BERLIN — As German Chancellor Angela Merkel proceeds with negotiating a new coalition after winning a second four-year term, Muslims are hoping her second government would deal with them more positively as equal citizens rather than a potential threat.
"We want Chancellor Merkel and her new government to give us justice," Nadeem Elias, chairman of the Supreme Council of Muslims in Germany, told IslamOnline.net on Tuesday, September 29.
"We want to feel it’s a government for all people regardless of ethnic, religious and cultural differences. Everybody should feel that their interests are being protected by the government.”
Merkel, 55, secured another four-year mandate after her Christian Democrats (CDU) and its Christian Social Union (CSU) got 33.8 percent of the vote.
The conservative chancellor, dubbed most powerful woman on Earth by Forbes magazine, is working on a new centre-right coalition with the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP).
"We hope the new government would give more attention to Muslim affairs and would work to activate their role in the society," said Ibrahim Al-Zayyat, the director of the Islamic Assembly in Germany.
He added that Muslims expect the government to ensure them justice and equality.
"We want equal employment opportunities," Al-Zayyat stressed, arguing that some jobs remain out of Muslims reach either because they are not qualified or because of racism against them.
He said the government should give more attention to employing Muslims, particularly in state institutions.
There are more than 4 million Muslims in Germany, including nearly 220,000 in Berlin.
* New mindset
Germany Muslims leaders are also hoping that the new government would change its approach in dealing with Muslims.
"Muslims should not be looked at as a threat to the country or a source of destabilization,” said Elias, chairman of the Supreme Council of Muslims in Germany.
“The government should not just focus on passing laws that restrict Muslim rights and violate their privacy.”
He called for a positive approach to the Muslim presence in the European country.
"The government should instead try to develop and make use of Muslims’ potentials in the development of Germany.”
Elias believes this could be achieved by raising Muslims awareness about their civil and religious rights and allowing them to practice them on equal footing with other citizens.
“Muslims should also be given more room to engage politically and socially.”
Muslim leaders urged the new government to recognize Islam as an official religion.
"We also want the government to deal with Islam on equal footing with other faiths such as Christianity and Judaism," said Al-Zayyat, the director of the Islamic Assembly in Germany.
This, he explained, include a recognition of Islam as an official religion, teaching Islam in schools and giving the Muslim faith airtime in the media.
Islam comes third in Germany after Protestant and Catholic Christianity.
Al-Zayyat said the government should encourage municipalities to facilitate mosque construction permits.
Mosque building has become very difficult in Germany and many European countries in recent years because of vicious campaigns by right-wing parties.
But Maged el-Saeda, an immigrant of Lebanese origin, is skeptical that the new government would meet the Muslims’ aspirations.
“I think things would rather be more difficult,” he told IOL.
“I hope the government would prove me wrong and adopt positive policies towards Muslims and immigrants.”
Source: IslamOnline
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