Steps for integration of Muslims in West urged

THE idea that Muslim immigrants’ settlement in Europe is temporary is an illusion held only by the extreme right wing for political reasons, a former senior UN official said yesterday.

Mustapha Tlili, who is also the founder director of the New York University Center for Dialogues: Islamic World-US-The West, was presenting a report on ‘Muslim Youth and Women in the West: Source of Concern or Source of Hope?’ during a programme organised by the Qatar Foundation (QF).

“After decades in Europe, many of the immigrants of the 1950s and 1960s and their descendants have become citizens. Ethnic and religious pluralism is Europe’s new social reality, and it requires governments and social actors to lead the way in rethinking the obligations that connect citizens to the state,” said Tlili, who has served as director for communications policy in the UN Department of Public Information.

The professor has also been advocating a new “citizenship pact” allowing for pluralism and diversity. “Europe’s traditional pacts of reciprocal obligation must be rewritten to include Muslims and other immigrants who do not seamlessly blend into the historical ‘national body’, whether ethnically or religiously.”

The pact, according to Tlili, must address the issue of integration for Muslim communities in the West, whether in the private or public spheres.

“The suggested pact would provide a set of principles regarding the obligations of Muslim citizens, as of all citizens. Defining these will take some work, as there are difficult issues to work through, such as Muslim women’s right to choose whether to wear a headscarf, to work outside the home, and to observe the practices of their faith as they interpret them,” he added.

Tlili cited the US as a model in this regard, since American Muslims are at least economically and socially far more integrated than European Muslims.

The study was first presented by him at a conference that was held last year in Salzburg, Austria, and was organised by the Centre for Dialogues with assistance from the Rockfeller Brothers Fund, the Danish ministry of refugees, Qatar Foundation and other institutions.

The conference adopted an “action plan” to implement its recommendations.

“Of particular deliberation was the Western media that is perceived to frequently depict Muslim communities with negative stereotypes. We suggested the national media associations train media professionals to be more conscientious regarding how they portray Muslim communities,” Tlili said.

“Exchange of best practices on integration, security and religious practice was also urged,” he added.

A student of Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar (SFS-Q), Lina Abdul Jawad, who represented QF at the conference, was present at yesterday’s meeting.

She emphasised the need for active student participation in inter-faith dialogues.

QF official Craig Field, who conducted the proceedings, said that “hosting the discussion is part of QF’s efforts to support academic work that contributes to dialogue between cultures.”