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Tribune South Asia
FYI Tribune Page 5-6
Year 1 Issue 2 Thursday, 28.07.11
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The Islamic veil in Europe
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to contest 2013 elections
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will contest for the seat of National Assembly from Lyari in the 2013 elections. The Kachhi Coordination Council Chairman told the media on Monday that Bilawal Bhutto’s participation in the next elections was decided in a meeting at Bilawal House. The meeting was chaired by PPP co-chairperson and President Asif Ali Zardari. Kachhi Coordination Committee Chairman, Muhammad Hussain said President Zardari has directed Bilawal Bhutto to contest 2013 General Elections from Lyari. Bilawal, who turns 23 this September, is two years away from being eligible to run for a provincial or national assembly seat. Having graduated from Oxford University last year, he could emerge as PPP’s muchneeded progressive voice, given what appears to be his interest in social issues and stance on minorities.
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Norway suspect wanted anti-Islam ‘Christian war’ I
slamophobia in Europe has spurred a tremendous tragedy in the form of the recent mass murder in Norway. The mass murderer claims he wanted to stop the encroachment of Muslims into his country and Europe as a whole. The New York Times provided some insight into the killer’s motivation. He wanted to begin a Christian war to stop the Muslim domination of Europe. His friends describe him as a gunloving and patriotic man who was obsessed with the perceived threat of Muslim immigration and multiculturalism.
A terrorism specialist at the Norwegian Defense Research Establishment Thomas Hegghammer, commented on a manuscript found online that was written by Anders Breivik, the confessed killer. The 1500page document, entitled ‘2083: A European Declaration of Independence,’ gives detailed accounts of the Crusades, expresses historical grievances and calls for apocalyptic warfare to defeat the religious and cultural threat of Islam. In actual fact, Muslims comprise 6% of the population of the region, and only 3% of the population of Norway. Of that 3%, only 34% are immigrants.
This information comes from The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, in a report released in January 2011. The report goes on to say that Muslims will make up more than one-quarter of the world’s population by 2030, but only 8% of Europe and 6.5% of the population of Norway. In numerical terms, this means that the Muslim population of Europe will grow to 58.2 million by 2030, as compared to 44.1 million in 2010. Norway’s Foreign Minister, Jonas Gahr Stoere, told reporters that this attack shows that you
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Lessons from the Norwegian tragedy
Page 3
ountries across Europe have been debating the Islamic veil. Most of the debate centres around whether or not women should be allowed to cover their faces in public. The issues touch hot-button issues such as religious freedom, the equality of women, cultural preservation, assimilation, and fear of terrorism. The bigger issue is multiculturalism in Europe, a question which has incited hot debate in almost every country in Europe. France was the first country in Europe to ban veils which cover the face. There are about five million Muslims in France, but only about 2,000 wear face veils. Headscarves may be worn by university students, but not in schools. Polls
indicate that most people in France agree with this ban, including most Muslims. In Spain, there i s no national ban, although full-face veils are forbidden in some public places, such as municipal offices and libraries, in Barcelona. A few smaller cities have similar bans. Continued on page 2 >>