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Religious Persecution in Europe:
Focus on Muslims
Muslim Women's League
November 1996
In Islam, the significance and valuation
for human rights and dignity can be found
throughout the Qur’an, the holy scripture
for Muslims, and throughout other religious
texts. In matters of faith, the language is
explicit and unequivocal: "There is no
compulsion in religion; Truth stands out
clear from Error." (2:256). Thus, the
rights of Muslims and non-Muslims alike in
expressions of faith is guaranteed, not only
in theory but in practice as the Qur’an
states: "O you who believe! Be ever
Steadfast in your devotion to God, bearing
witness to the truth in all equity; and
never let the hatred of others lead you into
the sin of deviating from justice. Be just:
This is the closest to being conscious of
God." (5:81) Yet it is hatred and rage
that is at the root of anti-Muslim sentiment
and violence plaguing Europe today.
The status of Muslims in Europe is
precarious, for they represent a group that
is viewed as alien, unacknowledged, or
threatening throughout the region. Racist
tendencies fueled by paranoia regarding
Islamic extremism have rendered Europe
hostile, unreponsive to, and in violation of
the human rights of Muslims. In an
interfaith meeting in Rome last summer with
Father General Kastalneck of the Jesuit
Order of the Catholic Church, it was made
clear that "Europe has a problem with
Islam." Indeed, the problem is the
historical baggage carried by Europe with
respect to the Middle East, dating back to
the Crusades and the Inquisition. At that
time, Muslims were uniformly stereotyped as
infidels and violent barbarians.
Unfortunately, time has not significantly
altered these misperceptions.
The human rights violations suffered by
Muslims in Europe range from police
brutality and right-wing extremist attacks
that often result in murder to confinement
to the role of second-class citizen. When
expedient, the card of fears of Islamic
fundamentalism is used to justify
persecution and discrimination as Europe and
her allies do not question such a
characterization. Indeed, since Muslims
themselves are erroneously portrayed has
intolerant and uncivilized, they do not
deserve the rights of a free people. While
other religious groups are measured by the
mainstream and not the extremists, Muslims
are defined by the most extreme elements in
their midst.
The hatred of Muslims throughout Europe is
well summarized in an article highlighting
the findings of the Runnymede Commission in
the United Kingdom which examined the
"growing phenomenon of islamophobia-dread
or hatred of Muslims-…" While
focusing on Great Britain, the findings can
be applied anywhere anti-muslim prejudice is
expressed. The key features of Islamophobia
include "the portrayal of muslim
cultures as monolithic, intolerant of
pluralism and dispute, patriarchal and
misogynistic, fundamentalist and potentially
threatening to other cultures. A further,
and particularly disturbing feature of
islamophobia is its apparent acceptability
as…’the expression of anti Muslim ideas
and sentiments is increasingly respectable.’"
The acceptability and tolerance for
anti-Muslim prejudice and hatred is allowing
gross human rights violations to occur
unchecked. Other groups who have been
similarly suppressed in the past accept that
Islam is largely a negative force and
therefore condone, through their own
silence, these atrocities.
Reports regarding the persecution of Muslims
are mainly gathered from human rights groups
such as Amnesty International, Human Rights
Watch, the UN Commission on Human Rights and
others. No broad based Muslim organizations
exist which are dedicated to the
documentation of persecution of and
discrimination against Muslims. Because of
the nature of the ethnic groups discussed
below, many are unaware of the availablity
of human rights groups to advocate on their
behalf and are unlikely to seek them out to
report abuse. Similarly, in view of the
facts that much of the suppression is
carried out or ignored by the authorities,
many Muslims have a lack of trust of any
system that claims to protect them. As a
result, we can only assume that the extent
of the persecution of Muslims in Europe, and
elsewhere, is not fully reflected in the
reports currently available.
Genocide, mass killings, forced migration, torture, and rape
Clearly, the most significant tragedy in Europe since the Holocaust was the war in the former Yugoslavia where Bosnian Muslims were the victims of a widespread, government sponsored campaign of ethnic cleansing by Serbian armed forces and civilians. Neighboring European nations as well as the US justified their inaction and lack of involvement by claiming that the conflict was motivated along ethnic lines: yet Serbian leaders such as Slobodan Milosevic and Radovan Karadzic used anti-Islamic rhetoric to fan the flames of hatred that allowed 200,000 Bosnian Muslims to be slaughtered, over 1 million expelled from their homes and communities, 20,000 women raped and countless more civilians, men, women and children to endure physical and psychological trauma. At the time when the international community chose not to act, many felt that if the victims had been Christian or Jewish then intervention would not have been delayed. Current focus on the persecution of Christians, receiving support in Congress for severe response to similar crimes lends credence to this view of a double standard for the protection of some religious minorities to the exclusion of others. This hypocrisy is further manifested by the lack of will on the part of the global community to take definitive action in bringing the indicted war criminals to justice.
Further traumatization of Bosnian Muslims continues, particularly among refugees, who are being forcibly repatriated from countries like Germany even when conditions in
Bosnia-Hercegovina are not favorable for resettlement.
In the war in Chechnya, while both sides committed atrocities, Russian troops carried out a disproportionate amount of violence against non-combatants including indiscriminate killings, extrajudicial executions of civilians, torture, rape and hostage-taking.
Police Brutality
Reports of police brutality against
Muslim minorities including assault, verbal
abuse, murder and other degrading treatment
that qualifies as torture are clearly
documented in Europe, particularly in
Germany, France and the United Kingdom. The
depth and severity of police brutality is
only slightly outdone by the atrocities
committed by right-wing extremists.
In Germany, the overwhelming majority of
victims are Turks and Kurds, usually
refugees or asylum seekers. A clear pattern,
not isolated incidents, has emerged of
ill-treatment of foreigners and ethnic
minorities. On some occasions, police
officers have continued the assault on
individuals who called for police assistance
as they were being attacked by right-wing
extremists. In other instances, the victims
are not informed of the basis for their
arrests; are accused of being combative,
meaning the officer only acted in
self-defense; and are not given due process
once detained.
When police officers are prosecuted for the
use of excessive force, the degree of
punishment is inadequate according to the
crimes committed. The victims’ families do
not receive compensation and there is good
evidence that the problem of police
brutality is ignored by the German
authorities. The Minister of Internal
Affairs last year denied that any
anti-immigrant sentiment existed among
German police officers. The participation of
the police force in racist attacks has
resulted in under-reporting of the extent of
the problem and in seeing the perpetrators
brought to justice. Victims keep silent in
fear of repercussions and they are unable to
call on law enforcement to protect them
against hate crimes committed by neo-Nazis.
In France, similar reports of the use of
excess force by police officers against
Muslim minorities, particularly from North
Africa (e.g. Algeria and Morocco) further
exemplify racist tendencies. In addition to
beatings, mass arrests of immigrants, and
other forms of verbal and physical abuse,
several detainees have been shot and killed
while in police custody. ( In two cases, the
victims were shot in the back or the head
while trying to escape.) In 1993, Rachid
Ardjouni, a 17 year old Algerian immigrant,
was shot in the back of the head when he was
face down on the ground. The officer, who
was drunk at the time of the killing, was
given a reduced sentence by the Court of
Appeal which also reduced the financial
compensation to the victim’s family. In
addition, the court ruled that his
conviction would not be entered on his
criminal record, thus allowing him to
continue to serve as a police officer and
carry arms.
Similar reports of police brutality, deaths
occuring while the victims were in custody
and inadequate punishment of the
perpetrators have emerged from Great Britain
where the targets are primarily of
Indo-Pakistani origin. Isolated incidents
have also been documented against Swiss
police officers.
Torture and ill-treatment by police is
widespread in the former Yugoslavia,
particularly in the province of Kosovo where
the victims are Albanian Muslims. Acts of
brutality include murder, torture,
abductions and mass arrests. Chechens living
in Moscow are also victims of police
brutality. In all of the cases mentioned
above, medical care for injuries sustained
while in custody was either delayed
considerably or withheld altogether.
Hate Crimes
The incidence of hate crimes against immigrants and ethnic minorities is reaching an alarming rate throughout Europe. These acts are mainly carried out by right-wing extremists, commonly referred to as skinheads. In some countries, official government response to the violence is inadequate allowing the problem to continue. Although racially motivated crimes are apparently on the decline in Germany, over 1000 incidents occurred in a two year period. As mentioned earlier, many victims of assault and abuse do not report the incidents because of fear of repercussions such as retailiation or deportation. Additionally, if the police force is also known to be participating in similar acts of brutality, the victims would not call on the authorities for assistance. Therefore the actual occurrence of hate crimes is under-reported and can be assumed to be more widespread.
Some of the most heinous acts in Germany include arson attacks on residences resulting in the deaths of children and the elderly. Similarly, arson and vandalism have been reported against mosques and businesses owned by immigrants or ethnic minorities.
In France, over 500 hate crimes were reported in 1996. Similar incidents have been reported, although not as widespread, in the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Sweden, Spain and the United Kingdom. In Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, the victims of hate crimes which often includes murder, are members of the Romani population, many of whom are Muslim. Discrimination by government institutions against these minorities can be interpreted as a form of endorsement of similarly motivated prejudice, only expressed in a more extreme fashion.
Discrimination
Citizenship
In many countries throughout Europe, Muslims encounter difficulties in obtaining citizenship. This is especially problematic in Germany, the United Kingdom and
Employment
In Greece, members of the Muslim minority from Thrace are commonly discriminated against as they are confined to low level, low paying jobs. They encounter difficulties obtaining licenses to operate businesses.
In Serbia and Montenegro, Muslims and ethnic Albanians are frequently fired from their jobs based on religion and ethnicity. Similar difficulties are encountered by Chechens and other Muslim minorities in Russia.
Military
In Bulgaria, Mulims are not allowed to participate in regular military units; rather, they are assigned to maintenance and construction. In Greece, Muslims are prevented from advancing in rank in the military.
Repression due to fears of Islamic extremism or political Islam
In France, mass arrests and deportation
of thousands of illegal immigrants from
Northern Africa are justified based on fears
of terrorist attacks, similar to those which
have already occurred in Paris over the past
several years.
In the Czech Republic, a town council denied
the permit for the building of a mosque,
arguing that it would become a center for
terrorism.
In Uzbekistan, where the majority of
inhabitants are Muslim, the government
suppresses groups that oppose state
appointed religious authorities. Muslim
leaders have been detained and harassed for
acts perceived as insubordination. As a
result of such allegations, three mosques
have been closed and the
"disappearance" of several Muslim
leaders has been reported.
Recent political events in Turkey highlight
the conflict between popular support for the
political involvement of Islamic political
parties (namely Refah) and the military’s
fanatic commitment to maintaining the
secular nature of the state. The government,
in addition to having a known record of
human rights violations against dissidents
of all types, interferes with proselytizing
and activism if there are political
overtones. The crackdown on Islamic
education in secondary schools further
reflects government control over the ability
of individuals to study their religion; the
hope is that by reducing the amount of time
students spend learning about Islam, they
will decrease the popularity of and
enthusiasm for religious activism.
The Ministry of Defense forced a Turkish
judge into retirement due to his relgious
convictions, claiming that he demonstrated
"unlawful fundamentalist
opinions."
Women as specific targets
Muslim women who choose to wear a
head-covering (referred to as hijab) in
addition to overall modest attire are
frequently subject to attacks,
discrimination and other forms of abuse and
harassment. They become an easy target for
right-wing extremists, government officials
and even feminist groups. Hijab seems to
provoke reactions in many people who feel it
is symbolic of other issues. To the Muslim
women, it is an expression of modesty and
for some it reflects a particular devotion
to the faith. To others, it represents
oppression and foreign-ness. For others, it
simply serves as a useful way to target the
"other" and to use women as a
means to carry out suppression,
discrimination and violence against Muslims.
Lack of understanding regarding the purpose
of hijab led the French government to claim
that the "ostentatious" wearing of
the headscarf violated laws in place
prohibiting proselytizing in schools. Due to
negative public attention, the
Administrative Court, in 1995, modified the
law, instead prohibiting the wearing of
"ostentatious political and religious
symbols" in school, thus leaving the
decision to the discretion of school
officials. As a reaction to such hostility,
families chose to keep their daughters home
instead of subjecting them to harassment by
school authorities.
Women who wear hijab in Turkey are prevented
from obtaining post-graduate degrees and
from advancing in the workplace. Similar
forms of discrimination exist throughout
Europe and are mainly reported anecdotally.
Frequently, Muslim women are singled out at
airports as they are treated as suspects.
Human rights groups have not focused
specifically on the problems faced by Muslim
women who, compared to their male
counterparts, may be even less likely to
report harassment and discrimination.
The persecution of Muslims is the result of
deep-seated hatred and prejudice that must
be addressed. While it may be expressed most
violently by extremist elements, the
participation of governments to lesser
degrees confirms that the racism permeates
all levels of society. Recognition of this
fact is the key to addressing the grievances
and resolving conflict. Conflict that is
generated elsewhere with repercussions on
European soil, reinforce stereotyping and
paranoia that is used to justify widespread
acts of intolerance and repression.
The media also contributes negatively by
perpetuating stereotypical negative
portrayals of Islam and Muslims. This is
clearly evident in the American
entertainment industry which continues to
produce movies, such as Executive Decision
and True Lies, that are broadcast around the
world, further solidifying the publics
perception of Muslims and Middle Easterners
as terrorist and uncivilized. No positive
images are offered to counter the effect,
thus adding to the public’s general
ignorance about Islam and intolerance for
those who are different.
Recommendations
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Deep seated racism must be dealt with on all levels of society. |
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Obtain commitment from member states of OSCE to upholding the principles expressed in the international human rights documents which they have signed.
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Discuss religious and ethnic discrimination with high-ranking officials to acknowledge the problem and develop a strategy for dealing with it on all levels.
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Focus on training of police and military units, eliminating officers who have a history of abuse, racist attitudes and membership in right-wing groups
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Develop sensitization techniques by encouraging participation of ethnic minorities to increase understanding and decrease incidents of police brutality.
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Demonstrate commitment to bringing the perpetrators to justice, swiftly and fairly.
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