".
Jahjah is a Lebanese immigrant, who emerged on the European scene, when
he founded the now defunct Brussels-based Arab-European League in 2001.
It was a pan-European political group aiming to create a Europe-wide
"sharocracy" -- a supposedly sharia-based "democracy". In 2001, after
the September 11 terror attacks, Jahjah said that he and many Muslims
had felt a "sweet revenge feeling". In 2004, Jahjah said that he
supported the killing of foreign troops in Iraq. "I consider every death
of an American, British or Dutch soldier as a victory". He has also
been opposed to the assimilation of Muslims, which he has described as
"cultural rape".
Jahjah used to be considered a Hezbollah-supporting extremist, and,
although he describes himself as a "political friend" of Jeremy Corbyn,
he was banned from entering Britain. In Belgium, however, he is seen as a
respectable activist, leader of a group called Movement X, and formerly
with his own weekly column in the Belgian daily De Standaard. The
Belgian political magazine Knack named Jahjah the country's fourth-most
influential person, just behind Manchester City footballer Vincent
Kompany. In January 2017, however, De Standaard fired Jahjah after he
praised a terror attack in Jerusalem. "By any means necessary,
#freepalestine," Jahjah had tweeted after an Muslim ISIS-affiliated
terrorist plowed a truck through a crowd of young Israeli soldiers
visiting Jerusalem, killing four and injuring countless others.
Jahjah will likely experience fierce competition from the "I.S.L.A.M"
party, founded in 2012, and working to implement Islamic law, sharia, in
Belgium. The party already has branches in the Brussels districts of
Anderlecht, Molenbeek and Liege. The party wants to "translate religion
into practice". One member explained that, "It's no coincidence that we
started in Brussels. Here there are a lot of Muslims... who are not
allowed to come forward with their identity too much...They are
therefore frustrated. That can lead to radicalization".
The party has put forth a mayoral candidate for the Brussels municipal
elections in 2018: Michel Dardenne, who converted to Islam in 2002. In
his program, Dardenne speaks mainly of how much the party respects
Belgian democracy and its constitution, while simply wanting to help an
undefined populace against "the elites". He may have found it easier to
appeal to "progressive" non-Muslims that way. Brussels, 25% Muslim, has
enormous potential for Islamic parties.
In France, several Islamic parties are also preparing to run in
elections. One party is the PEJ, established in 2015 by French-Turkish
Muslims and reportedly connected to Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AKP. As the
journalist Yves Mamou recently reported, the PEJ has already approved 68
candidates and wants to abolish the separation of church and state,
make veils mandatory for schoolgirls in public schools, introduce halal
food in all schools and fight "Islamophobia".
The obvious question is :How many Europeans are even paying attention to their agendas?
Read more : Europe: What do Islamic Parties Want? from the Gatestone Insitute
