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The Kaaba sacred stone in city of Mecca, Islam's holiest city
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The current debate on Islam is dominated by generalisations, which run the risk of demonising Muslims around the world.
This is the warning of leading human rights activist and Muslim Abdullahi an-Na'im.
Professor an-Na'im even goes so far as to caution that the current criticism of Islam is comparable to the anti-Semitism of Europe in the 1930s.
A Sudanese exile, professor an-Na'im is a leading international expert on religion and law.
He was imprisoned without charge for almost two years in Sudan in the mid-1980s for being part of a reform movement opposed to the governing Islamic hardliners.
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Since then he has campaigned internationally as a human rights activist and he joins Amsterdam Forum this week.
Leading Dutch opinion maker Bart Jan Spruyt goes head to head with him in the discussion - he is from the conservative think tank the Edmund Burke Foundation and argues that certain aspects of Islam are at odds with Western-style liberal democracy.
Key quotes:
"It was a caution rather than a comparison, saying that on the occasion of Remembrance Day [he made the comments during a commemoration ceremony for World War II] the Dutch people should not feel so exceptional that they are beyond repeating some of the horrendous history about anti-Semitism. The point for me is that if you essentialise a complex world religion that's 1500 years old, and to whom hundreds of millions subscribe, into a single statement of 'Islam is this' - that is really creating a demonisation scenario and then it follows that every Muslim is bad therefore they have to either give up being Muslim or they can't join us."
Is there really a comparison though to the anti-Semitism that lead to the Holocaust?
"I'm sure that events leading up to the Holocaust did not give people at the time any indication what was to follow and I'm thinking here in terms of how globalised our world is today so that whatever happens in any part of the world is feeding into a very radical and very militant discourse elsewhere. We talk about international terrorism and what feeds that sense of radicalisation, when Islam is demonised in Western Europe that's going to be perceived as an attack on all Muslims globally and you'll get retaliation. So it is not in the sense of repeating the scenario of the Holocaust in Europe but in terms of probably even more serious global consequences."
"My problem with the comparison between the present discussion on Islam and the Nazi rhetoric against the Jews of the 30s is that it's historically very bad, it's very incorrect and outrageous. There is, however, an essential element in Islam and Nazism which they both have together - this is their Occidentalism, their opposition to the West, their opposition to liberal democracy."
Bart Jan Spruyt on what the critics of Islam in the Netherlands want:
"What we want is a very decent discussion, but very straightforward, on the question: 'Is Islam compatible with liberal democracy as we have it in Western Europe?' We are very proud of it and we want to defend it."
Bart Jan Spruyt on the accusation that the criticism of Islam is a sort of demonisation:
"I don't see many examples of demonisation of Islam here in the Netherlands - what I see is that there are certain elements in Islam which have been proven to be incompatible with the way we live here in the West - that's the point. We are not trying to demonise a religion as such."
Abdullahi an-Na'im on Islam:
"There nothing called Islam as such - it does not exist - there's no Christianity as such, there's no Judaism as such - religions are not an entity, are not agents, do not act or do anything - it is the believers who do. You should talk about Muslims - not Islam and if you do talk about Muslims and not Islam then you are talking about which Muslims and where and what else is going on."
"With all due respect, people who say 'Islam is this' don't know Islam."
Bart Jan Spruyt on relationship between Islam and problems in the Netherlands:
"I know I'm talking about a minority - but it's a minority that it causing a lot of problems. Those Moroccan guys in certain parts of Amsterdam do not just attack average people, they attack Jews and homosexuals so their misbehaviour has everything to do with their religious background."
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Murder by a jihadi terrorist
Dutch film-maker Theo van Gogh |
"Whenever you name the problem correctly, instead of saying 'Islam is' or 'Muslims are,' you say this fraction of Moroccan young people who are doing this are violating the law, are undermining their own communities, and are undermining and failing to acknowledge the privilege of being a Dutch citizen, then you have specific points regarding a specific population."
"If we address the fundamental questions of health, of education of employment, then religious radicalism, which thrives in conditions of crisis, will be denied the platform and the appeal it may have for some people."
A selection of your emails on whether there is a comparison between the current criticism of Islam and the anti-Semitism of the 1930s?
Jude Kirkham, Vancouver, Canada: "In some ways, Muslims have it worse than Jews in the 1930s. Jewish persecution was concentrated in Europe, with the rest of world bigoted but generally not murderous nor in danger of becoming so. The Muslim world is divided against itself, with Iraq serving largely to distract from the critical internal struggle for modernization going on. Indeed, Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib play into the hands of the extremists and harm moderates, as I'm sure professor Adbullahi an-Na'im will agree. I would ask the professor if there are any specific policy changes he would recommend western governments undertake to improve matters. Perhaps opening our markets to products from the Islamic world? The fiasco over a Dubai company attempting to buy a British ports concern operating out of America was especially disappointing to my mind."
Jasmin, Amritsar, India: "What stops an Islamist from growing up with the changing times, and when will they grow up?"
Rick Michael, United States: "These are dangerous times we live in. Fear, the most dangerous of emotions, is driving a wedge between Muslims and the Western world. Fear, fuelled by the murder of Theo Van Gogh, has perhaps changed the Netherlands much the same way that 9/11 changed the United States. Fear and hatred fuelled anti-Semitism in much the same way as fear and suspicion are fuelling the negative changes we are witnessing today. The nature of religion fuels divisiveness and that is what we are seeing today just as we have seen throughout history."
Irene Buckler, Australia: "Only when Muslims respect all men and all women on Earth equally, will they find acceptance from all."
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Muslim veil - source of tension in West
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Dutchman in New Zealand: "Radical Islam is guilty of anti-Jewish and anti-non-Islam believers and not the other way around. It takes only a small step for the moderate Muslim to become radical especially for those who read the Koran faithfully."
George Kay, Los Angeles, California: "Men will wrangle for religion, write for it, fight for it, die for it; anything but live for it. If you hate a religion, race or culture, you hate something in it that is part of yourself. What is not part of ourselves does not disturb us."
Maria Martin Oerlemans, Sydney Australia: "There is absolutely nothing wrong with the way Dutch people treat migrants. And you can't compare them with German war crimes. I would say they are lucky to be living there. If you are not happy living in Holland you must have provoked them. The people from the Netherlands are a very generous and loving nation and they don't like any trouble. Be happy and appreciate what they are doing for you."
Pam Lief, NYC: "Can the so-called anti-Islamic feelings be compared to the anti-Semitism prior to WWII? The Jewish people participated in the democratic states of Europe wholeheartedly and had equality of the sexes. They were an important part of the work force, attended schools, joined newspapers, governments and institutions. A segment of the Islamic community choose not to do so, or to even attempt it. They have claimed guilt for several large terrorist incidents, as well as for innumerable minor ones, such as the burning of cars etc in France. These behaviours are often attributed to the Koran's verses. How can a reaction to the latter groups' dysfunctional behaviour be considered comparable to the anti-Semitism of a functional, democratic body of Jews."
John Coughlan, UK: "Do you think it is hypocritical that Muslims want respect and tolerance and yet show almost none for other religions. For instance, going to the Saudi Arabian government website one finds a number of items are not allowed to be brought into the Kingdom due to religious reasons and local regulations. Items and articles belonging to religions other than Islam are also prohibited. These may include Bibles, crucifixes, statues, carvings, and items with religious symbols such as the Star of David, and others. Makkah and Medina hold special religious significance and only
persons of the Islamic faith are allowed entry. So, while Muslims get bent out of shape for the treatment of their holy book, you have no problem with shredding Christian Bibles or the statues of Buddha in Afghanistan. Respect and tolerance goes both ways, no?"
Esa Ronkainen, Finland: "The world Islamic community is as divided as world Christian community. The enemy picture is needed for propaganda. The truth is the first victim of war and it is also so in the war against terrorism."
Lena, Los Angeles, California: "I think we need to stop talking about religion, and focus the energy of the international community on important topics such as overpopulation, AIDS, environmental degradation, economic growth and conflict resolution. Religion ought to be a private matter, and one that is kept out of governments and public life."
Rubin, California: "Is the current criticism of Islam comparable to anti-Semitism in the 1930s? Did the Jews threaten non-Jews with death and violence over cartoons that 'offended' them in the 1930s? Did the Jews strive for an all worldwide Caliphate in the 1930s? Did the Jews threaten to kill all non-believers living next to them in the 1930s? Did the Jews blow themselves next to non-Jews and kill them in the 1930s? Did the Jews fly airplanes into buildings in the 1930s? Did the Jews honour kill their sisters and daughters in the 1930s? Did Jews circumcise their daughters in the 1930s?"
Joe America, USA: "If we look at the situation in terms of cause and effect: were the Jews blowing themselves up? Were the Jews flying jets into buildings? The effect is such that people are simply becoming sick and tired of people who do not attach the same kind of value to their very own lives as non-Muslims do. At least I'm sick and tired of them."
Louis Smith, Oakland. Florida, USA: "Jews were not committing murders on a daily basis in the 1930s. German Jews were pacifists by today's standards. The vast majority of Muslims are non-violent, but there exists a pathetic sub-culture of radical psychopaths bent on killing all who do not adhere to the religious dogmas they espouse."
Jan Velema, Ontario, Canada: "Christianity is always looking for something to demonise. This is how Christianity stays in the news. Christians want to tell others how to live and they want to be told how to live."
Roberto C. Alvarez-Galloso, Miami, Florida: "During a time of crisis, a group or elite will find a scapegoat. It seems in that area we have not learned from history. All forms of racism are deplorable. Anyone inciting this form of racism should be made a public example and tried before the International Court in The Hague."
Tags: Islam, Muslims, Nazi, The Netherlands, Theo van Gogh, War on Terror