EU must help Islam embrace Enlightenment - Germany

BERLIN, Jan 12 (Reuters) Germany's interior minister said that parts of the Islamic world had yet to embrace the values of the Enlightenment, and the European Union should help integrate Muslims by promoting the training of imams.

Wolfgang Schaeuble yesterday told visiting Brussels journalists he would use Germany's six-month presidency of the 27-nation bloc to establish an EU-wide dialogue with Muslim leaders to improve integration, defuse tensions and fight ''home-grown terrorism''.

''Part of the Islamic world has yet to implement the Enlightenment,'' the Christian Democratic politician said, referring to the 17-18th century European movement to value freedom and reason rather than tradition.

''We should not be arrogant but only helpful. After all, Christianity waged terrible conflicts for a few centuries until the process of Enlightenment took root, and part of Christianity shows signs of falling back in that direction.'' The Islamic world must accept that equal rights for women was a universal principle enshrined in the United Nations charter and not ''some peculiarity'' of Europe, he said.

''Anyone who cannot accept the equality of men and women has not even come close to meeting one of the basic conditions for the 21st century. It's in Islam's own interest to make that very clear and decisive,'' he said.

Schaeuble said Germany and the European Commission would encourage initiatives to train Islamic preachers so they helped integrate young Muslims into European society rather than promoting separateness.

Berlin was already in talks with Turkey, the country of origin of most of its Muslim immigrant population, to ensure that imams sent to preach in Germany spoke German, he said.

''It won't be the EU that organises this training, but we want it in Europe because we want imams to make a contribution to integration and not to the opposite of integration.'' BURQA Schaeuble voiced support for European politicians such as former British foreign minister Jack Straw who have stirred controversy by criticising the wearing of the all-covering burqa or niqab garments by Muslim women.

Stressing he was not speaking as president of the council of EU interior ministers, Schaeuble said his personal view was that ''the burqa, where you can only see a person's eyes -- if at all -- is the opposite of what we consider communication''.

''Open societies mean living and talking together and not being separated from each other. And to that extent the burqa is an element that hinders communication,'' he said.

But politicians should not try to regulate what headgear men or women wore, because ''they very quickly get into a minefield.

People should decide that for themselves'', he added.

Dialogue with Muslim community leaders had helped defuse issues such as a production of Mozart's opera ''Idomeneo'' in Berlin last year, in which a scene featuring the Prophet Mohammad's severed head sparked months of controversy, he said.

Schaeuble also said it was in the interest of Muslim communities to cooperate with security authorities to help identify terrorism suspects and avoid the unacceptable situation where Muslims fell under general suspicion.

''My impression is a growing number of Muslims and Muslim representatives react better if they have a bit more hope that they are fully accepted as citizens with equal rights,'' he said.

''That is one condition to deal with this problem of home-grown terrorism with better prospects of success,'' the minister said, citing improved social conditions and job opportunities as another important factor.

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