"Discrimination Against Muslims In Europe Has Been An Increasing Concern"

Sec. of State Clinton and the State Department released the Report on Human Rights Practices for 2009 a few days ago. The full report, country by country, you can read here.

But, as an appetizer, here's The Last Crusade on it.

thanks to Michael Travis

In her annual report on human rights, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton takes to task white Europeans for manifesting increased discrimination against Muslims.

Mrs. Clinton and her staff denounce not only Switzerland for its ban on the construction of new minarets but also the restrictions on wearing burqas and head scarves in France, Germany, and the Netherlands.

The report turns a harsh eye on the Netherlands, where Muslims number about 850,000, and criticizes the insensitive Dutch Prosecutor’s Office for dismissing complaints over the dissemination of a series of controversial cartoons, including those of a Danish artist depicting the Prophet Mohammed, and determining that the cartoons were neither offensive to Muslims as a group nor the cause of discrimination against Islam.

The contents of the report, which have failed to capture widespread national attention, also decry the authorities in Denmark for continuing to provide protection to Kurt Westergaard.

This criticism has caused some political analysts, including Edward Hopkins, to wonder if Mrs. Clinton and the State Department are calling upon the Danes to allow the irate Muslims, who assassinated Theo Van Gogh, to behead Mr. Westergaard.

Other pronouncements in the report are equally provocative.

Mrs. Clinton and the drafters of the report censor the Austrian Education Ministry for refusing to recognize the Alevi association – - reportedly a group comprised of Islamic militants – - as either a religious society or a religious community on the grounds that the state already officially recognizes one Muslim group: the Islamic Belief Community.

They further condemn the United Kingdom for its “Terrorism Act,” which imposes a range of restrictions on individuals suspected of terrorism-related activities.

“Discrimination against Muslims,” the report proclaims, “is an increasing concern.”

The report has little to say about the expulsion and persecution of Christians in Iran; the genital mutilation of women and children in Somalia and other Muslim countries, and virulent anti-Christian and Jewish rhetoric in mosques within Europe and throughout the world.

Nor did the report address the realization that every conflict throughout the world, from Chechnya to China, from Indonesia to India, from Afghanistan to Argentina, from Somalia to the Sudan, and from the Balkans to the Philippines, involves a manifestation of Islam.

Throughout her career, Mrs. Clinton has been an ardent admirer and defender of Islam. On one occasion, she praised Islam for its “universal values – - love of family and community, mutual respect, education, and the deepest yearning of all – - to live in peace – - values that can strengthen us as people and strengthen the United States as a nation.”

On October 3. 2009, the Secretary of State visited the Igbad Memorial in Pakistan, where, wearing a hijab, she joined with the imam and the Muslim dignitaries in Islamic prayer. The service included the Surah al-Ikhlas, which Mrs. Clinton recited. This surah contains the following four ayahs:

1. Say He is Allah, the One clear of all partners and similars.
2. Allah is the One needed by all and He needs none.
3. Allah does not beget children and He is not begotten.
4. And, there is none, in any way, similar to Him.

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