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Foreign Policy
Fall 1998
Moslim in de Polder (Muslim in the Netherlands)
by Frits Bolkestein
Reviewed by Jaap Donath *
Islam is the fastest-growing religion in Western Europe. And whether it is the French government prohibiting Muslim girls from wearing head scarves in public schools or arsonists burning down the homes and businesses of Turks living in Germany, one has only to read the daily headlines to gauge the extent of the European political and cultural backlash to this changing demographic picture. Although the integration of Muslims has been a source of bitter and sometimes soul-searching discussion throughout much of Europe, it has rarely been a subject of public debate in the Netherlands. That is, until earlier this year. With the publication of Muslim in the Netherlands, Frits Bolkestein—the head of the right-of-center political party Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie and a former minister of defense—challenged his country’s self-image as a progressive and tolerant society and sparked a political firestorm just months before national elections were held in May.
At least 40 percent of the Netherlands’ 1.7 million immigrants are from Islamic countries, most notably Morocco, Suriname, and Turkey. The Dutch government and its social-services agencies have tried to assist these new citizens in adjusting to their new country. How these immigrants and their children have experienced this transition is the central theme of this provocative book. Bolkestein questioned seven prominent Muslim activists about their views on the role of the government in assisting immigrant Muslims in the Netherlands, the influence of Islam as a minority religion, the role of public education, and the political and social impact of Islam in the daily lives of Muslim immigrants. Among those interviewed were journalists for the Turkish and Moroccan media residing in the Netherlands, a civil servant for the City of Amsterdam, a school principal, and the owner of an apparel company.
Bolkestein directly confronts the delicate subject of dual loyalty when he touches upon whether Islamic governments seek to influence the behavior of their expatriate citizens. All those interviewed acknowledge that these governments, such as those of Saudi Arabia and Morocco, have tried to influence the Muslim community in the Netherlands, although they state that they are opposed to such meddling. For example, first-generation immigrants cite the unrelenting attempts of their former governments to persuade them to send money home and thereby provide a steady supply of foreign currency. Also, the Moroccan government sends religious leaders to the Netherlands during Ramadan to ensure that “true” Islam is practiced. Yet, although the public perception of Islam is that of a religion intertwined with politics, those interviewed do not believe that this is, or should be, the case. One interviewee, Üzeyit Kabaktepe, owner of an apparel company and coordinator of the Turkish mosque association AyaSofa, states that “A true and real Islam is developing in the Netherlands, one that is not inspired by politics from the country of origin.” All feel that Islam is not as strict in its rules as many believe, that each Muslim can interpret the Koran freely, and that the relationship between the individual and God is most important.
Another issue, one that will likely have lasting implications throughout Western Europe, is whether Islam will remain central to the lives of these immigrants and their children or eventually will become much more “secularized,” as has been the case with Protestantism and Catholicism. On this topic, opinions are varied. Some already see Islam declining in significance for the second and third generations. Jan Beerenhout Azn, policy coordinator for the City of Amsterdam, states that “I cannot imagine that the secularization, or better, the liberalization of the Christians during the last few decades, will not take place among the Muslims in our country.” Others feel that Islam will continue to play an important role in daily life, but that it needs to adjust to Dutch society. For instance, as matters now stand, religious leaders at each mosque are trained in their home countries. Many Dutch Muslims would prefer that religious leaders be educated in the Netherlands so that they speak the language (which would appeal to younger generations) and better understand the experiences of living in Dutch society, especially with regard to matters concerning the roles of women.
Muslim in the Netherlands was the subject of intense media scrutiny, both positive and negative. Some critics raised the concern that Bolkestein had essentially “handpicked” Muslim immigrants who shared his views, and that his book did not reflect the full diversity of the community. Moreover, the book was published at a time when record numbers of asylum seekers were entering the Netherlands, and the question of “how many can we absorb?” was on the minds of many Dutch voters in anticipation of the May national elections. Much of the media coverage focused on the extent to which assimilation (Bolkestein’s term, others prefer to use “integration”) should occur within the Muslim community and the degree to which Muslims should adhere to Dutch rules and customs. The public debate leading up to the election was heated, yet when all was said and done, the right-wing, anti-immigration parties failed to win enough votes to keep their seats in parliament.
The issue of immigration has long been the mainstay of right-wing political parties and fringe literature, but Bolkestein was able to capture the attention of the general public since he is a notable politician of a governing coalition party. The undertone of Muslim in the Netherlands is that, although minorities should be able to hold on to their ethnic or religious heritage, assimilation into Dutch society should be the final goal. This view is becoming more mainstream, not only among the native Dutch but also among the immigrants themselves (in particular, educated second- and third-generation immigrants). The Netherlands has always had a reputation for tolerance, but Bolkestein’s book shows that this attitude might be changing. At the very least, adjustments are being made as to what will be tolerated.
Endnotes
*: Jaap Donath teaches comparative politics (including West European politics) and international relations at Florida Atlantic University. Back.