Islam in Denmark: Difference between revisions
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== Organizations == |
== Organizations == |
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* ''[[Foreningen af Demokratiske Muslimer]]'' (''The organization of democratic Muslims'') [http://www.demokratiskemuslimer.dk/] is a newly |
* ''[[Foreningen af Demokratiske Muslimer]]'' (''The organization of democratic Muslims'') [http://www.demokratiskemuslimer.dk/] is a newly established organization. |
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* ''[[Forum For Kritiske Muslimer]]'' (''Forum for critical Muslims'') [http://www.kritiskemuslimer.dk/] with a membership below 50 <ref>{{da icon}} [[Naser Khader]], "[http://politiken.dk/VisArtikel.iasp?PageID=439093 Demokratisk lakmusprøve]," ''[[Politiken]]'', 2006 February 18.</ref> |
* ''[[Forum For Kritiske Muslimer]]'' (''Forum for critical Muslims'') [http://www.kritiskemuslimer.dk/] with a membership below 50 <ref>{{da icon}} [[Naser Khader]], "[http://politiken.dk/VisArtikel.iasp?PageID=439093 Demokratisk lakmusprøve]," ''[[Politiken]]'', 2006 February 18.</ref> |
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* ''[[Islamisk Trossamfund]]'', represented by [[Ahmad Akkari]]. |
* ''[[Islamisk Trossamfund]]'', represented by [[Ahmad Akkari]]. |
Revision as of 09:53, 6 March 2006
Approximately 2%[1] - 5%[2] of the of population of Denmark is Muslim. Islam is the second largest religion, in terms of population, in Denmark. [3] Denmark has a significant Christian majority, with Protestants making up more than 92% of Danes with the Evangelical Lutheran Church strand being the state church. In 2005, 83,5% of the danish population was members of "Folkekirken" the christian church.[1]
Freedom of religion is part of the law in Denmark, and by 2005, nineteen different Muslim religious communities has status as religious societies, which gives them certain tax benefits.
Breakdown
The majority of the Muslims living in Denmark are first-generation Danes who arrived from Muslim-majority countries. During the 1970s, many Muslims emigrated from Turkey, Pakistan, Morocco, or Yugoslavia, while during the following two decades, a significant portion emigrated from Palestine, Iran, Iraq, and Somalia. [3]
The parts of the Qur'an (and other religious texts like the Bible) are required reading in a religion class in grammarschool at the obligatory C level. [4]
In 1967 the Nusrat Djahan Mosque the first Mosque in Scandinavia, was built in Hvidovre a suburb of Copenhagen. It is used by Ahmadi believers, and is not counted as Muslims, who sees the movement as disbelievers.[citation needed]
Other Mosques exist but are not built to the explicit purpose. It is not forbidden to build Mosques or any other religious buildings in Denmark but there are very strict zoning laws. One piece of land has been reserved for a grand Mosque near Copenhagen, but financing is not settled. It could easily be financed e.g. with Saudi money, but then it would become an Arab Mosque, and most Muslims in Denmark are not Arabs but Turks, Kurds, and Bosnians.
There are seven Muslim cemeteries in Denmark. They are all placed in connection with existing Danish graveyards. This seems to be a problem, as many Muslims don’t want to be buried so close to atheists and Christians, and therefore prefer to be flown to their home countries to be buried there.[citation needed]
Conflict
In April 2005 the Queen of Denmark Margrethe II published a biography with overtly Anti-Muslim statements, saying that "We have to show our opposition to Islam", also that there is "something frightening" about Islam.[5]
Later that year the Danish newspaper, Jyllands-Posten printed 12 caricatures of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in September of 2005. Those cartoons sparked a controversy, thusfar resulting in scores of deaths, the closures of Danish embassies, the boycott of Danish goods, and protests, all taking place throughout the Muslim countries. Violent protests by Muslims caused by the rising support of radical rightist groups and islamophobia in Denmark. However, Muslims in Denmark conducted only a few small, peaceful protests.
Organizations
- Foreningen af Demokratiske Muslimer (The organization of democratic Muslims) [2] is a newly established organization.
- Forum For Kritiske Muslimer (Forum for critical Muslims) [3] with a membership below 50 [6]
- Islamisk Trossamfund, represented by Ahmad Akkari.
- The Network, Tanwir Ahmad, represented by Sherin Khankan.
See also
References