After the Council of Europe and many other institutions and mainstream media criticised the drawing of the “Islamic Map”, the initiative for the Islam Map in Austria repeats the errors of the past, such as the Minaret ban in Switzerland, the ban against Halal slaughter and the attempt to ban circumcision in other countries. Instead of fighting all extremist tendencies based on radical interpretation of religion, the respective governments have attacked broadside Islam as a religion.
While claiming to seek to analyze so-called ‘good performance’ and ‘dangerous tendencies’ of Muslim organizations, the fact that this crude map includes interfaith organizations like the MJLC, shows a lack of understanding of the Council’s work, and calls into question the credibility of the entire effort.
At a time when research confirms that anti-Muslim sentiment in Austria, and across Western Europe, is on the rise, this map goes a step further by stigmatizing all Muslims living in Austria as a potential security threat, which can further fuel widespread discrimination against followers of Islam.
The vaguely defined concept of ‘political Islam’ cannot justify imposing such discriminatory measures, clearly targeted at a single minority group. We strongly urge the Austrian government to uphold its obligations to respect the rights to freedom of association and expression.