Islamization of Europe and Policies to Prevent It, Part 3
12 Jan, 2007
Part 1: A theory of the Islamization process in European countries [07 Jan, 2007]
Part 2: A Theory of Policies and Laws That Prevents Islamization of a Country - An Integrated Approach [09 Jan, 2007]
Part 3: Reformation of Islam and Various Law and Policy Issues [12 Jan, 2007]
Part 4: Policy Area 4: Religious Freedom And Its Limits [22 Jan, 2007]
3. A REFORMED ISLAM?
The integrated policies (design) that can secure a free society will probably also establish the minimum standards that Islamic theses must reach in various respects, in order not to be a threat any longer to western society. Muslims must admit that some parts of their religion from the 7th or 8th century are unsuitable in the 21st century. Real, traditional Islam is - according to serious and honest writers and students of the religion - incompatible with democracy and individual freedom. A reformed Islam is therefore necessary. It will naturally look rather different from the traditional form.
The conclusions reached regarding policies for various parts of human life will indicate which religious theses and statements of Islam are not any longer acceptable. Those parts of the religion should be proclaimed as no longer valid and not be a part of it any longer. An unreformed Islam may in the future not be a permitted religion in Western countries because of its danger to a civilized society.
Presumably it is necessary to build a new theoretical foundation for an Islam that protects e g freedom and human rights. Basic questions are then: Which is the contents of Islam that can be allowed - in the long run – to be preached in a western country? And by whom and when shall that reformed Islam be formulated?
An even more important question is if it is really possible or meaningful to reform Islam. The issue if it is possible to reform and save Islam may easily be overshadowed by the fundamental question if the religion is worth saving. It is probably easy for some people to ask: Why shall one try to save certain parts of a religion that according to the texts and various accepted interpretations of it contain so much hate and violence, encourages violations of human rights, and - based on its own words - is a threat to freedom and a democratic society ? If one reads Islamic texts, it is easy to conclude that they advocate inequality between sexes; a hostile behaviour towards other religions or world views; stands for violence as a political method and dictatorship (not democracy); collectivism (not individualism) a s o a s o. However, the question if the faith is worth saving shall naturally be answered by those who believe in the religion. It is their responsibility to decide which parts are now valid and which are obsolete. Just changing the prevalent abrogation rules formulated for the Quran, will be a good start.
If the reformation of Islam will wait until after a serious insurgency or civil war in, it is easy to envision the limited interest in the subject of reform among the victors if they are western democrats. Having just avoided a national catastrophe, the leaders may demand eviction of all Muslims from the specific country, or that the Muslim citizens abandon their religion. Such a demand was earlier used in most European countries against other religions, in order to promote peace in the society. Since Islam is the only remaining large religion which can be shown to have a deeply hostile attitude towards other religions, and advocates violence or breaking human rights, it may seem logical to the governments and parliamentary majorities that this old rule shall be applied again. For a reformed Islam to find more permanent roots in Europe, the work regarding reform should be therefore be carried out now. The Muslim believers take a risk if this work is not performed, and its results accepted.
4. THE VARIOUS LAWS AND POLICIES
The various parts of the model above will be described in the following sections. These policies should be widely discussed by the blogosphere. The general aim should be to formulate one or more specific integrated proposals that – if they are applied - secure human rights and freedom in Europe for the future.
Some measures regarding the third area of the model (equality between sexes) will be briefly described just to give an example of what is meant with ”policies” in a specific area. In Europe, the democracies already have progressive civil laws securing gender neutrality in nearly all respects, and there is no need to repeat those here. However, it can be of value to formulate or underline some basic principles which causes the largest conflicts in society given the philosophy, rules, traditions and emotions of Muslims. It is also of interest to point at some areas where the protection of human rights is incomplete. The proposal is preliminary and meant to stimulate a debate regarding the policies that shall be used in this area.