CAIRO- TO have an idea and be convinced by it is easy. But to convince others about what you really feel is hard. Sometimes it takes time to succeed in convincing people, sometimes you totally fail. Muslims and The Netherlands �" there's a big gap between them that young Dutch Muslims are trying to narrow. The Dutch Embassy in Cairo, in co-operation with the Institute for Multicultural Development (FORUM), the largest non-governmental actor in the field of integration policy in The Netherlands, last week organised a mission visit by researchers from FORUM concerning the Muslim minority in Holland. The purpose of their visit was to improve ties and convey an accurate picture of Holland. "The bilateral relations between Egypt and Holland are limited to only between the two governments. It's not enough," says Otto Genee, the Minister Plenipotentiary and deputy head of mission. "There are a lot of issues that need to be discussed." For some years, the position of Muslims in The Netherlands has been the subject of fierce debate there. The debate concerning Muslims is often based on perceptions which have little or no connection with reality, that is to say with the actual lives and social situations of Muslims in Holland. Based on figures published by 'Statistics Netherlands', there were an estimated 907,000 Muslims in Holland at the start of 2009 and 475 mosques there. Of all Muslims in The Netherlands, 73 per cent are of Turkish or Moroccan origin, while the remaining 27 per cent are originally from other countries. Around 45 per cent of all non-Western migrants are Muslims. Halim el-Madkouri, programme manager for religion and identity issues at FORUM, believes that people have misperceptions about Holland and the Muslims there. "People think that The Netherlands is Hell for Muslims; nor is it Paradise. It's like any other European country, which has freedom of religion and speech," he says. Muslims in Holland, he adds, may have more freedom than in their Muslim countries. "For example, there is no monitoring of the sermons given at Friday prayers. Every imam has the right to speak on whatever issues he wants," Halim, of Moroccan descent, explains. Since 11/9, Holland has served as a forum for the concepts of the clash of civilisations paradigm. The Dutch situation has provided casuistry for the supposed irreconcilability of Islam with liberal Western norms and values, the formation of homegrown terrorism and the evolution patterns of Islamic radicalisation. In The Netherlands, where Muslims comprise 6 per cent of the country's 16.5 million people, an anti-Islam party has become the country's fastest-growing political movement. In 2008 its leader, Geert Wilders, wrote a short film called Fitna that explores Qur'anic-inspired motivations for terrorism, Islamic universalism and Islam in Holland. Its title comes from the Arabic word fitna, which can be defined as 'disagreement and division among people' or a 'test of faith in times of trial'. Several groups and persons in The Netherlands have called for legal action against Wilders, while others have defended his free speech. "The Dutch government does not agree with his opinions on Islam. Last year, a three-judge court ordered prosecutors to try him," he said. “The criminal proceedings against Wielders will continue in October this year. The law there is above all." Another member of the mission was Yasmine el-Ksaihi. She doesn't see herself as a feminist rebel. She covers her head and most of her upper body with a hijab (headscarf) and wears modest clothing. She learned to read the Holy Qur'an at the age of five and promotes traditional Muslim values. Yasmine is the administrator of a large mosque called Polder Mosque, an unusual position of authority for a young woman in the world of Islam, even in Europe. "The Polder Mosque seeks to make Islam more accessible to young Muslims born in a secular nation and make Muslims more acceptable to their neighbours," Yasmine says. "Sermons there are in Dutch rather than Arabic. Non-Muslims are welcome." She adds that second- and third-generation immigrants face problems learning their native language after living their whole lives in Holland, while they also face social and economic problems. "We try to help them with the activities in the mosque," says Yasmine. As administrator for the mosque, she is in charge of finances and hires the imams who lead the prayers and deliver sermons. She says she finds imams that reflect the diversity of the Amsterdam Muslim community, including preachers from Morocco and Turkey, where most Dutch Muslims come from. Many Muslims are involved in politics in The Netherlands, such as Mohamed Amezian. He is a reporter for Radio Netherlands Worldwide and is also Moroccan by origin. Aside from being a journalist, he recently won (in March this year) a seat on Rosendale Local Council. "The victory in the municipal elections is the biggest evidence that Dutch Muslims enjoy the freedoms available to them. They can participate in political decision-making locally, regionally and nationally," he stresses. "Immigrants may participate in policy decisions. More than 100 Dutch MPs are Muslims.” Mohamed explains that, in Holland, you can establish a party based on religion or ethnicity, "while in my country Morocco you can't". Their programme in Egypt included a visit to Al-Azhar University, the world's chief centre for Arabic literature and Muslim learning. "We spoke to the Grand Sheikh of Al- Azhar [Ahmed el-Tayeb] on the possibility of co-operation between Al-Azhar and The Netherlands. He was very welcoming," says Faisal Mirza, a Dutch Muslim activist and owner of a blog called 'We're staying here'. Faisal adds that the Grand Sheikh, who holds a PhD in Islamic philosophy from the Sorbonne in Paris, said it might be possible to send imams to Holland. "He also expressed his desire to visit Holland and give lectures there." "I came here with the idea that many Dutch people think that Egypt doesn't care about closing the gap between the two countries," says Anna, who is a non-Muslim and works as a diplomacy officer with FORUM, involved in researching the situation for minorities in Holland. ”But after what I have found here, I will inform them that Egypt is ready to co-operate.” “We need translators. We also need patience and to listen to others. We will send missions to Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries, so that we can convey an accurate picture of Holland," Otto, the minister, concluded.
