http://www.wienerzeitung.at/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=3940&Alias=wzo&cob=264329
[I translated the whole interview since there are a lot of interesting things said. Some notes: my comments in [brackets]; to understand the situation with Islam in Austria: since 1917 Islam is by law a recognized religion, It's about 400k members are represanted by IGGiOe, headed by Shakfeh, official website here www.derislam.at; "Wiener Zeitung" is an official newspaper by the state; have fun... and excuse some maybe faulty english - did this quickly; dm+] Interview with Annas Shakfeh [CV and background upon request available], head of the Islamic Faith Community in Austria (IGGiOe). "Wiener Zeitung": How is it possible that you claim to represent all Austrian Muslimes, but 99% of them are not eligable to vote in your organization? Anas Shakfeh: This opinion is held by persons not in contact with IGGiOe at all. Q: When your last elections took place in 2001 only some 1.000 people took part. A: This is ridiculous. Alone in Graz [capital city of Styria, second biggest city in Austria] some 1.000 people voted. As you might know the roman-catholic church used to expel catholics not paying their curch-taxes. We [IGGiOe] don't do such a thing. Those who are paying have a little more right to decide what their money is donated for. Q: So how many people are paying? A: In a short time a lot more people will pay, since we will launch a reform of our constitution, as soon as our Shura Council decides over it we will hold elections; this will take place in 2007. Q: There are around 400.000 Muslims in Austria, how many of those took part in the last elections? A: You are not represanting Austrian Muslims, so this is my business [not yours]. Btw do you have an idea how low the turnout of voters at elections of students councils [at Austrian universities] is? Q: So you refuse to give any idea on the number of eligable voters? A: I do not wat to make any statement on this, I am only responsible to my members. Q: Is it possible that you turn down an application for membership in IGGiOe? A: Sure we can do that, as any club can. This is lawful and democratic, at least in Austria. Q: But the upper structure of IGGiOe has no democratic legitimation, since it was elected by less then one percent of it's members. Therefor a reform of your constitution is impossible. A: I already invalidated your statement, but it seems to me that you don't listen to me. Q: You could easily correct my point of view by openly documenting numbers of active members [of IGGiOe]. A: I will not show you anything. I will tell you what I thin is right, since you are not a member of our community. Therefore I am not responsible to you. Q: Even not an estimate? A: I don't have to. But I know whom I represant, therefore I'm all calm. We know how is represanted by us, with which associations we work together. Each of those numbers thousands of members. I have no reason to tell you anything. I just don't care. Q: Why were proposals of canditates turned down in Upper Austria at the last elections? A: Two candidates were questioned and therefore turned down. Q: How is it possible that persons without any academic and pedagogical qualification train religious teachers at the religious-pedagogic academy [of IGGiOe]? A: Your statement is reckless. All our teachers are vetted by the Stadtschulrat of Vienna [a city of Vienna council dealing with school administration] based on their qualification. Your statement does not even deserve an answer. Q So you don't deny that persons without any academic and pedagogical qualification are teaching there? A: Only a few percent of professors and tutors at University Vienna went through a pedagogical training, since they teach at an university and there this is no precondition. Our teachers at the islamic religious-pedagogic academy need an academic qualification only. Q: The accusation of a missing verifyable academic qualification goes -- amongst others -- to Carla Amina Baghajati [spokeswomen of IGGiOe, CV and background upon request available], Sheik Adnan Ibrahim [Imam of Vienna's Al-Shura mosque, CV and background upon request available] and you! A: These are accusations only. Mrs. Baghajati was trained a the conservatory [which one?] and is teaching "creative compositipon" [of what?], Sheik Adnan Ibrahim finished university studies. I myself took a seminar with him in Hamma/Syria. Sheik Adnan Ibrahim also teached at the Awazai faculty in Beirut. Q: Are courses at the islamic religious-pedagogic academy held in arabic? A: Partially. Q: Do you think a taxi driver or person selling newspapers on streets is a good religious teacher? A: Depends on their qualification. Q: What is your opinion on religious teachers, tutors and Imam's with almost no knowledge of german? A: There are Imam's with little german. So what? Q: Is this supportive of integration? A: Integration wont happen by pushing a button. This takes time [Islam is a recognized religion in Austria since 1917 -- so how much time more?]; also competent people wont be created by pushing a button, this takes time as well. Wo do not have a training institution for Imam's and religous servants [?], we are no exemption in Europe, but we are a few steps ahead. Q: Since Van Gogh was murdered in The Netherlands, there are only Imam's from The Netherlands there. A: No one was killed in Austria. Q: There is an estimate that about 300 Imam's working in Austria are native from eastern Anatolia. They have no knowledge of german, they are in no way familiar with western culture. In sake of integration, wouldn't it be better to get Imam's with a better knowledge of Austrian circumstances? A: Those Imam's are wished for by their communities. There is no instance to place an Imam against the will of a respective community. They do not come as educators over here. Our members are grown up enough, those Imam's come as servants to our religion. But of course it would be better if we had german speaking Imam's Q: Would you like to give a statement on connections between the "Islamic federation of Vienna" and Turkey's ruling "Justice and Developement Party" [AKP]? Money donated in Vienna was spent for election campaigning in Turkey. A: I don't know, it might be possible. It is not unlawful to donate money for something. Q: But shouldn't a donator be informed forehand what will happen with their money? I ask on behalf of those Muslims who donated their money to this federation. A: Donating Muslims always know what they donate money for. I can rule out that someone else was collecting money to transfer it to Turkey. Q: You are represanting all Austrian Muslims and hold at the same time a fulltime job in the cultural departement of the Saudi embassy in Vienna. Don't you see a conflict here? A: The one has nothing to do with the other. My work at IGGiOe is unsalaried. Q. But how can you serve both a Saudi-Wahabit Islam and an European Islam? A: I don't have to. At the embassy I serve as a councellor in the cultural departement, which has nothing to do with religious matters. Q: But you do know that Saudi-Wahabit Islam orients itself at the sunni understanding of silamic law and that there is no religious freedom in Saudi-Arabia? A: As Austrians this is not our business. It is forbidden to mix up those things. I belong to the Shafi'i, while the majority of Austrian Muslims belongs to Hanafi. Q: Sheik Adnan Ibrahim is responsible for training islamic religious teachers [in Austria]. Would you like to give statement that he recently issued a Fatwa forbidding interreligious marriages and declared terrorists of Hamas as heros? A: I only got knowledge of this via media. As long as he is not proven guilty he's innocent +++ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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