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Wednesday Linkage

by Kafir ( 183 Comments › )
Filed under Links, Multiculturalism at September 30th, 2009 - 7:03 am

Israel to Free Prisoners to Obtain Video of Soldier

JERUSALEM — Israel said Wednesday it would release 20 Palestinian women from its jails in exchange for a videotape of a captured Israeli soldier that would prove that he is alive.

French Mayors Fear Burqa Ban Could Not Be Enforced

PARIS (Reuters) – Several mayors of French towns faced with growing demands from Muslim residents say they fear a proposed ban on head-to-toe burqa and niqab veils could not be enforced and might even prompt more women to cover up.

Not all the mayors at the panel opposed the ban. Renaud Gauquelin, mayor of Rillieux-La-Pape near Lyon, said failing to take a stand would mean failing to defend the separation of church and state and, above all, women’s rights.

“What sign would we give to women around the world?” he asked. “To Iranian women fighting for their freedom? To Saudi women who want to be able to drive a car?”

Kartika caning undermines ‘moderate Islam’ image: SIS

SIS board member Zainah Anwar said while the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister have always been trying to project Malaysia as a model Islamic country, such a punishment was unacceptable and could be seen as too severe.

She said Malaysia had attracted international attention because of the Kuantan Syariah High Court’s recent decision to whip the 32-year-old, along with other issues such as the fatwa (religious decree) on yoga and tomboys.

“Foreigners are interested to come to our country because of the moderate image we portray but when they come here, they are shocked to find the level of conservatism being practised.

“So where is this model Muslim country we have been trying to promote?” Zainah told a press conference at the SIS office here on Wednesday.

Jordan bans anti-Israel demo planned by Islamic groups

Jordanian authorities have refused to permit a demonstration which the country’s Islamic groups planned for Friday in reaction to the entry into the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem by Israeli police earlier this week, the Islamic Action Front (IAF) said Wednesday.

“The Amman Governor Samir Mobaydeen has rejected a request by Islamic leaders to organize the demonstration in downtown Amman after Friday prayers to condemn the desecration of al-Aqsa Mosque,” an IAF statement said.

Mobaydeen did not cite any reason for the refusal but said that his decision was based on “the authority accorded to him by the law”, it added.

Candidate wants ban on Muslim immigrants

A hopeful for a Texas congressional seat wants no more Muslim immigration to America. But candidate Canyon Clowdus doesn’t want to stop at the stance he outlined to the blog “Doctor Bulldog and Ronin,” which endorses him in the 11th Congressional District race.

“It’s not just (Muslims),” Clowdus said. “They need to check all immigrants. They used to assimilate.”

Instead, immigrants retain their beliefs, weakening America, said Clowdus, 40, a construction project manager in Marble Falls, Texas. The 11th Congressional District covers a wide swath of West Texas and stretches almost to Austin.

Tags: France, Israel, Jordan, Malaysia
Posted in Links, Multiculturalism | 183 Comments »

Sarkozy Says Burqas Are ‘Not Welcome’ In France

by WrathofG-d ( 51 Comments › )
Filed under Europe, France, Free Speech, Islamists, Multiculturalism, Political Correctness, Religion, Sharia (Islamic Law), World at June 22nd, 2009 - 9:20 am

PARIS (AP) – President Nicolas Sarkozy lashed out Monday at the practice of wearing the Muslim burqa, insisting the full-body religious gown is a sign of the “debasement” of women and that it won’t be welcome in France.

The French leader expressed support for a recent call by dozens of legislators to create a parliamentary commission to study a small but growing trend of wearing the full-body garment in France.

In the first presidential address in 136 years to a joint session of France’s two houses of parliament, Sarkozy laid out his support for a ban even before the panel has been approved—braving critics who fear the issue is a marginal one and could stigmatize Muslims in France.

“In our country, we cannot accept that women be prisoners behind a screen, cut off from all social life, deprived of all identity,” Sarkozy said to extended applause in a speech at the Chateau of Versailles southwest of Paris.

“The burqa is not a religious sign, it’s a sign of subservience, a sign of debasement—I want to say it solemnly,” he said. “It will not be welcome on the territory of the French Republic.“

In France, the terms “burqa” and “niqab” often are used interchangeably. The former refers to a full-body covering worn largely in Afghanistan with only a mesh screen over the eyes, whereas the latter is a full-body veil, often in black, with slits for the eyes.

Later Monday, Sarkozy was expected to host a state dinner with Sheik Hamad Bin Jassem Al Thani of Qatar. Many women in the Persian Gulf state wear Islamic head coverings in public—whether while shopping or driving cars.

France enacted a law in 2004 banning the Islamic headscarf and other conspicuous religious symbols from public schools, sparking fierce debate at home and abroad. France has Western Europe’s largest Muslim population, an estimated 5 million people.

A government spokesman said Friday that it would seek to set up a parliamentary commission that could propose legislation aimed at barring Muslim women from wearing the head-to-toe gowns outside the home.

The issue is highly divisive even within the government. France’s junior minister for human rights, Rama Yade, said she was open to a ban if it is aimed at protecting women forced to wear the burqa.

But Immigration Minister Eric Besson said a ban would only “create tensions.”

A leading French Muslim group warned against studying the burqa.

{The Article}